A Brief History of Cities in 32 Inventions: The Ideas and Technologies That Made Modernity Possible

From the #1 bestselling author of A Brief History of the World in 47 Borders, the story of how we live now, in 32 highly entertaining and seriously illuminating histories of urban invention

In 1800, almost no one lived in cities. Now, for the first time, a majority of us do. What exactly paved the way for this extraordinary transformation? With his characteristic wit and boundless curiosity, Jonn Elledge takes us on a fascinating, fun, and frequently surprising tour of 32 inventions that made our modern world. He explores the breakthroughs behind the hallmarks of urban life, from skyscrapers and subways to elevators and buses. But he also revels in the origin stories of seemingly ordinary ideas and technologies that we now barely notice, yet without which our cities couldn’t exist, including plumbing and heating, street numbers and sewers, walls and windows, and more. Reminding us that much of the technology we take for granted was once earth-shattering, Elledge celebrates what is, for him, the most important invention in human history: the city itself.

Publisher’s note: A Brief History of Cities in 32 Inventions is published in the UK under the title 31 Inventions That Built Our World.