Cities by Smith and Perfect City by Berridge

With more than half the world’s population currently living in cities, the United Nations is projecting that proportion to grow to sixty-eight percent (over two-thirds of us) by 2050. Here are two recent books about cities:

CITIES: THE FIRST 6,000 YEARS by Monica L. Smith, an archaeologist and anthropologist on the faculty at the University of California, Los Angeles, outlines the reasons for cities’ existence.  She focuses on consumption and materialism while also noting security, employment, entertainment, and diversity as important factors: “urban social life and the entrepreneurial spirit associated with migration constituted a feedback loop that enticed more and more people who were looking to better their circumstances.” Acknowledging the many problems associated with cities (e.g., pollution, noise, crime), Smith draws an intriguing parallel with “another phenomenon that has seemingly sprung out of nowhere and causes a good deal of trouble, yet has become thoroughly interwoven with our lives: the internet.” Given her background, however, the emphasis seems to be on why cities arose and less on how they have evolved. Although her last chapter does peer into the “next 6,000 years,” most of the text seems to be looking backwards. Smith specifically refers to life examples from ancient cities in order to note that “making our own cities better … is likely to involve investment in three things:” social awareness, socioeconomic hierarchies, and the spirit of consumption. CITIES: THE FIRST 6,000 YEARS contains notes and an index and was recently reviewed in The Wall Street Journal in “The Metropolis and the Masses.” 

PERFECT CITY is written by Joe Berridge, a self-described “urban mechanic” who is a partner at Urban Strategies and a Fellow of the University of Toronto's Munk School of Public Policy.  Berridge begins by saying there is no such thing as a perfect city, but he acknowledges their collective importance and says that “they now rival nation states as the places where the social, economic, environmental and political future of the planet will be resolved.” Describing cities as “machines for moving things around,” he then devotes a chapter to the influence of Jane Jacobs (The Death and Life of Great American Cities) whom he met while living in Toronto. Berridge provides a “world urban tour,” chronicling his travels, his impressions, and urban projects in subsequent chapters centered on large international metropolitan areas (New York, Singapore, London, Manchester, Belfast, Toronto, Sydney and Shanghai). In the final chapter he once again notes the long-standing arguments between adherents of Jacobs and Robert Moses, then summarizes questions for the future based on his own “Urban Fixer's Global Search for Magic in the Modern Metropolis.” Of potential interest to students considering a career in urban planning, Berridge’s text is very readable and filled with stories, sentiment and some sweeping statements. Overall, it seems more akin to a travelogue than a book on public policy (he does raise concerns and issues), and although Berridge offers an index there is little help for researchers in terms of notes or bibliography. 

The Sentence is Death by Anthony Horowitz

THE SENTENCE IS DEATH by Anthony Horowitz is his second book involving former policeman Daniel Hawthorne (The Word is Murder was published in 2018).  This new title is equally entertaining as Hawthorne sets out to solve another murder while Horowitz writes himself into the story as narrator of events.  This time, it is a high profile divorce attorney, Richard Pryce, who has been found murdered – struck and then gouged with the remnants of a very expensive bottle of wine.  There are plenty of contemporary suspects such as Pryce’s current partner and ex-wives of his well-off clients, but past events, including unsettling references to a long ago death of a college friend, further complicate the case. Fortunately, Horowitz indicates he has “a three book deal” and fans of this series will devour this clever mystery and be eagerly awaiting the third installment. THE SENTENCE IS DEATH received starred reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly.

LibraryReads Selection Ideas

It is almost Thanksgiving and that long break from school and work may provide a nice window to sit down and relax with a longer read.  There is certainly plenty of choice – with recent National Book Awards announcement, The New York Times’ list of Notable Books being released this week, and voting ongoing for Goodreads Choice Awards.  Here, I am going to note several LibraryReads selections – some of the 10 books chosen each month by librarians to recommend to their patrons:

I look forward to and definitely recommend titles by Kate Morton, international bestselling author of The House at Riverton, since she offers a kind of Gothic mystery that both challenges and entertains. There’s suspense and a bit of romantic tension in each, including her latest, THE CLOCKMAKER'S DAUGHTER which was a LibraryReads selection in October. In this novel, which bridges 150 years, Morton introduces Edward Radcliffe and his artistic associates who are spending the summer of 1862 at Birchwood Manor on the upper Thames. Intending to escape and focus on creative endeavors, they instead experience a murder, a disappearance, and a jewelry theft. Once again, Morton features a house that bears witness through generations as a modern day archivist, Elodie Winslow, discovers a photo and drawing which prompts her hunt for family connections. Pick up this novel if you are looking for historical fiction dealing with art and secrets; THE CLOCKMAKER'S DAUGHTER received a starred review from Publishers Weekly.  

 

A LibraryReads selection in September, TRANSCRIPTION by Kate Atkinson is another suspenseful work of historical fiction set during the Second World War and 1950s London. The main character is Juliet who at 18 is first employed to rather naively transcribe wartime conversations for the British intelligence service, MI5, and who increasingly becomes involved in espionage activities, and later works as a BBC producer on children’s programming.  Once again, Atkinson describes how events and choices reverberate across time, causing the reader to reflect on the meaning of patriotism, on guilt, and on fate’s tragic repercussions.  TRANSCRIPTION received starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus, and Library Journal.

VIRGIL WANDER by Leif Enger (Peace Like a River) was an October LibraryReads selection and could easily work as a Junior Theme choice given the publisher’s description as a “timeless all-American story that follows the inhabitants of a small Midwestern town in their quest to revive its flagging heart.” Virgil’s car runs off the road into Lake Superior near Greenstone, Minnesota and he suffers memory loss as a result.  Virgil’s subsequent and sometimes humorous interactions with residents (including a romantic interest, a best friend and newspaper editor, and a pet raccoon called Genghis) and also visitors (like Rune, a fan of kite flying who is looking for his long lost son) charmingly chronicles attempts at recovery for both Virgil and the town. VIRGIL WANDER received starred reviews from Library Journal (“surprises and delights throughout”) and Booklist (“Virgil's narration is a joy: he lost his adjectives in the crash, making for their gleeful insertion each time he remembers one.”).

 

THE LIBRARY BOOK by Susan Orlean is actually a narrative non-fiction work that tells the story of the Los Angeles Public Library fire which occurred in 1986. This text, too, includes a bit of a mystery given that the cause of the fire was suspicious and Orlean deftly explores the story of suspect Harry Peak.  She also comments on her own relationship with books and reading, especially reflecting on childhood visits to the library with her mother. Overall, this is a fascinating look at library operations. Please see the video below for more visual detail from a PBS NewsHour interview with author Susan Orlean:

A LibraryReads selection in October and recipient of starred reviews from Booklist and Library Journal, THE LIBRARY BOOK will be appreciated by bibliophiles and fans of libraries everywhere.