I have been interested in city planning for as long as I can remember. That is perhaps because I grew up in Birmingham, England, a city that probably suffered from its worst excesses more than most. In my job as a reporter for The Economist, I have had the privilege to see cities all over the world upfront, and probe how they work. Some of these are books I keep coming back to; others ones that I furiously agreed with. I hope you enjoy them all.
I wrote
Carmageddon: How Cars Make Life Worse and What to Do about It
If urbanists have a bible, Jane Jacobs’s first book, published in 1961, is it.
When I first read it, over a decade ago, I was radicalised. It made me think about how cities work in a way that I simply hadn’t before.
The book is a celebration of city life that was, even as she wrote, being destroyed by cars, expressway buildings, and “urban renewal,” all being done by blind bureaucrats in the name of progress.
In this classic text, Jane Jacobs set out to produce an attack on current city planning and rebuilding and to introduce new principles by which these should be governed. The result is one of the most stimulating books on cities ever written.
Throughout the post-war period, planners temperamentally unsympathetic to cities have been let loose on our urban environment. Inspired by the ideals of the Garden City or Le Corbusier's Radiant City, they have dreamt up ambitious projects based on self-contained neighbourhoods, super-blocks, rigid 'scientific' plans and endless acres of grass. Yet they seldom stop to look at what actually…
Jessie’s book, There Are No Accidents, is dedicated to a friend of hers who was killed cycling in New York City, by a drunk driver.
Her book however explains how such “accidents” are not only the fault of the people who directly cause them, but also of social systems that make it possible for bad decisions to cause catastrophes, and who it is who profits from them.
As a cyclist, I think about that all of the time whenever I get into an argument with a driver who – accidentally – almost kills me.
A journalist recounts the surprising history of accidents and reveals how they've come to define all that's wrong with America.
We hear it all the time: "Sorry, it was just an accident." And we've been deeply conditioned to just accept that explanation and move on. But as Jessie Singer argues convincingly: There are no such things as accidents. The vast majority of mishaps are not random but predictable and preventable. Singer uncovers just how the term "accident" itself protects those in power and leaves the most vulnerable in harm's way, preventing investigations, pushing off debts, blaming the victims, diluting anger,…
The aftermath of human first contact, written from the extraterrestrial's perspective.
Kelvoo is overcome with wonder at the arrival of the humans. With flawless memories and innate curiosity, Kelvoo’s community embraces the benevolent humans and their knowledge of the boundless universe beyond the cloud-covered sky. After the departure of the…
When I was writing my book, I read a lot of history to try to understand what the planners and politicians of the past were thinking when they demolished whole neighbourhoods to make way for cars.
After Jane Jacobs’s book, Traffic in Towns, a government report that became a surprise best-seller in the 1960s, is perhaps the best guide.
Buchanan’s book makes you realise that in fact they did understand the problems. They just felt that there was nothing they could do about it – people would buy cars whatever happened.
To read it now, with its mix of modernist optimism and infuriating madness, is fascinating.
Traffic in Towns, also known as the Buchanan Report, is regarded as one of the most influential planning documents of the twentieth century. The report reflected mounting concern about the impact on Britain's towns and cities of rapid growth in the ownership and use of motor vehicles. Its purpose was to evaluate policy options for reducing the threat of traffic congestion to urban circulation and quality of life.
Two main conclusions were drawn from the report: firstly, the need for large-scale reconstruction to make Britain's cities fit for the `motor age', including split-level megastructures and urban motorways; and secondly, the…
The great aristocratic amphibian has a deep boyish charm, and his love of motoring in later TV and film adaptations, is often portrayed as essentially harmless. Yet in fact, when it was written, it was not meant to be all that sympathetic.
In my own book, I explain how Mr. Toad represented the rich reckless car owners of the early Victorian period, stealing the road from decent people like Mole, Ratty, and Badger and getting everyone into trouble with a pointless demand for excitement.
In the end, Toad repents. I wish the modern BMW drivers who seem to follow his advice would too.
Spend a season on the river bank and take a walk on the wild side . . .
Spring is in the air and Mole has found a wonderful new world. There's boating with Ratty, a feast with Badger and high jinx on the open road with that reckless ruffian, Mr Toad of Toad Hall. The four become the firmest of friends, but after Toad's latest escapade, can they join together and beat the wretched weasels?
PLUS A behind-the-scenes journey, including author profile, a guide to who's who, activities and more.
Seeker: As societies grow increasingly fragmented, hopelessness, nihilism, division, and despair are on the rise. But there is another way—a way of mystery and magic, of wholeness and transformation. Do you dare take the first step? Our path is not for the faint-hearted, but for seekers of ancient truths...
If aliens came to earth, what would they think is the dominant species on the planet?
In The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, with his character Ford Prefect, an alien who arrived on earth and picked a name intended to blend in, Douglas Adams casually suggested they make the mistake of thinking cars were. Is that so unreasonable?
After all, the entire planet seems to be built around serving their needs. Adams also features a bunch of callous, stupid bureaucrats casually destroying the whole of earth to build a hyperspace bypass.
I must have read this entire series a dozen times in the past 20 years and its urbanist message was not lost on me.
This box set contains all five parts of the' trilogy of five' so you can listen to the complete tales of Arthur Dent, Ford Prefect, Zaphod Bebblebrox and Marvin the Paranoid Android! Travel through space, time and parallel universes with the only guide you'll ever need, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
Read by Stephen Fry, actor, director, author and popular audiobook reader, and Martin Freeman, who played Arthur Dent in film version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. He is well known as Tim in The Office.
The set also includes a bonus DVD Life, the Universe and…
Carmageddon is a book that explains how the automobile took over the world, and why it has been a catastrophe. Blending history, economics, and fresh reporting from places as far afield as Detroit, Mumbai, Tokyo, and even the Democratic Republic of Congo, it explains how designing our streets and cities so that people can only get around in their cars has, in the end, rather than making us more mobile, made us less happy, less healthy, poorer and indeed, driven us all farther apart.
It’s 1969. Women are fighting for equality. Rosalee, an insecure sculptor, and Fran, a best-selling novelist, have their issues. Will their bitter envy of each other and long-held secrets destroy their tenuous friendship? Or will Jill, Rosalee’s granddaughter, and the story behind her emerald necklace bind them together?
Embark on a riveting journey into Washington State’s untamed Olympic Peninsula, where the threads of folklore legends and historical icons are woven into a complex ecological tapestry.
Follow the enigmatic Petr as he fearlessly employs his pirate radio transmitter to broadcast the forgotten and untamed voices that echo through the…
