Press
Praise for my debut book The Lost Subways of North America
"Packed with fascinating histories and tons of absorbing information – ever wonder why elevated trains went out of style, or why monorails just don’t work? – the book is a lively and compelling examination of how mass transit has succeeded and failed across the continent."
—The Guardian
"Using meticulous archival research, the cartographer and artist has successfully plotted maps of old train networks covering 23 North American metropolises."
—The Globe and Mail
"Wholly immersive historical accounts of 23 of the most significant subway/light rail systems in the U.S. and Canada. ... Offers fresh insights into how large cities can—or don’t—work."
—Booklist (starred review)
"Jake’s book The Lost Subways of North America is all about the subways of our past, present and future. Not only will you find great stories about the subways of North America, it also features beautiful transit maps that Jake illustrated himself."
—99% Invisible
"Exquisitely illustrated."
—Publishers Weekly
"If your daily life, too, is governed by the whims of your local subway, this book is for you."
—Hyperallergic
"With its collection of beautiful custom maps designed by Berman himself, the book also doubles as a travel guide for the country’s phantom pasts and alternate futures."
—Strong Towns
“Berman’s lively history of American subway debates takes us beyond the usual nostalgia of so much writing on the topic. It helps us to see how our ancestors’ values and motivations created the infrastructure we have, and gives us the courage to make better choices now.”
—Jarrett Walker, author of Human Transit
“It is as much a critique of the rise and fall of industrial cities as it is a history of failed transit schemes, for which it should become recommended reading for anyone interested in the effects of unbridled capitalism, corrupt politics, and big egos on North American daily life.”
—Mark Ovenden, Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, author of Transit Maps of the World
“Berman’s many exceptional maps are provocations worth thousands of words each, conveying a history of relative transportation abundance in the U.S. There is no other book on public transportation like it."
—Steven Higashide, author of Better Buses, Better Cities
“A comprehensive and accessible history of a profoundly consequential and underexplored cultural event. It makes you wonder at what was lost.”
—Angie Schmitt, author of Right of Way
“Berman takes us on a whirlwind cartographic and textual tour of urban rail transit's lost lines and unbuilt extensions. While we can't go back and change history, Berman provides a clear vision of just how much was lost."
—Nicholas Dagen Bloom, Professor of Urban Planning, Hunter College, author of The Great American Transit Disaster
Places where my work has been featured
National/International:
- The New York Times
- The New Yorker
- Vice
- Bloomberg
- Quartz
- Climatewire by Politico
- BuzzFeed (1) (2)
- Atlas Obscura
- The Daily Mail
- BoingBoing
- ABC Radio National (Australia)
Major newspapers:
- The San Francisco Chronicle (1) (2)
- The New York Post (1) (2) (3)
- The Houston Chronicle
- The Minneapolis Star-Tribune
- The Tampa Bay Times
- The San Jose Mercury News
- The Louisville Courier-Journal
- The Kansas City Star
- The Taiwan News
- The Globe and Mail
Specialty press:
Local news + blogs:
- Gothamist, Untapped New York, Spectrum News NY1, the Brooklyn Eagle
- LA Magazine (1) (2)
- DCist, Greater Greater Washington (1) (2)
- Swamplot (Houston)
- D Magazine (Dallas)
- BlogTO (1) (2)
- The Miami New Times
- Cincinnati CityBeat (1) (2)
- Denver Life Magazine
- The Cleveland Scene
- In Kansas City
- RVA Mag, Richmond Magazine
I've also written for:
- The Guardian
- Strong Towns (1) (2)
- Spacing
- Vital City NYC
- LitHub
- PublicSource Pittsburgh
My art is also in the library collections at Harvard, Stanford, Miami University and Michigan State. My NYC subway map was Picture of the Day on Wikipedia in October 2011.
If you're a reporter and want to get in touch with me, drop me a line.