Happy City

Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design

By: Charles Montgomery

Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor

After decades of unchecked sprawl, more people than ever are moving back to the city. Dense urban living has been prescribed as a panacea for the environmental and resource crises of our time. But is it better or worse for our happiness? Are subways, sidewalks, and tower dwelling improvements on the car dependence of sprawl?

Award-winning journalist Charles Montgomery finds answers to such questions at the intersection between urban design and the emerging science of happiness and during an exhilarating journey through some of the world's most dynamic cities. He meets the visionary mayor who introduced a "sexy" lipstick-red bus to ease status anxiety in Bogotá; the architect who brought the lessons of medieval Tuscan hill towns to modern-day New York City; the activist who turned Paris' urban freeways into beaches; and an army of American suburbanites who have transformed their lives by hacking the designs of their streets and neighborhoods. Full of rich historical detail and new insights from psychologists and Montgomery's own urban experiments, Happy City is an essential tool for understanding and improving our own communities.

©2013 Charles Montgomery (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

"The book will likely make you a believer." ( Publishers Weekly)

comprehensive look at creating a better future

this is an excellent book filled with great stories. the European accents are not good but easy to ignore. gives you something to be optimistic about. I'm trained in architecture so this recapped some of what i learned in school but it gives more examples that i wasn't aware of and has a lot from the recent past and a variety of locations. recommend this for anyone.

Fantastic book, flawed performance.

This book hit me at an opportune time. I recently decided to quit my job and go to grad school, but my ambitions were slightly unfocused. Reading this book helped me focus my goals in a really interesting way. I realized I wanted to study the neuroscience of happiness and human thriving, which while not the immediate focus of this book, featured heavily.

The biggest problem I had was the narration. Most of it was competent enough, but for some reason someone let Patrick Lawlor affect an accent whenever he was quoting a non-American speaker. Enrique Peñalosa, for example, became a Speedy Gonzalez-esque caricature of an actual Spanish speaker. I wish I could say this was less distracting than it seems, but it constantly got to me.

The content of the book, however, was absolutely outstanding. Montgomery does seem slightly more at home discussing architecture and design than he does psychology and human decision-making, although it might be my own expertise in the field skewing my perception. He does a commendable job fusing the two disciplines into a coherent statement on the effects our designed environments (cities, sprawl) have on our ability to thrive.

If I had one suggestion that might improve the book, it would be a more diverse take on urban planning rather than the Western-centric focus the book tends to take. I'm not sure I can recall too many examples of Indian or East-Asian urban design principles, not to mention Native American or African ones, nor their effects on peoples in those parts of the world.

Nevertheless, it is a fascinating read that I will likely revisit several times. I hope to use some of its messages in selecting the locale of my future home and the final chapter absolutely encouraged me to participate in my community to a much greater extent. I only hope that next time I train myself to overlook the irritating affections of the narrator and focus on Montgomery's words instead.

Interesting view

Great book detailing a new way to view city life. The author is balanced and gives pros and cons, he does not have a one size fits all solution but lots of great ideas.

A must listen for urban planners

A great collection of examples of both good planning and bad planning, with solutions for the latter. I appreciate that the author addressed racial and class inequality and the role that zoning plays in both. I wish I had listened to this prior to starting my Master of Urban Planning program, as it is a great primer to nearly all of the concepts that we discuss in planning school.

Overall I enjoyed the narration, but I didn’t love the choice to give speakers accents based on their country of origin.

good content but the narrator's voice is ugh

the narrator's voice is really high-pitched and it's kind of grating and obnoxious, especially when he uses inflections to try to be engaging

fun to listen to while commuting

If you could sum up Happy City in three words, what would they be?

entertaining, informative, insightful

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

that it's hopeful.

What about Patrick Lawlor’s performance did you like?

His unexpected accents.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When the couple in Vancouver adopted the daughter of the dying woman because of the close knit bond of the community.

An excellent insight for making better cities

A great read/listen explaining why despite being one of the wealthiest, most powerful, and "freest" countries on Earth, the U.S. is far from the happiest. Montgomery also provides several models for established cities to make the changes need to improve our environment, health, and wealth.

great book

I love how or brought a lot of different ideas and issues together and solved them all with one idea. Enjoyed the read....I listened to it at 1.5 speed. We all need to walk and bike more.. .

Excellent book about happiness and how to live.

this is a great book for anyone interested in the psychology of happiness, city planning, or community. truly wonderful!

Triumph

Every impression the narrator does, and he does a lot, sounds exactly like Triumph the Comic Dog.