A Brief History of Motion is an accessible and engaging exploration of the history of transportation. While it has its limitations, such as being a bit Western-focused, the book provides a solid foundation for understanding the impact of transportation on society and the world we live in.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

Light reading of the history of how humans have gotten from one place to another, especially once we discovered the wheel. I enjoyed the exploration of what has driven development in modern locomotion (i.e. cars), but was less than enamored with the author's look to the future.

Interesting and entertaining pop-history (pop-techno history?) that on the whole feels a little lightweight. That said, there was a lot of good history around the development of the automobile, and I especially enjoyed the sections talking about why the internal combustion engine won out over its steam and electrical rivals. There wasn't much of an organizing theme, but the chapters were written in a breezy style that was fun to read.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF MOTION by Tom Standage is being released this month; it is subtitled "From the Wheel, to the Car, to What Comes Next." We have several other texts by Standage including A History of the World in 6 Glasses, An Edible History of Humanity, and Writing on the Wall. His latest has chapters ranging from "Wheels in the Ancient World" to "From Horseless to Driverless." Along the way, he provides an insightful discussion of the development of suburbia and devotes another chapter to "Car Culture." As in his other works, Standage employs statistics and humor to describe trends as well as benefits (here, paved roads, more independence, and so on) and consequences (like increased pollution, congestion, more fatalities, etc.). Of particular interest to our students will likely be the places where he looks to the future, discussing options like electric cars and integrated transit systems. We will have a copy on our shelves soon.

Interesting Overview. Needs Bibliography. It is actually somewhat interesting to me that of five reviews on Goodreads prior to this one, one of the reviewers specifically notes a lack of footnotes as a *good* thing... and this very thing is actually pretty well the only thing I could find to *ding* this text on. But I'm fairly consistent in that - no matter what, I expect a fact-based (vs more memoir-based) nonfiction title to include and reference a decent sized bibliography.

That noted, the substance of this text was well-written, approachable, at times amusing, and full of facts from a wide range of eras that this reader had not previously known. Even in the chapter on the development of driverless cars - much more thoroughly documented in DRIVEN by Alex Davies - there were a few facts that even having read that book and being a professional software developer (and thus more generally aware of tech than some), I genuinely didn't know before reading this book. Preceding chapters tracing the development of transportation during the 19th and early 20th centuries in particular were utterly fascinating, as was later coverage of the potential future for a car-less society. Remarkably well balanced, the text tends to steer clear - pun absolutely intended - of various relevant controversies (climate change, Peak Oil, Peak Car, autonomous vehicles, car-less society, etc) even while discussing said controversies' impact on society and future developments. Truly a solid examination of its topic, and very much recommended.

An excellent, edifying, erudite primer that wheels and deals in information on all things motion related.
In the beginning there was a wheel and, surprisingly enough, it wasn’t all that popular at first. Then it became all the rage and got a companion wheel. Enter cart (or a chariot if you’re fancy). But mostly a cart of some sort as in a small utility vehicle dragged along by some sort of an animal. Not the most efficient thing, but it stayed that way for centuries. Then the Industrial Age rolled around and everyone got chariotfancy and inventionhappy. And soon there were all sorts of fascinating inventions for daringly animal free locomotion.
Some of it turned into bicycles and most of it turned into cars. Eventually. After a series of various stabs at it from a variety of directions. And then cars took over the world.
Now that’s brief. The book expands on all these things in twelve informative chapters that chronologically trace not only the progress of motion, but also the social, political and economical ramifications of it. And it’s genuinely fascinating. Even for people with no special interest in cars. Because it’s more than a story of motion, it’s a story on the world.
Since US is the leading car producer, user, etc. it steals the focus of the book. Right after all those Europeans get done inventing things, American comes along and makes them. In bulk. And so beginning with the Ford / GM rivalry of the early 20th century and right up to the present day with car production finally, finally, possibly on a downslide thanks to the numerous ride sharing options and potential of self driving vehicles and so on…you’ll get to know all about why Americans are so obsessed with cars and how this obsession has shaped the way they live.
I already said fascinating, but it’s really such an apt descriptor here. This was just so well done. All the things I value in nonfiction…smart, accessibly written, succinct, with plenty of visual aid and not dragged down by footnotes (at least in the ARC edition). Gave me lots to ponder too. You learn and learn and it’s fun the entire time. I really enjoyed this book and it provided a most excellent introduction to a new to me author. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

A highly readable and enjoyable book. Lots of information - Standage has clearly done his research. If you want to get a sense of how the automobile developed (including its precursors) and how it interconnected with larger society, this is your book. That ability to explain the impact of these forms of transport on the shape of society was one of its great strengths and consistently well done.

But that focus on the auto was also my disappointment. Yes, the book covered chariots, wagons, and other pre-mechanical conveyances and was most interesting in doing so. But there was nothing on other modes of travel such as flight, naval ships, etc. As such, it was not really a full "history of motion," but a focus on one aspect. So while I am glad to have read the book and certainly learned things, I felt the title was misleading.

As for using the book in class: It is too narrowly focused for a general, introductory level class. But I have students who do research on transportation in particular (and to a lesser degree, aspects of industrialization, urbanization, and more). I would definitely recommend this book to them for further detail and analysis of specific aspects of global history.

Interesting but restricted in scope

I enjoyed this book. I found it interesting and well-written, with some clever wording. The book does veer off a few times to give historical context, for example the rise of fast foods. While interesting, it did nothing to help tell the story of motion. I also found that there was little history of the automobile industry outside of the United States. Overall though, it is worth reading. Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the advance reader copy.

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Tom Standage's "Brief history of Motion' takes us on a ride to the ascent of car-culture with an outlook on its end. The title overpromises somewhat, as the stories major intersection is the choice of motorization in the 1910s between steam, electric and internal combustion, a choice that is being remedied as we week. Some side stories about the evolution of fast food and roadside hotels are exceptionally brief to the point that some facts like the story of McDonalds is distorted to a degree that one could claim it is no longer accurate.

Despite all that, the book is highly entertaining and contains a lot of funny anecdotes, interesting trivia and wor(l)d history you always wanted to know but never dared to ask.