In the City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist

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Pete Jordan, author of Dishwasher, tells the story of his love affair with Amsterdam, the city of bikes, all the while unfolding an unknown history of the city s cycling, from the craze of the 1890s, through the Nazi occupation, to the bike centric culture adored by the world today Few people are audacious enough to lead a memoir worthy life Even fewer people are talented enough to write said memoir By the grace of the literary gods, Pete Jordan is both San Francisco Bay GuardianPart personal memoir, part history of cycling, part fascinating street level tour of Amsterdam, In the City of Bikes is the story of a man who loves bikes in a city that loves bikes. Download In the City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist author Pete Jordan – kino-fada.fr I met Pete in Portland in the summer of 1999 He was zinester famous, being the publisher of Dishwasher Zine, chronicling his itinerant dishwashing lifestyle Fast forward to 2013 and I got this book as he came through Pittsburgh on a book tour This book is partly about his move to Amsterdam because of the cycling culture there, but mostly about the rich history of cycling in that tiny country It s a very interesting read, on both the personal and historical counts My favorite parts were the I met Pete in Portland in the summer of 1999 He was zinester famous, being the publisher of Dis...I really enjoyed this book I am not a cyclist I visited Amsterdam and spent many hours watching the bicycle traffic with great fascination It is impressive to see peak drive times and busy intersections The style of bikes, the various ways passengers are transported, all varieties ...I love books that go into depth on relatively obscure topics, like Mark Kurlansky s Salt I enjoy learning about what fascinates an author and making connections to disparate fields of knowledge So I m all for a deep dive into unknown waters After reading this book, I can say that I know farabout cycling in Amsterdam than I ever wa...If you haven t read In The City of Bikes The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist by Pete Jordan yet, I highly recommend it Whether you are specifically interested in Amsterdam or are fond of biking, it is a good read I am an expat, just like Pete, and I have been biking in this city for four years now Yet through Pete s research ...Part memoir, part travel log and part history, Pete Jordon takes readers on a trip through the streets of Amsterdam on bike, sharing at the same time, his family s permanent relocation to the city Filled with humorous antidotes and historical details of how crazy this city is for cycling, it offers a stark contrast to America the city of cars.Overall, this was an enjoyable account for anyone who loves quirky travel stories Pete s search for t...An interesting read about the history of cycling in Amsterdam, the eponymous city, written by an American cycling aficionado He writes extensively about the current status of city biking in Amsterdam, bike theft, the history of the politics of bicycling there, incorporating details about the German occupation during WWII, etc., so you d better have an interest o you ll drown in the details It was fairly engagingly written, for all that, because he writes from personal experience living there w An interesting read about the history of cycling in Amsterdam, the eponymous city, written by an American cycling aficionado He writes extensively about the current status of city biking in Amsterdam, bike theft, the history of the politics of bicycling there, incorporating details about the German occupation during WWII, etc., so you d better have an interest o you ll drown in the details It was fairly engagingly written, for all ...There was definitely some good stuff here, but not enough for a book it felt like an incomplete reworking of the research papers he was writing for his urban planning program Jordan s own stories of his Amsterdam bike riding experiences were solidly interesting and well written, but as for the ...This book uses way too many quotes to illustrate its points Often three or four quotes in a row to illustrate the exact same point, so I ended up skipping some.Apart from that, I generally enjoyed the book It felt too long in some places, as if the author wasn t willing to part with any of his research even if it didn t add much to the book But in other places I loved every bit, and it didn t feel long at all.The book included some interesting history of Amsterdam, particularly during WWII, a This book uses way too many quotes to illustrate its points Often three or four quotes in a row to illustrate the exact same point, so I ended u...I liked this book very much, both because the subject and the way it was handled was appealing to me and also because I think it is well written I was confused however by title I only understood what it meant properly after I had read 50 pages or so In particular, the story of the Amsterdam cyclist can be understood as a social history of cycling in Amsterdam the Amsterdam cyclist is meant to indicate Amsterdam cyclists in general from the 1890s to today Probably this confusion i I liked this book very much, both because the subject and the way it was handled was appealing to me and also because I think it is well written I was confused however by title I only understood what it meant properly after I had read 50 pages or so In particular, the story of the Amsterdam cyclist can be understood as a social history of cycling in Amsterdam the Amsterdam cyclist is meant to indicate Amsterdam cyclists in general from the 1890s to today Probably this confusion is just my problem The blurb on the back cover states, Part personal memoir, part history of cycling, part fascinating street level tour of Amsterdam, In the City of Bikes is the story of a man who loves bikes in a city that loves bikes But really 90 percent of this book which is almost 400 pages of text plus 40 pages of notes is a history of urban cycling as transportation in Amsterdam, and to some extent in the Netherlandsgenerally There...This book is worth reading if you re willing to skim or maybe skip entirely Pete Jordan s chapters about himself and his own biking experiences The really interesting stuff was all the fascinating things he shares about the history and culture of biking in Amsterdam the tradition of troublesome Amsterdammers who buck rules and authority and have, decade after decade, stood up for their rights the role of bikes as a form of both oppression and resistance during the Nazi occupation in the 1 This book is worth reading if you re willing to skim or maybe skip entirely Pete Jordan s chapters about himself and his own biking experiences The really interesting stuff was all the fascinating things he shares about the history and culture of biking in Amsterdam the tradition of troublesome Amsterdammers who buck rules and authority and have, decade after decade, stood up for their rights the role of bikes as a form of both oppression and resistance during the Nazi occupation in the 1940s why bikes became so important in the Netherlands and why cars became king in the U.S all that stuff was really interesting.Not so his own anecdotes as an American living and cycling in Amsterdam I m guessing someone advised him to sprinkle in his personal experiences to give the non fiction work some heart and context, maybe to create a connection with the author It mostly serves to alienate him I have a healthy interest in bikes, but this dude is obse...

In the City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist
  • English
  • 15 September 2017
  • Paperback
  • 448 pages
  • 0061995207
  • Pete Jordan
  • In the City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist