John SchragI just finished reading “The Pushcart War” by Jean Merrill. Written fifty years ago, it’s an amusing faux history of a war in New York City between the pushcart vendors and the big trucking companies. I first heard about this book when it was mentioned on the podcast “The War on Cars”.
In the story, traffic is getting worse and worse as thousands of trucks clog up the streets of NYC, and the trucking companies decide to deflect blame from themselves by vilifying the pushcart vendors, kicking off a war between the two. In spite of being a slightly silly book for young people, what it’s describing is pretty much exactly happening here & now (in Toronto where I live) where bicycles and bike lanes (which reduce traffic and increase road safety for everyone) are being blamed for road congestion caused entirely by cars.
It’s a short book at 233 pages, and I’d say aimed at young people (but not little kids). There’s no romance and no one dies, and while there is some violence it doesn’t result in much injury. It’s a quirky read and I enjoyed it.
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