Homesick

‘Apps set the gold standard with his Grenfell coverage. With Homesick, he dismantles the sham of UK housing policy – razor-sharp, stylish, and morally unflinching.’ —Darren McGarvey, author of Poverty Safari

‘A beautifully thorough, mesmerising and big-hearted book that manages to bring housing policy alive without losing any of the detail or analysis.’ —Isabel Hardman, author of Why We Get the Wrong Politicians

‘All of life is here – you will laugh, cry and learn from reading Peter Apps. Take this book, put it on the curriculum and turn it into government policy.’ —Vicky Spratt, author of Tenants

‘I don’t think there is anyone else out there capable of writing a book on housing with such quality, depth and humanity. The book is detailed and informative but always readable – the analysis and arguments are convincing; the personal accounts are relevant, enlightening and at times heartbreaking.’ —John Boughton, author of Municipal Dreams

‘An essential, epic love letter packed with hope for what housing was, should be and could be again. Apps is a skilled storyteller albeit every word is real and meticulously researched. This is the definitive account of how London’s relationship with house and home went wrong. A must-read’ —Lucy Easthope, author of When the Dust Settles

‘An erudite, careful, plausible, and heartfelt call for change, for building sensibly on the greenbelt, and for the far more efficient use of London’s existing stock including the house-in-every-street, small scale, flat-by-flat, nationalization (aka municipalization) of enough homes in London to make the capital liveable and social again, not just a place for servants and those whose parents gift them property.’ —Danny Dorling, author of Seven Children

‘Pete Apps’ enlightening account of how we got to where we are and how we might get out is a tour de force of  storytelling and analysis.’ —Gillian Slovo, author of Ice Road

‘Homesick relates the social, political and economic history of social housing in London since the 1980s. It is threaded through with narratives of real people and the changing picture of affordability and availability over the years. It is beautifully written, hugely knowledgeable and informative – the history of government finance for housing and its drivers was a revelation. Every historian, housing provider and politician must read this book, hang their heads in shame, and work for fundamental and radical change.’ —Emma Dent Coad, former MP for Kensington and author of One Kensington

‘Homesick is a powerful elegy to the relative affordability and security of housing in the London of Apps’ childhood. His superb account of its systematic unravelling is rooted in the intimate experiences of everyday Londoners, across different time periods, spaces, and tenures… A must-read for governments and the wider public in the UK, and beyond.’ —Loretta Lees, author of Gentrification

Peter Apps is an award-winning journalist and Deputy Editor at Inside Housing. His previous book, Show Me the Bodies, won the Orwell Prize for political writing and his coverage of the Grenfell public inquiry has received widespread acclaim. He lives in London.