Title: The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design
Authors: Roman Mars and Kurt Kohlsted
Genre: Non-Fiction
Cities are made up of many parts and many of those parts are often taken for granted as we go about our daily life, this book, however, takes a different approach. Broken down into six chapters, Inconspicuous, Conspicuous, Infrastructure, Architecture, Geography and Urbanism, this book offers a closer look at the little and not so little details that shape the urban world around us.
What I Think...
This was a fascinating book! When I checked it out, it was with the intention of only wanting to flip through and read a few parts, but I ended reading through all of it.
It was very well written and managed to pack a lot of detail in without being overwhelming or expecting the reader to have background knowledge on the subjects being discussed. Most of the subtopics are only a few pages, so it's easy to sit down and read a little at a time (or if you're me, say you're going to do that, and then end up reading through a chapter). I should add, I also really enjoyed how it focused on things from an international perspective rather than looking at just US cities, which in books of this sort I always feel makes the information being shared all the more interesting.
Some
of the fun things I learned while reading this included that the postal
service having home delivery in the US has its roots in the Civil War
when due to the high death toll, it was decided that it was better for
people to be able to receive any bad news in the privacy of their own
home rather than in public; Edison initially billed people for
electricity based on the number of light bulbs in their home; and that
in 1712, a British tax on patterned and printed wallpaper led to a trend
of people buying plain paper and stenciling their own.
The illustrations that accompanied the start of each chapter, sections within the chapters, and scattered throughout were unique and well suited to the nature of the book, as well.
To Sum It All Up...
Absolutely loved this book and while I'm not a big podcast person, I will definitely be listening to some of the 99% Invisible podcasts having read this! ♥
What an engaging, terrific sounding book. I will be adding The 99% Invisible City to my reading wishlist now. Thank you very much for the recommendation.
ReplyDeleteAutumn Zenith 🧡 Witchcrafted Life
I think it's a book you'd really enjoy! It definitely falls in the top three best non-fiction books I've read this year.
Delete