His first book, The Urban Villagers (1962), described Boston's diverse West End neighborhood, where he mainly studied its Italian-American working class community.
hɪz fˈɜːst bˈʊk, ðɪ ˈɜːbən vˈɪlɪdʒɚz nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti tˈuː, dᵻskɹˈaɪbd bˈɔstənz daɪvˈɜːs wˈɛst ˈɛnd nˈeɪbɚhˌʊd, wˌɛɹ hiː mˈeɪnli stˈʌdid ɪts ɪtˈæliənɐmˈɛɹɪkən wˈɜːkɪŋ klˈæs kəmjˈuːnᵻɾi.