Fascinating ... Soars like a falcon over global cities on five continents while leading the reader through centuries of history. His chapters on cities conceived as garden paradises, the re-wilding of cities through land reclamation projects, the importance of urban trees and parks for climate resilience, urban food production, and water use are full of statistics and eye-catching examples.
Brief but illuminating ... Wilson leaves readers with hope about the future of efforts to preserve the ecosystems that surround us, as well as a new perspective that looks beyond the concrete and asphalt when walking along a city’s streets.
Wilson leads readers on a brisk ramble through urban nature, emphasizing both peril and potential ... Argued in a quick and assertive style that bounces from Yonkers to the Yangtze, this inquiry achieves a fascinating intertwining of apocalyptic warning and pragmatic optimism.
Drawing examples from around the world, Wilson illustrates the interdependencies that cities have with plants, trees, water, food sources, and birds and animals ... The title of the book is unfortunate given that public debate in the U.S. regarding cities has used the phrase not to allude to nature but to speak with disdain and alarm about race and crime. Nonetheless, Wilson is a helpful guide to the intersection of nature and city life.
Wilson’s account of these efforts makes a convincing case that the natural world extends farther than commonly acknowledged, and the trivia is delightful ... Stimulating and wide-ranging, this will change how city dwellers view their relationship with nature.
