The Unwanted Sound of Everything We Want: A Book About Noise

By Matthew H. Kramer

Book Overview

Noise is usually defined as unwanted sound: loud music from a neighbor, the honk of a taxicab, the roar of a supersonic jet. But as Garret Keizer illustrates in this probing examination, noise is as much about what we want as about what we seek to avoid. It has been a byproduct of human striving since ancient times even as it has become a significant cause of disease in our own. At heart, noise provides a key for understanding some of our most pressing issues, from social inequality to climate change.

In a journey that leads us from the Tanzanian veldt to the streets of New York, Keizer deftly explores the political ramifications of noise, America's central role in a loud world, and the environmental sustainability of a quieter one. The result is a deeply satisfying book -- one guaranteed to change how we hear the world, and how we measure our own personal volume within it.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1610391101
• ISBN13: 9781610391108
• Release Date: March 2012
• Publisher: PublicAffairs
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.8" x 9.0"