Book Review: Shrink the City by Natalie Whittle

Freelance journalist Natalie Whittle published this book in 2021 and I found the 2024 edition in the new books section of a library. As a native New Yorker and lifelong walker/pedestrian (though I do drive as well), I have a fascination with walkability. As there aren’t many books that discuss this issue, I was anxious to read this one.

What’s a 15-Minute City?

The 15-minute city is a simple idea that’s gotten surprisingly controversial in recent years. Some see it as a utopian ideal, others as part of a sinister new world order plot to keep people confined to limited spaces. Whittle, a resident of Glasgow who’s also lived in London, does a nice job of taking a balanced view.

The basic idea of a 15-minute city seems fairly innocuous on the surface. It means you can get anywhere you need to go -work, school, shopping- within 15 minutes -by walking or biking.

Some people today, especially conservatives in the US, see 15-minute cities as a globalist plot to keep people confined. One thing they forget is that the current “normal” of endless suburbs and sprawl was itself a centralized scheme. During the New Deal in the post-WW2 era, highways expanded, millions of suburban homes were built, and investment in public transportation (such as street cars in LA) declined. It’s not…