Carjacked – The Culture of the Automobile
Carjacked, The Culture of the Automobile and Its Effects On Our Lives, explores the love, lust, and reality of America’s car culture. The authors, Catherine Lutz and Anne Lutz Fernandez, have a refreshing and realistic take on America’s car obsession and its broad implications. From a teenager’s first car to an adult’s quest for the best car on the road, Carjacked has stories from across the country about the lengths people go to to get that coveted automobile. The latter half of the book extensively (but impressively briskly) explores the physiological, economical, and sociological effects of American car culture.
Carjacked will be easy to read for just about anyone as it doesn’t delve deep into land-use planning, tax codes, or foreign policy, yet still maintains a detailed and fact-based description of the extent of America’s car culture. Even more refreshing is that the book is grounded in reality. Catherine and Anne don’t set outlandish goals for a world free of cars, instead aiming for reducing car use and “… remaking our transit system so that we can allow more people to live car free.”
If you’re going to a ride in a car this year, you should read Carjacked.