Taxi!: A Social History of the New York City Cabdriver

by Graham Russell Gao Hodges

Book Overview

Why the cabdriver is the real victim of the false promises of Uber and the gig economy. 2007 Noteworthy Book in Industrial Relations and Labor Economics, Princeton University Industrial Relations... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 080188554X
• ISBN13: 9780801885549
• Release Date: April 2007
• Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
• Length: 225 Pages
• Weight: 1.06 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Intriguing Read ABout Taxis

As a transportation professional it is interesting to peer into the history of the taxi. This book not only provides historical information but also a vivid account of the hardships and stories of the taxi driver.

not cluttered with talk

Maybe because I am a slow reader, but i dislike books that are made fatter and fluidier with made-up conversations and dialogue. I appreciate a succint book like this one. This is well researched. The sources at the back of the book is impressive. The author chose a chronological order, and maybe for me it would have been more fun if the book was ordered into themes, but then you would have a different book. I found interesting the beginning of the book, about bridging the class divide, of how uptown people can approach and communicate with the working class people (the driver). In the chapter of the sixties and seventies, I didn't see any mention of how the 1973 recession affected cab drivers, or the near-meltdown of the city in its bankrupcy verge.

A Great Way to Learn About Cabbies

Graham Hodges cares about cabbies and drivers past. It's easy to see -- while many writers only rely on economic studies or interviews with current cab drivers, Hodges plows through history and gives us the viewpoint of taxi drivers through the ages. He's able to paint a picture for readers of a New York hack's life. One of the most enjoyable parts of this book is a photographed collection of taxi memorabilia published with the book, including taxi-themed post cards full of sexual innuendo and a picture of female cabbies filling in for their men during the war. He has a unique way of showing the place of the yellow cab in U.S. pop culture, making the book much more interesting than a "just the facts" history lesson.