Outside Lies Magic is a book about the acute observation of ordinary things, about becoming aware in everyday places, about seeing in utter...
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Oct 12, 2007
Foster
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The jacket describes this book as being about “the acute observation of ordinary things.” Being a person more than a few have described as “observant”, I was curious to see what Professor Stilgoe had to say about being an everyday explorer.
Stilgoe is the Professor of Landscape History at Harvard, and was featured on 60 minutes a couple of years ago describing the art of exploration, which is the title of the course he teaches. While I didn’t watch the 60 minutes piece, I remembered h More...
Stilgoe is the Professor of Landscape History at Harvard, and was featured on 60 minutes a couple of years ago describing the art of exploration, which is the title of the course he teaches. While I didn’t watch the 60 minutes piece, I remembered h More...
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Nov 20, 2009
Aaron
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"Outside Lies Magic" is an inspirational call to exploration. John Stilgoe, however, does not call upon the reader to leave home and explore distant lands; instead, he points out that many places nearby remain unexplored.
While it may seem strange for an author to find wonder in power lines and abandoned railroad tracks, Stilgoe provides a relatively freeform narrative that illustrates how places that most people overlook tell detailed stories of how people lived and worked in th More...
While it may seem strange for an author to find wonder in power lines and abandoned railroad tracks, Stilgoe provides a relatively freeform narrative that illustrates how places that most people overlook tell detailed stories of how people lived and worked in th More...
Mar 07, 2011
Phillip
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You see more from a bicycle than you do from a car. You see even more from a balloon-tire Schwinn than you do from a carbon fiber Pinarello.
That’s why author John Stilgoe, in Outside Lies Magic, says to choose the cruiser.
“Bicycle to the store,” he says, “then ride down the alley toward the railroad tracks, bump across the uneven bricks by the loading dock grown up in thistle and chicory, pedal harder uphill toward the Victorian houses converted into funeral homes, make a qui More...
That’s why author John Stilgoe, in Outside Lies Magic, says to choose the cruiser.
“Bicycle to the store,” he says, “then ride down the alley toward the railroad tracks, bump across the uneven bricks by the loading dock grown up in thistle and chicory, pedal harder uphill toward the Victorian houses converted into funeral homes, make a qui More...
Jul 31, 2011
Evelyn
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At first the writing style bothered me - it seemed too refined, too eloquent, too high-falutin'. But I got used to it, and besides it complemented the subject matter: discovering how interesting everyday places are, how rich a history they hold. This book is not only informative but also borders the edge of inspirational. At times during the reading, I wanted to put the book down and go out for a walk, maybe trespass a little to get behind the surface of things. It awoke my deep-seated nosta
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Jan 24, 2009
Josh
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I liked the book, but it wasn't quite what I hoped for. I am not sure why, but maybe I wanted more details of the amazing discoveries you might find by being more aware, and less romanticizing of being more aware and traveling slowly. Also, I found the writing style a bit annoying. The phrase The Explorer discovers... must have been used 1000 times
Jul 21, 2009
Leslie
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Fun, quick read. An grown up book to inspire a Charlotte Mason education. Reminds me of my childhood: walking everywhere, skating around our small town all day long. One notices much more at a slower pace and noticing more things leads to an appreciation and wonder of all that is within the world. Worth the little time it takes to read.
Dec 23, 2011
Daniel
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I love the personal insights that Stilgoe offers, and his pedestrian's view of landscape history and how some aspects of our built environment as we see them today came to be. This is an easy read I recommend to anyone interested in learning more about their surroundings, as all of Stilgoe's books are good for this type of study.
Jan 11, 2009
stephanie
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Not exactly a thrilling read, but a really good book for writing students. As we continue to live our lives at a faster and faster pace, whether that mean actual physical movement or simply the speed at which information travels, Stilgoe theorizes that what we have lost with all this speed is the ability to truly observe the world around us. Through very detailed description and exploration of the simple, every day world, Stilgoe takes the reader on a tour of observation. I say it would be a goo
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Dec 22, 2011
An exercise in psychogeography, and a field manual for exploring spaces & their histories. Down to earth, excellent writing supplemented by a keen eye for observation and detail. If you bicycle, this is a must-read along with David Byrne's 'Bicycle Diaries'
Jul 24, 2009
Katy
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John Stilgoe is infamous for his lecturing style, and after seeing him talk last year I picked up this book. The front cover will make your eyes bleed, but inside is a really delightful book about actively observing the built landscape around us.
Aug 19, 2010
Colleen
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I read this as part of research I'm doing for work. I thought it was intersting and had some interesting bits of trivia, but I found him a bit too lyrical. I know that sounds strange, but I really wondered sometimes, as I got lost in the language, what the point was exactly.
Feb 09, 2010
Aneel
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Mostly an exhortation to get outside and look around. Lots of interesting little tidbits about the "built environment", like that cities tend to not have street trees because they get tangled in overhead wires.
Jun 18, 2010
This is required summer reading for the freshman AP geography class at my daughters' school. My older daughter, who read it five years years ago, loved it. My younger daughter has to read it this year.
Mar 16, 2008
Steve
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My rating mainly applies to the first parts of the book since I found them to be the strongest. Basically, this book asks you to look at the hidden world or structure around you. He covers things like all the wiring around us, the postal network, roads and other infrastructure we take for granted. It caused me to pay a lot more attention to things, and see if I could deduce what was going on. (For instance, figuring out which lines were cable and which were phone in my neighborhood.) The on
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Nov 14, 2011
Lexi
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The opening essay of this book is lovely and very insightful. Unfortunately, to my taste, the author's sort of lyrical tone doesn't work well for the entire length of a book.
I think I would've liked this better if there were photos or at least drawings illustrating some of the author's points. And also if he'd done up a bibliography. I frankly had a hard time believing some of the points he makes that are meant to come across as shocking revelations. (I've had no luck finding information More...
I think I would've liked this better if there were photos or at least drawings illustrating some of the author's points. And also if he'd done up a bibliography. I frankly had a hard time believing some of the points he makes that are meant to come across as shocking revelations. (I've had no luck finding information More...
Jan 26, 2009
Julia
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Critically, the concepts are good. Some ideas are intriguing. The creative writing aspect is an admirable attempt but has some rough edges.
Apr 21, 2008
Amanda
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I had high hopes for this book. I think I heard a good review or an interesting interview with the author on NPR.
The better parts of the book made me aware of some of the underlying structure of cities, answering some "why" questions about things like utility lines and manhole covers — nice little things to notice while walking my dog.
But the interesting bits were buried in so many words! I finished it, but was disappointed that the piece that drew me to the More...
The better parts of the book made me aware of some of the underlying structure of cities, answering some "why" questions about things like utility lines and manhole covers — nice little things to notice while walking my dog.
But the interesting bits were buried in so many words! I finished it, but was disappointed that the piece that drew me to the More...
Aug 29, 2010
Sarah
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Very inspiring and fun -- the sole reason for my new interest in railroads. After reading this, be prepared to want to spend days on end outside exploring and observing, and trying to make connections with the past. I can't even look at power lines the same way again! This book is eye-opening and fascinating, and a must-read for any budding explorer and inquisitive mind.
May 26, 2008
Jennifer
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"Get out now. Not just outside, but beyond the trap of the programmed electronic age so gently closing around so many people...Go outside, move deliberately, then relax, slow down, look around...Abandon even, momentarily, the sleek modern technology that consumes so much time and money now, and seek out the resting place of a technology almost forgotten. "
This book is about changing your perspective into that of an explorer. An explorer of the forgotten, neglected and somet More...
This book is about changing your perspective into that of an explorer. An explorer of the forgotten, neglected and somet More...
Dec 08, 2008
Lacy
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Wonderful and interesting - what more can you ask from a non-fiction book?
Feb 12, 2010
Kristina
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This book was an interesting start but it never went beyond the musing stage.
Nov 13, 2009
Rebekah
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This wasn't exactly what I expected, but interesting nonetheless. Stilgoe encourages pedestrian and pedaling adventurers to explore the world just behind the public-front facades of our "built" environment, to discover the nearly-forgotten and rarely-recognized connections in the structures and infrastructure that make up our modern American landscape.
Oct 27, 2008
Trenton
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Stilgoe writes a sort of combination field guide and manifesto for exploring the built environment. It urges you to get outside, on foot or bike, by showing you just how interesting the connections, histories and hidden meanings behind the parts of the built landscape. Stilgoe's work is in the same vein as Paul Groth, whose class at Berkeley on the built environment was one of my favorites. It's a quick read and basically packed with insights that will keep coming back to you every time you g
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Apr 15, 2009
Shana
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received as a birthday present!
just finished it. it made me smile... i especially enjoyed reading this book while on the bus or the train, and taking a moment to look outside the windows.
just finished it. it made me smile... i especially enjoyed reading this book while on the bus or the train, and taking a moment to look outside the windows.
Dec 02, 2007
Michael
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title is goofy, but this is actually a perfect book for lying inside on your couch on a sunny day. it practically reads itself. the idea is that the author will bring your immediate surroundings to life by explaining the history and systems behind the landscape of your everyday life... trees and powerlines, the railroad, the back faces of strip malls, the postal service.
Dec 17, 2009
Matt
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Did you ever wonder about train tracks? Or manholes? Or diagonal storefront parking? Well, I sure did. And then I read this, and for the next couple of weeks I almost wrecked my bike like twenty times because I couldn't stop looking at every single fire hydrant that I passed. Luckily, I have made a concerted effort to become less observant since then.
Aug 03, 2007
John
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A book length encouragement to spend more time outside. Great factoids about the size of an acre, Jefferson versus Adams, gardening practices of motels, and southern versus northern livestock rearing. If this was only 25-50 pages it would be an amazing essay. As is, I enjoyed it because of the subject but it suffered slightly from redundancy.
May 17, 2009
Whitney
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I'm sorry, but I'm just not interested in learning about the history of freeways or sidewalk cracks or anything else in this book. It's a slow read, and it's very boring, and it's basically just a compilation of obscure facts about the metropolitan landscape.
Jul 28, 2010
Tuck
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great geography/natural history of the outside. looks at what is outside in modern usa and how to understand and appreciate the outside. especially on foot and bike.
