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Reviews
Confessions of a Recovering Engineer: Transportation for a Strong Town by Charles L. Marohn Jr.
phoney1540's review
4.0
Can be dry at times but lays out a very straightforward and less inflammatory assessment
coletravers's review
5.0
Rarely have I had the chance to learn about a movement so early in its spread, and you can really tell how far the Strong Towns movement has to go through the writing of this book. Mr. Marohn’s writing is filled with emotional language, countering the typically perceived as banal subject matter. This topic is truly important and the anger Mr. Marohn feels emanates from the text and has invigorated me in support of this burgeoning movement. The ending of this book additionally transcends what I thought could be contained within a non-fiction book. The story-telling of the author’s confession is sure to make any reader emotional. The more people that read this book, the greater that I believe America and America’s transportation system can become, turning from a car-dependent hellscape into a walkable, safe, and enjoyable environment.
andjhostet's review against another edition
4.0
This book felt somehow more focused than his previous book, "Strongtowns", and also a bit more scatterbrained.
I think the parts of the book that were focused on how engineering design standards value speed and throughput of traffic, over safety, wealth creation, and return on investment were really good. I thought this was what the whole book was going to be about.
Other parts, I'm not so sure about. I think much of the book was spent either re-explaining ideas that were in "Strongtowns" or were creating an assumption that you have read it. I think there was a bit too much overlap, and felt pretty redundant at times.
Some of the topics had way too much time spent on them as well, such as the section on policing. I actually agree with many of his takeaways on policing reform, however it felt a little hamfisted and I'm not sure this was the right medium to tackle the topic. What does policing have to do with engineering? Isn't this book supposed to be about how he's had to shift his paradigm from "engineer thinking" to "Strongtowns thinking?"
I also have some troubles with his logic sometimes. Sometimes I think governments need to spend on providing public services to people, even if it "loses money". I understand his premise is that unless municipalities start focusing on revenue positive projects, cities will become insolvent. However with things like mass transit, sometimes you need to keep investing in it, in order to create a system that encourages ridership. Other times I think he used some examples that were really unconvincing to prove his point that something is a waste of money, and something that people don't value.
Overall, I definitely still enjoyed the book, and will definitely read anything more he decides to write.
I think the parts of the book that were focused on how engineering design standards value speed and throughput of traffic, over safety, wealth creation, and return on investment were really good. I thought this was what the whole book was going to be about.
Other parts, I'm not so sure about. I think much of the book was spent either re-explaining ideas that were in "Strongtowns" or were creating an assumption that you have read it. I think there was a bit too much overlap, and felt pretty redundant at times.
Some of the topics had way too much time spent on them as well, such as the section on policing. I actually agree with many of his takeaways on policing reform, however it felt a little hamfisted and I'm not sure this was the right medium to tackle the topic. What does policing have to do with engineering? Isn't this book supposed to be about how he's had to shift his paradigm from "engineer thinking" to "Strongtowns thinking?"
I also have some troubles with his logic sometimes. Sometimes I think governments need to spend on providing public services to people, even if it "loses money". I understand his premise is that unless municipalities start focusing on revenue positive projects, cities will become insolvent. However with things like mass transit, sometimes you need to keep investing in it, in order to create a system that encourages ridership. Other times I think he used some examples that were really unconvincing to prove his point that something is a waste of money, and something that people don't value.
Overall, I definitely still enjoyed the book, and will definitely read anything more he decides to write.
kayskates's review
informative
medium-paced
3.0
This is a good introduction to the idea of restructuring city design practices and reforming the engineering profession in the U.S. I would not recommend this book to someone who already has introductory knowledge of the subject. Many times in this book the informative speech devolves into irrelevant opinions of a privileged writer. The author borders on being a police apologist in the chapter about routine traffic stops.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Child death, Death, Police brutality, Murder, and Alcohol
ktbshaw's review
4.0
As a cyclist, walker and advocate, much of this information in this was was not new to me, but I still learned some things and changed my thinking on a few topics. Still, I just don’t see how we can overcome the convenience of and addiction to the personal automobile and sprawl-based development habits. Would take a lot of political will on abstract concepts, and I just don’t have much hope.
rokazen's review against another edition
5.0
I just finished reading an advanced copy of this book and it is an excellent follow up to Charles' first book - Strong Towns. There is a lot of information out there about how we can improve our communities and neighborhoods. So much in fact, that even for a practicing residential architect, it can sometimes be overwhelming. While this book is written from the perspective of an engineer, the information presented in the book; about what we've done wrong (see "stroads"), in how we can organize our communities around streets, and what we can do right; is accessible to everyone. This is a great resource for those wondering why their communities aren't currently functioning well and what they can do right now to start making meaningful change in their city, town, and neighborhood.
donovangleeson's review against another edition
challenging
informative
medium-paced
4.5
This was great. Slightly more raw than Escaping the Housing Trap—you can tell this is something he’s passionate about. The hostility he’s gotten from professional societies (like ASCE) is WILD. Almost hints at a big tobacco repeat, albeit with less scientific research to back it up. But maybe that’s just because no one’s tried it?
4.5/5, for informativeness and novelty.
4.5/5, for informativeness and novelty.
frackingluver34's review
informative
4.5
super informative book with great points however also containing bias. thank you ian for the recommendation