It discusses the development of two "garden suburbs" in Texas, the River Oaks neighborhood in Houston and the Dallas–Fort Worth municipality of Highland Park, during the 1920s.

[1] In regards to River Oaks and Highland Park the book discusses how the developers priced the lots, targeted buyers, and opened suburbs in phases.

In the final chapter the author stated that the developments historically prevented African-Americans and Hispanics and Latinos from living there and therefore had a higher social status.

[4] Ferguson uses primary sources including advertisements, architectural drawings, deed restrictions, and planning documents to demonstrate the national trends.

[1] Robert E. Krause of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission praised the text for balancing the prose on individual houses within the developments and the prose on the overall development of the neighborhoods, and the illustrations for being "lovely"; Krause praised the author "for not only her research, but for creating a work widely applicable to subject experts, students, and the general public.