How Jane Jacobs Challenged 'Olympian' Planners

woman who wore comfortable shoes while dishing out uncomfortable truths, who kept her ear to the ground while trying to topple giants...Jacobs' clear, unpretentious style and her effort to begin with stories and evidence and then move toward unifying theories inspired writers of all specialties hoping to tackle complex ideas for a broad audience...In the 1960s, though, that accessibility was often mistaken for a lack of sophistication.