The Life and Death of Great American Cities – Jane Jacobs
I picked up this book because I heard some interviewer say, “well at least I’m happy Barack Obama knows who Jane Jabobs is”. I don’t remember who was being interviewed or the context of that conversation. I just remember thinking, “well I don’t know who Jane Jacobs is” so I went and bought one of her books. That was a good decision as I really enjoyed this book. Jacobs describes the elements that work together to make a city successful and how conventional wisdom – i.e. modern city planning – that’s been established through tradition and repetition often leads to poor decision making. She’s basically saying that if you don’t know how something works you won’t be able to solve its problems. And no amount of academia can change that.
Sex Drugs and Cocopuffs – Chuck Closterman
Very easy to read. I knocked this book off in two days. Closterman writes very conversationally so his books are very easy to digest. This was a collection of his essays.
Killing Yourself to Live – Chuck Closterman
I liked Sex Drugs and Cocopuffs so much that I decided to read this book too. Chuck goes on a road trip across the US to write about muscians who’ve died. He talks about relationships in the process. It’s good. Entertaining and interesting.
