Bicycle Diaries by David Byrne (Penguin, 2009).
Since the early-1980’s Talking Heads front-man and visual artist David Byrne has been riding a bicycle as his primary means of transportation in New York City. His seventh book ( -- Renaissance Man! -- ) is a travelogue that goes back at least a dozen years and loosely chronicles his experience biking in various cities across the globe including Berlin, Istanbul, Buenos Aires, Manila, Sydney, London, San Francisco and New York. From the vantage point of a bicycle, Byrne “catch[es] glimpses of the mind of [his] fellow man, as expressed in cities … [that] are physical manifestations of our deepest beliefs.” While his writing is clear and engaging, the subjects he covers are impersonal, random and often lack segues. In fact, the theme of bike-riding serves mainly as vessel for a jumbo-load of Byrne’s thoughts on politics, art, architecture, history, fashion, urban planning, cultural stereotypes, and, of course, music (8/10).
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