FAULT LINES.

• Author: Wolfe, Liz

"For people who have lived in Austin, Texas, for more than a few years," John Langmore's Fault Lines: Portraits of East Austin starts, "two emotions often compete for dominance: how sweet it remains to call Austin home, and how quickly Austin is changing."

For my neighborhood that is especially true. In 1928, the city government enacted segregationist policies meant to push black and Latino families away from white neighborhoods. In the 1930s, federal government redlining cemented this further. Now East Austin--where the minority population put down roots--is gentrifying. Langmore's book captures essay and photo vignettes of how things used to be: joyous June-teenth celebrations: a house with a shrine to the Virgin Mary in the yard and a rooster clucking in the driveway; tricked-out slab cars with elbow wheels and glossy paint; tortilla factories that have since been shuttered.

"What I fear most is that one day my grandchildren and great-grandchildren will never...