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The Death and Life of Great American Cities
- 50th Anniversary Edition
- Narrated by: Donna Rawlins
- Length: 18 hrs
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The Death and Life of Great American Cities
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Walkable City
- How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time
- Written by: Jeff Speck
- Narrated by: Jeff Speck
- Length: 6 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 19
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 17
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 17
Jeff Speck has dedicated his career to determining what makes cities thrive. And he has boiled it down to one key factor: walkability. The very idea of a modern metropolis evokes visions of bustling sidewalks, vital mass transit, and a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly urban core. But in the typical American city, the car is still king, and downtown is a place that’s easy to drive to but often not worth arriving at. Making walkability happen is relatively easy and cheap; seeing exactly what needs to be done is the trick.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great introduction to smart city design
- By Amazon Customer on 2022-06-25
Written by: Jeff Speck
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Strong Towns
- A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity
- Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
- Narrated by: Matthew Boston
- Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 30
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 26
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Story5 out of 5 stars 25
Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Build American Prosperity is a book of forward-thinking ideas that breaks with modern wisdom to present a new vision of urban development in the United States. Presenting the foundational ideas of the Strong Towns movement he cofounded, Charles Marohn explains why cities of all sizes continue to struggle to meet their basic needs, and reveals the new paradigm that can solve this longstanding problem.
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4 out of 5 stars
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They need pauses between sections
- By Client d'Amazon on 2022-01-02
Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
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Walkable City Rules
- 101 Steps to Making Better Places
- Written by: Jeff Speck
- Narrated by: Jeff Speck
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 9
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 8
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 8
Nearly every US city would like to be more walkable - for reasons of health, wealth, and the environment - yet few are taking the proper steps to get there. The goals are often clear, but the path is seldom easy. Jeff Speck’s follow-up to his best-selling Walkable City is the resource that cities and citizens need to usher in an era of renewed street life. Walkable City Rules is a doer’s guide to making change in cities, and making it now.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Terrific summary of key items. No nonsense.
- By James Burton on 2021-12-01
Written by: Jeff Speck
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Palaces for the People
- How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life
- Written by: Eric Klinenberg
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 18
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 13
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 13
In Palaces for the People, Eric Klinenberg suggests a way forward. He believes that the future of democratic societies rests not simply on shared values but on shared spaces: the libraries, synagogues, and parks where crucial, sometimes life-saving connections, are formed. These are places where people gather, making friends across group lines and strengthening the entire community. Klinenberg calls this the “social infrastructure”: When it is strong, neighborhoods flourish; when it is neglected, as it has been in recent years, families and individuals must fend for themselves.
Written by: Eric Klinenberg
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The 99% Invisible City
- A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design
- Written by: Kurt Kohlstedt, Roman Mars
- Narrated by: Roman Mars
- Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 29
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 25
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 25
99% Invisible is a big-ideas podcast about small-seeming things, revealing stories baked into the buildings we inhabit, the streets we drive, and the sidewalks we traverse. The show celebrates design and architecture in all of its functional glory and accidental absurdity, with intriguing tales of both designers and the people impacted by their designs.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Enjoyable and Informative!
- By Pierre Gauthier on 2020-11-30
Written by: Kurt Kohlstedt, and others
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Confessions of a Recovering Engineer
- Transportation for a Strong Town
- Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
- Narrated by: Christopher Douyard
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 29
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 26
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 26
In Confessions of a Recovering Engineer, renowned speaker and author of Strong Towns Charles L. Marohn, Jr., delivers an accessible and engaging exploration of America's transportation system, laying bare the reasons why it no longer works as it once did, and how to modernize transportation to better serve local communities.
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5 out of 5 stars
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PLEASE Read this Book
- By Jeffrey Hodgins on 2022-05-06
Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
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Walkable City
- How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time
- Written by: Jeff Speck
- Narrated by: Jeff Speck
- Length: 6 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 19
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 17
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 17
Jeff Speck has dedicated his career to determining what makes cities thrive. And he has boiled it down to one key factor: walkability. The very idea of a modern metropolis evokes visions of bustling sidewalks, vital mass transit, and a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly urban core. But in the typical American city, the car is still king, and downtown is a place that’s easy to drive to but often not worth arriving at. Making walkability happen is relatively easy and cheap; seeing exactly what needs to be done is the trick.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great introduction to smart city design
- By Amazon Customer on 2022-06-25
Written by: Jeff Speck
-
Strong Towns
- A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity
- Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
- Narrated by: Matthew Boston
- Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 25
Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Build American Prosperity is a book of forward-thinking ideas that breaks with modern wisdom to present a new vision of urban development in the United States. Presenting the foundational ideas of the Strong Towns movement he cofounded, Charles Marohn explains why cities of all sizes continue to struggle to meet their basic needs, and reveals the new paradigm that can solve this longstanding problem.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
They need pauses between sections
- By Client d'Amazon on 2022-01-02
Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
-
Walkable City Rules
- 101 Steps to Making Better Places
- Written by: Jeff Speck
- Narrated by: Jeff Speck
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 9
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 8
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 8
Nearly every US city would like to be more walkable - for reasons of health, wealth, and the environment - yet few are taking the proper steps to get there. The goals are often clear, but the path is seldom easy. Jeff Speck’s follow-up to his best-selling Walkable City is the resource that cities and citizens need to usher in an era of renewed street life. Walkable City Rules is a doer’s guide to making change in cities, and making it now.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Terrific summary of key items. No nonsense.
- By James Burton on 2021-12-01
Written by: Jeff Speck
-
Palaces for the People
- How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life
- Written by: Eric Klinenberg
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 18
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 13
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 13
In Palaces for the People, Eric Klinenberg suggests a way forward. He believes that the future of democratic societies rests not simply on shared values but on shared spaces: the libraries, synagogues, and parks where crucial, sometimes life-saving connections, are formed. These are places where people gather, making friends across group lines and strengthening the entire community. Klinenberg calls this the “social infrastructure”: When it is strong, neighborhoods flourish; when it is neglected, as it has been in recent years, families and individuals must fend for themselves.
Written by: Eric Klinenberg
-
The 99% Invisible City
- A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design
- Written by: Kurt Kohlstedt, Roman Mars
- Narrated by: Roman Mars
- Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 25
99% Invisible is a big-ideas podcast about small-seeming things, revealing stories baked into the buildings we inhabit, the streets we drive, and the sidewalks we traverse. The show celebrates design and architecture in all of its functional glory and accidental absurdity, with intriguing tales of both designers and the people impacted by their designs.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Enjoyable and Informative!
- By Pierre Gauthier on 2020-11-30
Written by: Kurt Kohlstedt, and others
-
Confessions of a Recovering Engineer
- Transportation for a Strong Town
- Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
- Narrated by: Christopher Douyard
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 26
In Confessions of a Recovering Engineer, renowned speaker and author of Strong Towns Charles L. Marohn, Jr., delivers an accessible and engaging exploration of America's transportation system, laying bare the reasons why it no longer works as it once did, and how to modernize transportation to better serve local communities.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
PLEASE Read this Book
- By Jeffrey Hodgins on 2022-05-06
Written by: Charles L. Marohn Jr.
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A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction
- Center for Environmental Structure Series
- Written by: Christopher Alexander
- Narrated by: Mike Fraser
- Length: 29 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall0 out of 5 stars 0
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Performance0 out of 5 stars 0
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Story0 out of 5 stars 0
You can use this book to design a house for yourself with your family; you can use it to work with your neighbors to improve your town and neighborhood; you can use it to design an office, a workshop, or a public building. And you can use it to guide you in the actual process of construction.
Written by: Christopher Alexander
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The High Cost of Free Parking, Updated Edition
- Written by: Donald Shoup
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 23 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 4
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4
In this no-holds-barred treatise, Donald Shoup argues that free parking has contributed to auto dependence, rapid urban sprawl, extravagant energy use, and a host of other problems. Planners mandate free parking to alleviate congestion but end up distorting transportation choices, debasing urban design, damaging the economy, and degrading the environment. Ubiquitous free parking helps explain why our cities sprawl on a scale fit more for cars than for people. But it doesn't have to be this way.
Written by: Donald Shoup
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You Say to Brick
- The Life of Louis Kahn
- Written by: Wendy Lesser
- Narrated by: Will Damron
- Length: 15 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 4
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3
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Story5 out of 5 stars 3
Born to a Jewish family in Estonia in 1901 and brought to America in 1906, the architect Louis Kahn grew up in poverty in Philadelphia; by the time of his death in 1974, he was widely recognized as one of the greatest architects of his era. Yet this enormous reputation was based on only a handful of masterpieces, all built during the last 15 years of his life.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent biography
- By Anonymous User on 2018-04-01
Written by: Wendy Lesser
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The Geography of Nowhere
- The Rise and Decline of America's Man-Made Landscape
- Written by: James Howard Kunstler
- Narrated by: Al Kessel
- Length: 12 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 7
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 5
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5
In elegant and often hilarious prose, Kunstler depicts our nation's evolution from the Pilgrim settlements to the modern auto suburb in all its ghastliness. The Geography of Nowhere tallies up the huge economic, social, and spiritual costs that America is paying for its car-crazed lifestyle. It is also a wake-up call for citizens to reinvent the places where we live and work, to build communities that are once again worthy of our affection. Kunstler proposes that by reviving civic art and civic life, we will rediscover public virtue and a new vision of the common good.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Valuable insights and interesting arguments but..
- By Kat on 2020-06-02
Written by: James Howard Kunstler
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A Place of My Own
- The Architecture of Daydreams
- Written by: Michael Pollan
- Narrated by: Michael Pollan
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 36
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 36
With this updated edition of his earlier book, A Place of My Own, listeners can revisit the inspired, intelligent, and often hilarious story of Pollan’s realization of a room of his own—a small, wooden hut, his “shelter for daydreams” — built with his admittedly unhandy hands. Inspired by both Thoreau and Mr. Blandings, A Place of My Own not only works to convey the history and meaning of all human building, it also marks the connections between our bodies, our minds, and the natural world.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fantastic
- By Ryan on 2023-01-27
Written by: Michael Pollan
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The Color of Law
- A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America
- Written by: Richard Rothstein
- Narrated by: Adam Grupper
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 23
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 16
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Story5 out of 5 stars 17
In this groundbreaking history of the modern American metropolis, Richard Rothstein explodes the myth that America's cities came to be racially divided through de facto segregation - that is, through individual prejudices, income differences, or the actions of private institutions like banks and real estate agencies. Rather, he incontrovertibly makes clear that it was de jure segregation - the laws and policy decisions passed by local, state, and federal governments - that actually promoted the discriminatory patterns that continue to this day.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Ground-breaking!
- By Pierre Gauthier on 2021-06-11
Written by: Richard Rothstein
Publisher's Summary
Thirty years after its publication, The Death and Life of Great American Cities was described by The New York Times as "perhaps the most influential single work in the history of town planning....[It] can also be seen in a much larger context. It is first of all a work of literature; the descriptions of street life as a kind of ballet and the bitingly satiric account of traditional planning theory can still be read for pleasure even by those who long ago absorbed and appropriated the book's arguments."
Jane Jacobs, an editor and writer on architecture in New York City in the early 60s, argued that urban diversity and vitality were being destroyed by powerful architects and city planners. Rigorous, sane, and delightfully epigrammatic, Jacobs's small masterpiece is a blueprint for the humanistic management of cities. It is sensible, knowledgeable, readable, indispensable.
The author has written a new foreword for this Modern Library edition.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Monique Osborne
- 2020-04-25
A must-read for any avid Reader.
Timeless in that the systems she describes are still here, public vs corporate development, people vs concrete. it doesn't matter what your ideology, reading this book will enrich your understanding of the complexities easily judged as chaos of cities.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Eric L, Montreal
- 2022-12-17
Wonderful reading of a classic on city design
This is a classic book on urban planning. Not being trained in urban planning I can’t give any sort of appreciation of its influence on its field. I’ll only say that as a complete amateur interested in cities, I can totally understand why this book is considered a classic. It is full of pithy and telling observations framed by a most humane conception of the purposes cities are meant to serve. As she indicates at the end, her approach is inductive; she formulates broader principles on the basis of detailed observations. And, as a college professor who spends a lot of time writing and editing peoples’ writing, I found Jane Jacobs’ writing marvellous: full of apt phrases, making accurate use of a rich vocabulary, exceedingly lively. If I were teaching a course on writing I would draw many examples from this book for students to emulate. Finally the reader is excellent - her tone and liveliness fit the writing extremely well. In conclusion I would say this book is well worth listening to for anyone seeking to understand better what makes cities work.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2022-11-24
Refaire une place à la vie de quartier
Déjà, il y a près de 50 ans, Jane Jacobs avait saisi la grande valeur de la vie de proximité.
Aujourd’hui, en partie à cause de notre inertie collective à nous engager dans la transition socio-écologique, ce livre est encore une lecture, ou une écoute, essentielle pour comprendre et agir, comme citoyen, designer ou élu, ce qui fait fait la qualité, ou ce qui est le potentiel, de nos quartiers.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Meghan
- 2015-02-13
Fantastic text, dull on audio
This text is foundational on the subject and I can't speak negatively about it, but it is difficult to listen to for the duration simply because it's so academic.
11 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- deborah
- 2011-11-17
Dated But Relevant
A must read for the history of urban life and how important it is to think of cities like a living organism, in need of understanding on a deeper level, and in need of sustenance from within and above. Also provides a road map of local political action in confronting governmental mistakes and powerful people. Gives great power to the working poor. Written in the early 1960s about a New York City urban life that no longer exists, it still rings true for older listeners who remember such a time.
8 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Marie
- 2014-11-13
Still good for thought
I attempted to read the dead tree version of this book and did not get far. I appreciate the narrator because it seemed a bit more accessible in an audible format. I will listen to it again but with a dead tree version close at hand because there are ideas that Jacobs mentions that I'd like to spend a bit more time thinking about before rolling on to the next thought.
I've read urban planning commentary that quotes or refers to this Jacobs book as if it were the Bible. Listening to it for myself, I wonder if this is the same author people bring up when they talk about historic preservation, because I got a completely different sense of what she was saying, which is why I need a paper version as well.
Another commenter mentioned the book is dated. Yes, it is, but is informative regarding big cities and the motivations of city administrators and politicians in regards to federal funds and the motivation to big build stupid projects that do nothing for the citizen on the ground. That is still going on, even though those same city administrators may claim a love for Jacob's ideas.
7 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kristina O’Donnell
- 2016-02-03
Robotic voice narration
What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?
A different narrator
What did you like best about this story?
The actual story
Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Donna Rawlins?
Someone less robotic (I think this narrator must be the person they hire for voice programming making her voice associated with Siri-esque narration)
What character would you cut from The Death and Life of Great American Cities?
N/A
5 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bjarte
- 2012-12-07
An important book for architects!
Would you consider the audio edition of The Death and Life of Great American Cities to be better than the print version?
A thoroughly written book with deep insight into city planning, development, mixed use, the importance of diversity and urbanism in general. Jane Jacobs will stand out as a pillar and a strong reminder of what's still going on today, only that the scale of things have now, gone totally out of whack. The dynamics of people and economical forces (high or low) will be the same as long as the industrial world operate with the same systems as today. The reader for this audiobook could have been a little more vivid in expression and melody, but the diction is flawless.
"a must hear"
5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Michael Maloy
- 2019-03-22
Jane Jacobs Never Disappoints
This was my fifth reading of "Death and Life," and I continue to be amazed by the quality of Jane Jacobs's writing, research, and relevancy. Jane is simply brilliant! Donna Rawlins's narration is admirable and enjoyable to listen to. However, there are several mispronounced words that are quite surprising and rather disappointing, especially for a work of such importance. For example, the correct reading is "land uses"—comprised of two words—not "landuses" with an emphasis on the "d." There are no “deuces” in this book. Also, why does Ms. Rawlins pronounce the word “renaissance” with an emphasis on a long vowel "a"? As far as I know, no English speaking nation or region pronounces the word in this manner. These simple errors are beneath the author, the narrator, and the producer, and I highly encourage the publisher to correct these errors in a future edition (and soon).
3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- abdelrahmanazmi
- 2018-08-27
Vital Book
A must-to-read book for any architect or urban planner. Theory is deep and language's a bit hard. Need to read it many time. It worths it.
3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Michael
- 2018-07-03
New light for understanding cities!
I learned about this book in "Scale" by Geoffrey West. Jane Jacob's classic lived up to West's high regard for her systems thinking about cities. Her book changed the way I look at a city.. Although it discusses situations from 70 years ago, the perspectives seem fresh and relevant now. If you're on a path to learn how cities function, this book adds fresh rays of light for understanding what is actually going on.
3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- bennehoff
- 2019-05-17
A Great Classic on Cities and Planning
Everyone with even a passing interests in cities and how they function should check out this classic text by Jane Jacobs.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mark Mckittrick
- 2019-02-12
Amazing! Insightful and interesting.
The first few chapters on the phenomenon of cities and the final chapter are brilliant. Her policy prescriptions in the second half of the book are slightly dated given this book was written more than half a century ago. Jane's detailed description of this organized, complex adaptive system are beautiful.
1 person found this helpful