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Good day my good friend.

My apologies for the lack of a newsletter last week. If I am being truthful with you, I had planned to send this to you last week, but I ran out of time to record the now-obligatory recording of this newsletter. So last week’s newsletter is now this week’s, and this week’s will be next week’s. So sorry about all that.

As many of you seemed to like the last newsletter on things to read, I thought I would continue in that vein. Here are some interesting things that I have been reading that I think you might find interesting too.

Roads, Runways, and Resistance (Steve Melia)

I grew up in a time where road protests seemed to be in the news all the time. The Battle of Twyford Down and the Newbury Bypass were among the most notable of them, but few took the time to record this unique part of transport policy history in the UK. Then Steve Melia wrote this book.

Its based upon interviews with people from the time, as well as his own experience. I like it because it explores what impact this movement had in changing the national psyche away from road building, even if only briefly. I’m not sure the lessons learned are still applicable today, but it still makes for a good read.

And The Sun Shines Now (Andrew Tempany)

The title of this book is from the famous radio broadcast by Peter Jones in the immediate aftermath of the Hillsborough Disaster in 1989. This book is also written by a man who was on the Leppings Lane terrace on that fateful day. The opening chapters pack an emotional punch and reading them is not for the faint of heart. But what follows afterwards is a beautiful exploration of how British society changed, and football with it.

Car dominance even gets a mention, with the author explaining how the dominance of the car has led to less street football and an erosion of the ‘people’s game.’ While football is at its heart, its not a pure football book by any means. It’s more recollecting the innocence of a way of life that, in the author’s view, was lost on that April afternoon in Sheffield. A great book.

Utopia on Trial (Alice Coleman)

Originally published in 1985, Utopia on Trial was an attempt by Alice Coleman to link the social issues faced on housing estates built after the Second World War and their brutalist design. Based upon 5 years of research, the author makes the case that in most cases, the new build estates were a complete waste of money, and make low level vandalism and social disorder inevitable.

Coleman’s work is highly deterministic. To the point where she points out at what level height of housing would cause social problems. It influenced Thatcher’s housing policy at the time, and has often been linked to the broken windows theory of tackling low-level disorder. Even to the point whereby the infamous ‘Secured by Design‘ document can trace its roots back to this work. Despite this, it is still worthy of a read, as few other publications have had an equivalent impact on British life.

The Lost Paths (Jack Cornish)

This is a book I am part of the way through reading. I will say this: if you are geek for public rights of way then you will love this book. If you want to know about how these paths are woven into the history of the UK, you will also love this book. Otherwise, you will find it a challenging read.

This is not a bad book by any means, and the author is clearly passionate about the subject. However, it becomes a bit of a trudge in some places (ironic I know). Which is a shame, as the subject matter is fascinating and it covers a history we stand a real risk of losing.