Features core case studies of particular types of cities, from the foundational cities of Greece and Rome to the “smart” cities of today

Map-obsessives and everyone who loved Just My Type will be lining up to join Garfield on his audacious journey through time and around the globe.

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With beautiful maps and stunning photography illustrating each destination, Atlas of Improbable Places is a fascinating voyage to the world’s most incredible destinations. Some of the interactions between father and son ring true to me. They are repeated 17 times, chapter after chapter, state by state as the pair drive from CA to NH following an antique map. Perhaps I’d be more in tune with the characters if I had Y chromosomes; doubtful but possible. The story involves one summer in 2002 when a mostly absent father takes his 10 year old son on a road trip across America. The glimpses into time and place were spot on, offering an insight into the culture which was wonderful. The characters, however, were bland and I struggled to relate to either of them. The dad was often pretentious, and the way he spoke to his son was odd... The ex-wife/mother was only involved in the story on the periphery -- in phone conversations -- but she was portrayed as a nag rather than a mother who just entrusted her son to the failing dad for an entire summer. However, the boy shares some nuggets of wisdom that can only come from a child, and those are the most resonant and nuanced moments in the book. The boy is the character that was most realistic and the one I will remember most. The fact was, Brendan typically declined to converse normally. He found it tedious. We’re all allotted a finite number of words in our lives and so many sentences to bend them into, why not give them color and shape and musicality? That was Brendan’s philosophy. Why not piss other people off? And anybody who didn’t know what knights-errant meant should renew her library card. (6) There are unique events and interactions with characters along the way and one character from the halfway point continues thru to the end; an odd, not really needed, woke addition. She does figure into Brendan’s resolution but it’s very contrived. His entire closing arc would ring more true, IMO, without that character and piece of the story.

Description: Award-winning author and whisky expert Dave Broom explores over 200 distilleries and examines over 400 expressions. Detailed descriptions of the Scottish distilleries can be found here, while Ireland, Japan, the USA, Canada and the rest of the world are given exhaustive coverage. A comprehensive index of more than 8,000 entries includes numerous alternative name forms used over the centuries. The Atlas of World History closes with a bibliography that provides a booklist for suggested further reading. With completely up-to-date facts-at-a-glance, a glossary, pronunciation guide, and comprehensive index, this completely revised atlas takes young readers on a high-energy tour of the world and will be a must-have in every home and school.

For me, this story is missing the single most important conversation between father and son. It’s missing a few others that should have been included too. Maybe it’s a purposeful technique so the reader can imagine or intuit the interactions but there’s not enough of the characters given to us for that to happen. I want more from this author and his characters📚