Random Maps: The World in Over 100 Unusual Maps

by Simon Kuestenmacher

What would the world be without maps? How would we orientate ourselves? How would we travel? How could we plan streets or entire cities? We encounter maps everywhere in everyday life. But they can do much more than just represent the topography of places.

The geographer Simon Kuestenmacher collects exciting, entertaining and useful maps that open up a new perspective on the world in an extraordinary way. Where on Earth do most people live? What does the world look like from a dolphin's point of view? What did the world look like in the 17th century? Where in Europe were the last executions carried out? And how much tip is expected in the different countries?

All maps represent our living environment in an unusual way, explain connections from new perspectives and show how much fun data and facts are when they are presented in a visually interesting way.

Genres: Nonfiction

192 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 7, 2021

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a low key cartophile so my daughter gave me this for Christmas. There are lots of fun maps doing interesting things with data. Many are revelatory, such as "Population Growth per Continent" and "Livestock Density." Others verge on the silly: "What Would Other Brexits be Called" and "French Kissing." Most of the maps are simple illustrations designed to convey information quickly, so there isn't a lot of aesthetic rewards. Yet, there are a few beautifully drawn maps that I spent a while poring over.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Any map is only an imperfect depiction of an infinitely complex reality.'

I love maps! This is a known fact, and I was very kindly gifted Random Maps for Christmas. However, as Kuestenmacher points out early on: We are all "map junkies" now due to the smartphone revolution. If you love maps, you will really enjoy this book.

Random Maps is divided into different themes, and contains more traditional maps on topics including population density, travel, and history, as well as more creative maps. Example: The world from a dolphin's point of view. Overall, Random Maps offers pleasing data visualisations that anyone can enjoy.

'After all, even the best map is only the first step into a new adventure, into a new subject area.'

I would say that this is a highly Euro-centric book. This is not necessarily a problem, just something to be aware of. Random Maps offers many interesting European maps showcasing the diversity of Europe, however at the same time there are few non-Western maps and cartography perspectives. I would have loved to see more perspectives represented.

My Five Favourite Maps (in order of appearance):
- More People Live Inside the Circle than Outside of It
- Global Consequences of Climate Change
- Big wild cat world map series
- Coffee and Wine Belts
- Lord of the Rings Fantasy Map of Europe

[Veronica Tabor · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m a big fan of maps and geography books so I was excited to pick this up, and if you’re looking for a light read to look at a few maps but not in-depth, this is a fine book. It is what the author says, a collection of random internet maps. But for an actual published book, there were a lot of glaring issues that made me wonder if this book had an editor.
-Because most of the maps stretched across two pages, anything in the crease of the spine was hardly legible
-A ton of typos, like “Soast” (Coast) p. 168 and a random “Lorem Ipsum” p. 39
-No consistency in the resolution, some maps are pixelated and difficult to read
-Some of the maps are lacking a key and you’re left to interpret why some things are certain colors yourself
It’s not completely awful for a collection of random maps and it was fun to look at, but it just felt like a lot of care for the actual publication was left by the wayside

[Santiago Endara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is amazing if you like Geography, World Affairs or just random data that varies from very interesting to irrelevant. I learned lots of things that I didn´t know before like the existence and location of the "Blue Banana", the "Hippie Trail" or that hitch hiking in Germany is quite easy.

[Gem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this. Very interesting. Some of the details in the maps are lost in the fold which is why I haven't given 5 stars. Really enjoyed this book.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun maps! Entertained me for an hour or so.

[Nicola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Cannot wait for more from Simon. I follow him on Twitter and Facebook and he never disappoints. Everything he's posted and written has had fascination for me.