Rating: 
Summary: Not ready for divorce
Review: Katie Alvord, the author of Divorce your Car states that the intention of the this book is to demonstrate both the pressing need to drive less and the many opportunities we have to do so. The book is set up into three parts. The first part attempts to explore some of the factors that explain how we as a society have become so dependent on automobiles. The second part gives reasons why the separation from the vehicle is so important. The third part closes the book illustrating some of the possible alternatives to being so car dependent.
The first part the author described how factors such as government policy, industry practices, and mass media have turned the automobile from a "how-to" technology into a "have-to" technology. A quote from the book to sum up the trend automobiles have taken is from the British Prime Minister Herbert Asquith in 1907 when he referred to automobiles as, "a luxury which is apt to degenerate into a nuisance."
I totally agree here with how she explained how that exact thing happened. When automobiles were first introduced they were seen as the invention for freedom. They led to huge advancements in labor force and manufacturing. The huge surge in automobile interest was not encouraged just by the usefulness of it alone. At the time cars were marketed as the great escape, a tool to gain freedom. They weren't however the only form of transportation. There were non-internal combustion engines providing transportation. These forms were soon eradicated by the automobile industry. The government did also use city planning to create freeways and a car in every garage and gas burning busses replaced systems of streets and the electric railcars. These structural changes now made it easier to move around, but only if you have a car.
The second part was very predictable. It does hit on several levels though. It goes over the negative environmental aspects from all the cars driving at once. The smog and global warming issues were her main topics. Alvord then brings up several other aspects such as the oil industry and their tendency for spills, and the cost of gas to the individual driver. This choice of topics is very persuasive. Its focuses on the manufacture, the facilitating industry, drivers in general, and then drivers individually. This leaves nothing out. It hits the driver on all levels.
The third part generally goes over the positive side of divorcing your car. In a generally overweight society obsessed with dieting starting off by giving the positives of exercising more. Then the author gives an optimistic answer to several problems stating that if you can't stop using the car for good you can do it in steps.
Overall I think that the book was well written and interesting. It describes the problem from beginning to possible solution. As being without a car for the last couple of months I can see some of the benefits but I am not sold on the idea of going without for good. Unless society in general changes its just easier to own a car. The one issue not brought up was time. Driving saves time period. Traffic jams do take up time but the busses will have to go through the same jams. I have so little free time between school, work and homework that the 20 minutes or so driving saves just going back and forth to the grocery, outweighs the negative aspects for right now.
Rating:
Summary: Not ready for divorce
Review: The first few chapters of Alvord's book try to show us why we feel the way we do about owning a car. Is it true that we are really `forced?into having a car? Alvord suggests that this romance with cars started with our "desires?for three things: improved mobility, idealism about changes, and the fascination with the new technology. It seems as though we did not look at any of the negative effects that a car may have, including pollution.
These downfalls of our "marriage?to the automobile are the main focus of the next chapter. Air and water pollution, climate change, oil spills, repairs, noise, obesity and car crashed are a few of the things mentioned by Alvord as downfalls to owning a car. Truly shocking is the list on starting on page 65 of seven different things that come out of our tailpipes polluting our air. Not only do the things that come out of our cars pollute our air, but also have you ever thought of the emissions from the factory that makes our cars and the oil refineries that produce components that make our cars run? These are forgotten when you hop into your car for that drive to the store two blocks away.
Alvord explains some realistic alternatives to using a car. The use of shared transportation, using a bike and even walking will definitely help to clean up SOME of the air pollution that there is in the world. These alternatives will also help to alleviate some of the costs on one's household, especially with the elevated gas prices we are seeing now.
Now the question that I have to ask myself is "Can I live without a car?? I guess that it is possible, but I really don't think that it is feasible at this time in my life. I drive to school because I work at home on my family's farm. The drive takes me about an hour, so I think that a bike ride would take too long. Most of my trips in my car are to buy large (and heavy) items, in towns that are 20 ?30 miles away. I also drive to the nearest town to go to the library, post office, and grocery store, which is 10 miles away. I have run to town in the past, but the busy main highway is a little scary, so I don't really do that anymore.
I just don't think I could do it. I will eventually have to put my car to rest, but I think that I will just go out and buy a new one. Oh well!
Rating:
Summary: Not ready for divorce
Review: The first few chapters of Alvord's book try to show us why we feel the way we do about owning a car. Is it true that we are really 'forced?into having a car? Alvord suggests that this romance with cars started with our "desires?for three things: improved mobility, idealism about changes, and the fascination with the new technology. It seems as though we did not look at any of the negative effects that a car may have, including pollution.
These downfalls of our "marriage?to the automobile are the main focus of the next chapter. Air and water pollution, climate change, oil spills, repairs, noise, obesity and car crashed are a few of the things mentioned by Alvord as downfalls to owning a car. Truly shocking is the list on starting on page 65 of seven different things that come out of our tailpipes polluting our air. Not only do the things that come out of our cars pollute our air, but also have you ever thought of the emissions from the factory that makes our cars and the oil refineries that produce components that make our cars run? These are forgotten when you hop into your car for that drive to the store two blocks away.
Alvord explains some realistic alternatives to using a car. The use of shared transportation, using a bike and even walking will definitely help to clean up SOME of the air pollution that there is in the world. These alternatives will also help to alleviate some of the costs on one's household, especially with the elevated gas prices we are seeing now.
Now the question that I have to ask myself is "Can I live without a car?? I guess that it is possible, but I really don't think that it is feasible at this time in my life. I drive to school because I work at home on my family's farm. The drive takes me about an hour, so I think that a bike ride would take too long. Most of my trips in my car are to buy large (and heavy) items, in towns that are 20 ?30 miles away. I also drive to the nearest town to go to the library, post office, and grocery store, which is 10 miles away. I have run to town in the past, but the busy main highway is a little scary, so I don't really do that anymore.
I just don't think I could do it. I will eventually have to put my car to rest, but I think that I will just go out and buy a new one. Oh well!
Rating: 
Summary: A great book!
Review: This book inspired me to bite the bullet and become car-lite (I live a little too far from town to achieve car-free just yet). It has a lot of exciting examples of how being car-free and car-lite can lead to a more pleasant lifestyle, as well as motivation why it's a good thing to do. Katie's own example is also inspiring, as she has significantly reduced car usage while living in a rural area in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, a place with legendary winters. Now when I get whiny about putting on my rain suit in the winter here in Northern California and want to jump in my car instead of riding, I think about Katie and her husband biking in the snow of the U.P.
Rating:
Summary: Divorce Your Car
Review: Though the concepts in this book may seem basic, the author does a remarkably thorough job of laying out and documenting the need for us to rethink our approach to transportation. The evidence is compelling, the sidebars fascinating, and the solutions are practical. Its too bad this approach doesn't get more attention with skyrocketing energy prices.
Rating:
Summary: Plant a garden in your driveway.
Review: We live in "a drive-in, drive-up, drive-thru, and drive-by society" (p. 57), and the urban sprawl of a city in which I live, Phoenix, is no exception. There is no escaping the problem of the automobile, even in our country's national parks. For instance, there are 7000 parking spaces in Yosemite (700 per mile), and 12,000 parking spaces in Yellowstone (p. 41). In many ways, America's addiction to cars is easily comparable to cigarette addiction.The premise of Alvord's well-reasoned and well-researched book is that "we are addicted to our cars, and the relationship is fundamentally unhealthy for ourselves, our environment, and ultimately (and ironically) our economy" (p. xiii). In the Introduction to her compelling book, she writes, "divorce from a car is not only possible, it can bring unexpected delights and great rewards. On a collective level, divorcing cars can bring us clean air, clearer water, less noise, and friendlier communities. It can foster better transportation options, more compact cities, and correspondingly more farmland, wildlife habitat, and parks. On a personal level, it can be incredibly liberating, bringing less stress, more money, better health and fitness, reduced risk of accidental death, and a simpler lifestyle" (p. 5). The first five chapters of Alvord's book examine our seduction by the automobile, revealing "our union with the car is in part a forced marriage and not simply a free-market choice" (p. 7). The next five chapters consider "some of the symptoms of love sickness caused by our automotive marriage" (p. 63), air pollution, climate change, oil spills, water pollution, costly repairs, noise, obesity, road rage, social isolation, real expenses, and fatal car crashes. In the last seven chapters of her book, Alvord offers up real alternatives to the automobile, walking, bicycling, shared transportation, and telecommuting, for instance, before she addresses "the big quality-of-life advantages of driving less or even living without a car" (p. 125). G. Merritt
Rating:
Summary: Divorce Your Car tells you how to do just that
Review: Why is it that people are so dependent on their cars? Why have all other forms of transportation been neglected? Does this dependency on cars lead to anything damaging and if so, how can that be changed? Alvord attends to these issues in her book and she suggests that the dependency should just be abandoned. Katie Alvord begins her book with by explaining what divorcing your car means. She compares the relationship people have with cars to marriages and divorcing a car is much like divorcing a spouse. Then, she describes how this marriage or dependency between people and cars was formed, starting from when the car was introduced into society and finishing with the conditions of the present. In the next section of the book, Alvord discusses reasons why we should divorce our cars. That is, why we should consider trying to live a car-lite or even car-free life. In the final section of her book, she goes into detail on how living a car-lite or car-free life is possible. She addresses how individuals, communities, and societies can accomplish the goal of becoming car-free. The main argument that Alvord makes is that anyone and everyone can go car-free or at least car-lite and they should in order to improve the condition of this world. This can be done by using other modes of transportation such as walking, biking, buses, trains, or car-share programs. She suggests that people gradually move in to a car-free lifestyle by first trying a car-lite lifestyle. This consists of using the car less or as little as possible, maybe for long trips only. Alvord even states that going car-free may not be possible for some so a car-lite lifestyle is the best idea in those situations which might include people living in rural areas. Alvord backs up her car-free argument by providing multiple reasons as to why people should use cars less. They cause overcrowded streets, health problems, indirect and direct pollution, and they are very expensive. Divorce Your Car is a very good and convincing book. It not only makes and case for abandoning cars but it explains how this can be done. Alvord addresses each issue of her car-free idea in depth. She gives the reader history, evidence, and the how to. Another very impressive aspect of the book is that it is not preachy or condescending. It simply tells you the facts and what your options are. In approaching the argument this way, I think more people will be open to the idea of attempting a car-free or car-lite lifestyle.
Rating:
Summary: Divorce Your Car tells you how to do just that
Review: Why is it that people are so dependent on their cars? Why have all other forms of transportation been neglected? Does this dependency on cars lead to anything damaging and if so, how can that be changed? Alvord attends to these issues in her book and she suggests that the dependency should just be abandoned. Katie Alvord begins her book with by explaining what divorcing your car means. She compares the relationship people have with cars to marriages and divorcing a car is much like divorcing a spouse. Then, she describes how this marriage or dependency between people and cars was formed, starting from when the car was introduced into society and finishing with the conditions of the present. In the next section of the book, Alvord discusses reasons why we should divorce our cars. That is, why we should consider trying to live a car-lite or even car-free life. In the final section of her book, she goes into detail on how living a car-lite or car-free life is possible. She addresses how individuals, communities, and societies can accomplish the goal of becoming car-free. The main argument that Alvord makes is that anyone and everyone can go car-free or at least car-lite and they should in order to improve the condition of this world. This can be done by using other modes of transportation such as walking, biking, buses, trains, or car-share programs. She suggests that people gradually move in to a car-free lifestyle by first trying a car-lite lifestyle. This consists of using the car less or as little as possible, maybe for long trips only. Alvord even states that going car-free may not be possible for some so a car-lite lifestyle is the best idea in those situations which might include people living in rural areas. Alvord backs up her car-free argument by providing multiple reasons as to why people should use cars less. They cause overcrowded streets, health problems, indirect and direct pollution, and they are very expensive. Divorce Your Car is a very good and convincing book. It not only makes and case for abandoning cars but it explains how this can be done. Alvord addresses each issue of her car-free idea in depth. She gives the reader history, evidence, and the how to. Another very impressive aspect of the book is that it is not preachy or condescending. It simply tells you the facts and what your options are. In approaching the argument this way, I think more people will be open to the idea of attempting a car-free or car-lite lifestyle.
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