Books › 99% Invisible City
99% Invisible City
400 pages
A delightful pair of x-ray glasses for the built environment that turns a simple walk down the street into a treasure hunt.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like taking a long, meandering walk with a fascinating friend who knows the secret history of every fire hydrant, street sign, and utility cover. It is a leisurely, deeply observant experience that invites you to slow down and look closer at the mundane details you usually filter out. The prose is conversational and warm, carrying the same soothing, inquisitive cadence as the beloved podcast that inspired it. Instead of a traditional narrative, it offers a mosaic of bite-sized revelations that build into a profound appreciation for human ingenuity and the invisible systems holding our world together. It is an absolute delight for curious urbanites, design enthusiasts, and anyone who loves discovering the extraordinary hidden in plain sight.
- Mood
- observant
- wondrous
- eye-opening
- nerdy
- Tone
- curious
- conversational
- enthusiastic
- informative
- wry
- Pace
- leisurely
- Themes
- hidden magic of the mundane · human ingenuity · urban interconnectedness · invisible systems · accidental absurdity
- The writing
- Accessible, conversational, and engagingly journalistic, mirroring the soothing and inquisitive cadence of a well-produced podcast.
- The arc
- Moves from a state of everyday obliviousness to a delighted, wide-eyed appreciation for the built environment.
- Who it's for
- Curious urbanites, design nerds, and trivia lovers who want to understand the secret language of the streets they walk every day.
About the book
A beautifully designed guidebook to the unnoticed yet essential elements of our cities, from the creators of the wildly popular 99% Invisible podcast
Have you ever wondered what those bright, squiggly graffiti marks on the sidewalk mean?
Or stopped to consider why you don't see metal fire escapes on new buildings?
Or pondered the story behind those dancing inflatable figures in car dealerships?
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.
Now, in The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to Hidden World of Everyday Design, host Roman Mars and coauthor Kurt Kohlstedt zoom in on the various elements that make our cities work, exploring the origins and other fascinating stories behind everything from power grids and fire escapes to drinking fountains and street signs. With deeply researched entries and beautiful line drawings throughout, The 99% Invisible City will captivate devoted fans of the show and anyone curious about design, urban environments, and the unsung marvels of the world around them.
Description from Open Library.
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