Synopses & Reviews
Taking the position that Americas love affair with cars and highways is not a cultural phenomena but an problem that is entrenched in economic and political forces, this manifesto chronicles the rise of the U.S. highway system, its very orchestrated genesis, and the alarming increase in reliance on automobiles. With a format that incorporates a blend of cartoons, historic photographs, and minimal text, this handbook reveals the players—among them crooked politicians, unscrupulous businessmen, and convoluted tax shenanigans—corruption, and greed that has led to endless miles of asphalt. In addition to analyzing the impact of the cultural bias towards driving and how driving became such a dominant mode of transportation, this comedic treatise offers a blueprint for rebuilding a functional and sustainable public transportation system that would bring wealth, happiness, and freedom.
Review
“Singer is an editorial cartoonist with an unerring eye for the absurdity of our current car dependence.” —E magazine
Synopsis
Taking the position that Americas love affair with cars and highways is not a cultural phenomenon but a problem of entrenched economic and political forces, this manifesto chronicles the rise of the U.S. highway system from its orchestrated genesis to our current alarming reliance on automobiles. With a format that incorporates a blend of cartoons, historic photographs and minimal text, this handbook reveals the players, the money and the politics that have led to our petroleum dependence and endless miles of asphalt. It begins by analyzing the environmental impact of driving and ends by offering a blueprint for rebuilding a more sustainable transportation system that could save American cities and the planet.
Synopsis
Today, we're married to our cars. But life behind the wheel of an automobile didn't come naturally to Americans. Crooked politicians, unscrupulous businessmen, burning streetcars, and convoluted tax shenanigans are a few of the players in this gripping tale of corruption, greed, and endless miles of asphalt. In Andy Singer's accessible, scandalous tale of motordom, comics, text, and historic photographs tell the story of the rise of the U.S. highway system and the corresponding demise of rail and public transportation. He also explores how we can ditch the car and rebuild a functional transportation system that can bring wealth, happiness, and freedom.
About the Author
Andy Singer is a cartoonist and illustrator whose drawings have appeared in numerous magazines and publications, including the Boston Globe, Discover, Esquire, the New Yorker, the Saint Paul Pioneer Press, and the Washington Post. At its peak, his weekly, self-syndicated comic strip, “No Exit,” ran in 24 papers. He is the co-chair of the Saint Paul Bicycle Coalition. He lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota.