THE MAYOR'S GAME: Richard Lee of New Haven and the Politics of Change

Now in his seventh term, Richard Lee is nationally known because of his comprehensive renewal program for the city of New Haven. He struggled with business interests, school boards, rich and poor in his effort to make his city more livable and his victory was not a small feat in these days of smog and smugness. Mr. Talbot, part of Lee's urban task force, is understandably admiring in his long, interesting narrative of Lee's rise as a politician and his fight for a new Haven. Minor heroes appear--the late Yale president Griswold, theorist Edward Logue, civic leader Roger L . Stevens--as well as villains, but the real Galahad is Mayor Lee. How he cut through the thicket of political indifference, public wariness and financial hostility may not be of interest to a large audience outside the arena of urban affairs; but it will inspire those who do read it--and they will find this the final reward--the hope that other cities may be changed. Who can ask for more, in an America up to her neck in auto grease and choking in the fumes from General Bullmoose's Cigar.