Engines of Change: A History of the American Dream in Fifteen Cars (English Edition)

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		Engines of Change: A History of the American Dream in Fifteen Cars (English Edition)
		Engines of Change: A History of the American Dream in Fifteen Cars (English Edition)

A narrative like no other: a cultural history that explores how cars have both propelled and reflected the American experience— from the Model T to the Prius.

From the assembly lines of Henry Ford to the open roads of Route 66, from the lore of Jack Kerouac to the sex appeal of the Hot Rod, America’s history is a vehicular history—an idea brought brilliantly to life in this major work by Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Paul Ingrassia.

Ingrassia offers a wondrous epic in fifteen automobiles, including the Corvette, the Beetle, and the Chevy Corvair, as well as the personalities and tales behind them: Robert McNamara’s unlikely role in Lee Iacocca’s Mustang, John Z. DeLorean’s Pontiac GTO , Henry Ford’s Model T, as well as Honda’s Accord, the BMW 3 Series, and the Jeep, among others.

Through these cars and these characters, Ingrassia shows how the car has expressed the particularly American tension between the lure of freedom and the obligations of utility. He also takes us through the rise of American manufacturing, the suburbanization of the country, the birth of the hippie and the yuppie, the emancipation of women, and many more fateful episodes and eras, including the car’s unintended consequences: trial lawyers, energy crises, and urban sprawl. Narrative history of the highest caliber, Engines of Change is an entirely edifying new way to look at the American story.

网友对Engines of Change: A History of the American Dream in Fifteen Cars (English Edition)的评论

I enjoyed the book enough. Paul Ingrassia wrote an interesting enough book and said from the beginning that it was his opinion of what the 15 most important cars have been to the United States. The only problem was that it turned more into a book about the 15 most important makes to the United States than it was about the models. I understand that models often influence the make as a whole (remember the Ford tagline from a few years ago that a single car "could be the pace car for an entire company"?) but I think the way Ingrassia went about weaving this together went a little too far.

The chapter on the BMW 2002 as an example, started with the problems BMW faced in the aftermath of WWII, got to the introduction of the 2002, then followed into the heyday of the 3-series and the yuppies and yuppie psychology. Really? He had a longer discussion of some of the BMW snobbery than he did of the car itself. There is a chapter on the ford truck which brings in discussions of everybody else's trucks. The Honda Accord's chapter talked more too about the manufacturer's range and history than the model. While the subtitle of the book is "A History of the American Dream in Fifteen Cars," I think he could have made the subtitle more about the makes and been more accurate and maybe have then put the story together a little more coherently than what emerged. Finally, as another reviewer noted, there are few errors in the book but I can't recall them now that I am reviewing this about a month after reading; they were not overly glaring and will only be noticed by those who are car crazy themselves.

I did like the book well enough in the end--I am a car guy after all. It is well written for what it is and I will admit to learning a few things through my read.

I had read this book some time ago and recently purchased the audio book because I enjoyed it so much. It is not as good as his other book, Crash Course: The American Automobiles... but entertaining, nonetheless. Sometimes he reminisces too much about songs and TV shows from the era of the car he is discussing, but that is a minor complaint. If you are a car enthusiast, you will enjoy this book. If you hate cars or find them boring, you would not be reading this review in the first place:)

Engines of Change is an OK book. It has more details about 15 cars like the Mustang, Prius, and Cadillacs than you would ever want. For example, did the readers really need to know about the Prius being the featured car on Curb Your Enthusiasm or a funny South Park episode? I think the book was good, but you get bogged down in minutiae and you just feel sick. I agree with the other reviewer that said basically that he tries too hard to be cutesy with his titles and humor (example "From Hitler to Hippies"....and "Baby Boomers become Soccer Moms and a, um, Driving Force in American Politics." The strength of this book is that it is a unique concept: a history book that contains 15 vehicles that shaped American history. The problem is the minute details and just "over doing it" when it comes explaining the stories circling these cars. Just give me the stories without all the BS and I will be happy.

Well-written, anecdotal and historic stories of cars that had great impact on American society. He keeps it interesting, about the people as much as the product.

The is a well written book that takes you through some of the highlights of automobiles in American culture. The drawback is that it tells those archetypal stories that any real car enthusiast already knows. If you don't know a lot about the history of cars in the US, but want to, this book is ideal. If you grew up reading car mags and wrenching on old cars, leave this one on the shelf.

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