4. Bicycle Diaries

There is a distinct shortage of famous people in this book. Maybe if you're part of the art world you'll know more of the names (are there any famous artists these days?). It's a fun little ramble of a book. David Byrne is a fairly standard-issue US liberal, so I didn't come across much by way of philosophy that I found startling, but given all of the musical and other projects he's involved in, he does have a unique perspective. Since I've never been to the vast majority of the cities he talks about, I found plenty of interest, particularly the ones outside the US.

I always feel a bit sheepish when I read screeds about the unsustainable nature of our car-based culture; yes, I know, I'm part of the problem.