While Canada Slept: How we lost our place in the world By Andrew Cohen I took a course titled Canada and the World taught by Prof. Cohen when I was a master’s student in Ottawa. While Canada Slept was one of the required course readings. There were about 25 of Read more…
Cracking the Quebec Code in 45 MinutesBy: Jean-Marc Léger, Jacques Nantel, Pierre Duhamel, Christian Bourque, and Philippe Léger The book is an abridged version of Pierre Duhamel’s original text in French, translated for an English audience. I wish more authors would publish abridged versions of their books that are well-supported Read more…
By: Alberto Cairo The first time I heard of this book was when I had to read it as part of a media production and design course on processing data into visual representations. The introduction of the book reminds readers that different audiences come from different backgrounds and will see Read more…
By Vladimir Lenin The Communist Manifesto authored by Marx and Engels were a criticism of capitalism and the process Adam Smith describes to accumulate wealth. One major criticism of the manifesto is its lack of application given that it was all theory and no practice. While it opposed the capitalist Read more…
By Jarett Walker The first time I was aware of Walker’s work was when I came across his blog that outlines his experience as a public transportation planner and his principles for sound public transportation design. His blog has gained much attention from planners and riders alike to comment on Read more…
By: Jane Jacobs In fewer than 300 pages, Jacobs dispels the myth that cities grow as a result of rural work. She uses examples as ancient as Çatalhöyük from 7000BC to as recent as the stagnation of the American economy to support her thesis. She reasons that any city growth Read more…
By Kate Ascher Penguin publishes a number of Ascher’s illustrated books on engineering such as The Heights, dissecting buildings, and The Way to Go, dissecting modes of transportation. The Works dissect how a city operates and combines elements from her other two books. It focuses on New York City to Read more…
Systems of Survival By Jane Jacobs Jacobs’ most famous work was the Death and Life of American Cities, which anchored her as an influential thought leader on urban life in the 20th century and beyond. Systems of Survival, as stated on the cover, explores the moral foundations of modern political Read more…
The Illusion of SeparationBy Giles Hutchins If you’ve ever questioned our current state of mind, why we think the way we do, or how Western philosophy became what it is, The Illusion of Separation is a great introductory text. The book introduces the history of modern philosophy and explores how Read more…
Land Administration and Practice in Hong KongBy Roger Nissim Having live in Hong Kong for many years, I have friends who are caught up in the high housing prices of Hong Kong. Criticisms are plenty in a city with one of the worlds highest population densities, but solutions are scarce. Read more…