Authors
-
problogic
- Working list: World’s deepest open pit mines past and present
- Biggest baddest bottlenecks for truck traffic in the USA
- Scaling one the last remaining fire lookout towers in Illinois
- A living art museum amid ghost town ruins
- Frozen fun: The ascent of ice climbing parks
- Take a [Late Night Drive Home] to alternative rock bliss
- India’s longest road/highway land tunnels
- Morenci: A look inside America’s largest copper mine
- “Storyliving towns” – A new dystopian blueprint?
- The world’s wildest roundabout is below the ocean!
-
Tag Archives: book reviews
Five captivating books about being a fire lookout
Below are my five favorite books read to date about serving as a fire lookout in the United States or Canada. The books are listed in order of personal preference, though each brings a unique and timeless perspective to this … Continue reading
Posted in book reviews, books, Canada, climate, climate change, Climate Change, Communications, culture, ecosystems, environment, geography, history, land use, literature, lookouts, mountains, natural history, nature, North America, rivers/watersheds, sustainability, weather, Wilderness, Wildlife, Women, writing
Tagged authors, book reviews, books, Canada, climate, climate change, environment, fire lookouts, forest fires, geography, history, Joe Bill, John Suiter, land use, lookouts, Philip Connors, Trina Moyles, wildfire, writing
1 Comment
Favorite book by year it was read and by year published
By Year the Book Was Read – only have kept track since 2011 YEAR READ BOOK (YEAR PUBLISHED) AUTHOR 2024 2023 Lookout: Love, Solitude, and Searching for Wildfires in the Boreal Forest (2021) Trina Moyles 2022 Everything Now: Lessons from … Continue reading
Posted in art, book reviews, books, cartoons, Communications, entertainment, fun, history, Language, literature, pictures, reading, Science fiction, Women, writing
Tagged book reviews, books, entertainment, fiction, fun, history, non-fiction, novels, reading, writing
Leave a comment
Is Soul City’s dream being realized in Illinois?
Floyd McKissick nurtured a powerful vision following the conclusion of World War II. His dream encompassed the creation of a groundbreaking integrated city, one that would provide Black Americans with the opportunity to embrace the full range of economic, cultural, … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, advertising, Advocacy, Africa, Alternative transportation, architecture, atomic age, bicycling, Biking, book reviews, books, branding, business, cities, civics, Civil Rights, colleges, commerce, Communications, culture, demographics, distribution, diversity, economic development, economic gardening, Economy, ecosystems, education, engineering, entrepreneurship, environment, futurism, geography, government, health, highways, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, industry, infrastructure, land use, literature, logistics, Maps, marketing, new urbanism, Passenger rail, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, politics, Privatization, product design, racism, rail, Railroads, reading, recreation, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, topography, toponymy, tourism, trails, transportation, Travel, trucking, urban design, urban planning, walking, writing, zoning
Tagged book reviews, books, cities, communities, diversity, Floyd McKissick, geography, Governors State University, history, land use, New Towns, Park Forest South, planning, politics, racism, Soul City, transportation, University Park
Leave a comment
Scaling peaks of stone despite achy bones: A memoir and and an aspiration
I wish I had discovered my passion for peak hiking earlier in life. Not realizing it until my early 60s has left me with less time to explore summits than I would have preferred. Despite the delay, the rewards often … Continue reading
Posted in art, book reviews, books, culture, deserts, ecosystems, entertainment, environment, family, fun, geography, Geology, health, hiking, history, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Love, Maps, Mining, mountains, natural history, nature, peace, pictures, placemaking, planning, pollution, psychology, reading, recreation, rivers/watersheds, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, topography, toponymy, tourism, trails, transportation, Travel, visual pollution, walking, water, Wilderness, Wildlife, Women, writing
Tagged aging, Andrea Lani, book reviews, books, Colorado Trail, environment, fun, geography, hiking, history, land use, mountains, peaks, planning, scaling, trails, travel, walking, writing
1 Comment
Living amid an “Ecology of Fear”
I recently read Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster by the late Mike Davis. It is an intriguing book that switches from whimsical to dark and foreboding at the turn of a page. In fact, the … Continue reading
Posted in Advocacy, Africa, Animals, archaeology, art, Asia, book reviews, books, branding, business, Canada, Cars, cities, civics, Civil Rights, civility, climate, climate change, commerce, Communications, culture, demographics, density, diversity, economic development, economics, ecosystems, education, entertainment, entrepreneurship, environment, film, fun, futurism, geography, Geology, government, Guns, Handguns, health, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, human rights, humanity, immigration, inclusiveness, India, industry, infrastructure, injustice, land use, Latin America, literature, marketing, money, movies, music, natural history, nature, opinion, planning, politics, pollution, poverty, psychology, racism, reading, Religion, revitalization, schools, Science, Science fiction, Sexism, Small business, social equity, Social media, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, technology, Television, theaters, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, transportation, Travel, unemployment, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution, weather, Wilderness, Wildlife, Women, writing, zoning
Tagged authors, book reviews, books, California, culture, culture wars, diversity, dystopia, environment, extrapolative, fear, geography, history, hope, inclusivness, literature, Los Angeles, maps, Mike Davis, opinion, planning, safety, security, The Ecology of Fear, writing
Leave a comment
Three superb and fresh reads about Los Angeles
“These three books will certainly introduce readers to the width and breadth of mighty Los Angeles. If that entity, however you define it, resists a simple explanation, then so be it. For that may be one of the LA’s most endearing and enduring qualities.” Continue reading
Posted in art, book reviews, books, business, Cars, cities, culture, diversity, downtown, economics, entertainment, environment, fun, geography, government, Highway displacement, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, humanity, immigration, inclusiveness, industry, infrastructure, injustice, land use, literature, mountains, movies, Music, natural history, nature, new urbanism, placemaking, planning, pollution, racism, rail, recreation, Renewable Energy, revitalization, skylines, social equity, songs, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, sustainability, technology, Television, third places, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, trucking, urban design, urban planning, walking, weather, Wildlife, writing, zoning
Tagged arts, book reviews, books, Califronia, fresh, LA, literature, Los Angeles, new publications, reading, writing
Leave a comment
Finding “Los Angeles” amid the aura of “LA”
Downtown Los Angeles with the San Gabriel Mountains in the background – Source: unsplash.com Every city is unique unto itself. Just like human beings, cities have their own character, appearance, identity, flaws, attributes, and aesthetics. As a result, no single … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, bicycling, Biking, books, branding, business, Cars, cities, civics, commerce, culture, diversity, downtown, economic development, engineering, entertainment, entrepreneurship, environment, film, fun, geography, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, land use, literature, Love, mountains, movies, Music, nature, new urbanism, Passenger rail, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, politics, rail, Railroads, recreation, skylines, skyscrapers, songs, spatial design, sprawl, technology, Television, theaters, third places, topography, toponymy, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, walking, writing, zoning
Tagged book reviews, books, California, cities, freeways, geography, history, LA, La La Land, land use, literature, Los Angeles, megacity, movies, planning, shows, Southern California, writing
Leave a comment
The “unity of drought” must supersede myths and self interest
*A small commission is earned from purchases that are made using the above links to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. _______ The book Water is for Fighting Over: and Other Myths About Water in the … Continue reading
Posted in art, book reviews, books, cities, civics, civility, climate, climate change, economic development, ecosystems, education, engineering, environment, futurism, geography, Geology, government, health, history, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, injustice, land use, landscape architecture, literature, Maps, Native Americans, natural history, nature, opinion, planning, politics, reading, recreation, rivers/watersheds, Science, social equity, spatial design, Statistics, topography, urban planning, water, water conservation, weather, writing
Tagged book reviews, books, collaboration, Colorado River, drought, ecology, ecosystems, environment, John Fleck, myths, Rio Grande, Southwest, water, water conservation, watersheds, writing
Leave a comment
15.3 million footsteps from Istanbul to Xian!
Over the course of four years (1999-2002), author and retired journalist Bernard Ollivier trekked the ancient Silk Road on foot from Istanbul, Turkey to Xian, China. He accomplished this monumental 7,500 mile (12,000 km) feat by overcoming aches, pains, illnesses, … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, archaeology, architecture, art, Asia, book reviews, books, China, cities, civics, civility, commerce, Communications, Cuisine, culture, diversity, education, entertainment, environment, family, fun, geography, health, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, human rights, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, injustice, land use, Language, literature, Maps, military, natural history, nature, opinion, pictures, place names, placemaking, politics, pollution, reading, recreation, Religion, Statistics, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transportation, Travel, walking, weather, Wildlife, Women, writing
Tagged Asia, Bernard Ollivier, book reviews, books, cultures, hiking, travel, walking, writing
Leave a comment
Creating LA’s starlit aura – “The Mirage Factory”
What an outstanding book! Perhaps, my favorite the best city biography ever read. Author Gary Krist simply nails it with The Mirage Factory. It’s entertaining, enthralling, infuriating, and thoroughly engaging to read. You will definitely learn some amazing and eye-opening … Continue reading
Posted in Advocacy, art, book reviews, books, branding, business, Cars, cities, civics, commerce, Communications, consumerism, culture, demographics, economic development, entertainment, entrepreneurship, environment, film, fun, geography, Geology, government, highways, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, industry, infrastructure, injustice, land use, marketing, movies, music, nature, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, politics, product design, racism, reading, Religion, rivers/watersheds, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, technology, theaters, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, Women, writing
Tagged book reviews, books, California, Gary Krist, history, LA, Los Angeles, silent films, The Mirage Factory, urban biographies, water
Leave a comment
Panethos 