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Shade: The Promise of a Forgotten Natural Resource
An extraordinary investigation into shade, this “compelling . . . conversation-starter draws examples from history, city-planning and social policy” (NPR) to change the way we think about a critical natural resource that should be available to all.
“Thought-provoking . . . Bloch, an environmental journalist, examines how shade is now a privilege, often denied to farmworkers, the homeless, and residents of poor neighborhoods.”—The New Yorker
A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
On a 90-degree day in Los Angeles, bus riders across the city line up behind the shadows cast by street signs and telephone poles, looking for a little relief from the sun’s glaring heat. Every summer such scenes play out in cities across the United States, and as Sam Bloch argues, we ignore the benefits of shade at our own peril. Heatwaves are now the country’s deadliest natural disasters with victims concentrated in poorer, less shady areas. Public health, mental health, and crime statistics are worse in neighborhoods without it. For some, finding shade is a matter of life and death.
Shade was once a staple of human civilization. In Mesopotamia and Northern Africa, cities were built densely so that courtyards and public passageways were in shadow in the heat of the day, with cool breezes flowing freely. The Greeks famously philosophized in shady agoras. Even today, in Spain’s sunny Seville, political careers are imperiled when leaders fail to put out the public shades that hang above sidewalks in time for summer heat.
So what happened in the U.S.? The arrival of air conditioning and the dominance of cars took away the impetus to enshrine shade into our rapidly growing cities. Though a few heroic planners, engineers, and architects developed shady designs for efficiency and comfort, the removal of shade trees in favor of wider roads and underinvestment in public spaces created a society where citizens retreat to their own cooled spaces, if they can—increasingly taxing the energy grid—or face dangerous heat outdoors.
Shade examines the key role that shade plays not only in protecting human health and enhancing urban life, but also looks toward the ways that innovative architects, city leaders, and climate entrepreneurs are looking to revive it to protect vulnerable people—and maybe even save the planet. Ambitious and far-reaching, Shade helps us see a crucially important subject in a new light.
“Thought-provoking . . . Bloch, an environmental journalist, examines how shade is now a privilege, often denied to farmworkers, the homeless, and residents of poor neighborhoods.”—The New Yorker
A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
On a 90-degree day in Los Angeles, bus riders across the city line up behind the shadows cast by street signs and telephone poles, looking for a little relief from the sun’s glaring heat. Every summer such scenes play out in cities across the United States, and as Sam Bloch argues, we ignore the benefits of shade at our own peril. Heatwaves are now the country’s deadliest natural disasters with victims concentrated in poorer, less shady areas. Public health, mental health, and crime statistics are worse in neighborhoods without it. For some, finding shade is a matter of life and death.
Shade was once a staple of human civilization. In Mesopotamia and Northern Africa, cities were built densely so that courtyards and public passageways were in shadow in the heat of the day, with cool breezes flowing freely. The Greeks famously philosophized in shady agoras. Even today, in Spain’s sunny Seville, political careers are imperiled when leaders fail to put out the public shades that hang above sidewalks in time for summer heat.
So what happened in the U.S.? The arrival of air conditioning and the dominance of cars took away the impetus to enshrine shade into our rapidly growing cities. Though a few heroic planners, engineers, and architects developed shady designs for efficiency and comfort, the removal of shade trees in favor of wider roads and underinvestment in public spaces created a society where citizens retreat to their own cooled spaces, if they can—increasingly taxing the energy grid—or face dangerous heat outdoors.
Shade examines the key role that shade plays not only in protecting human health and enhancing urban life, but also looks toward the ways that innovative architects, city leaders, and climate entrepreneurs are looking to revive it to protect vulnerable people—and maybe even save the planet. Ambitious and far-reaching, Shade helps us see a crucially important subject in a new light.
315 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 22, 2025
90 people are currently reading
3904 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
September 11, 2025
This book made me turn off my AC
September 17, 2025
Genuinely can't stop bringing this book up in conversation and it has only been five days since I began reading it. Shade matters and I can't stop talking about it.
June 26, 2025
Reading this book as a freckled, fair-skinned, heat-intolerant City Planner in South Carolina during the week of a heat dome almost felt sardonic. As the Earth gets warmer, it's no secret that heat will continue to be a problem. We know that most urban areas are ill-equipped to deal with the heat, and Bloch calls out urban designers, the government, and global organizations to consider why shade might be the answer. Bloch not only looks at what shade does from a physiological standpoint, but from a social justice perspective. The book delves into how shade can mitigate the effects of oppressive heat and foster healthier communities. I appreciated the history of urban planning and the transformation of life as we know it by the invention of air conditioning. The writing is straightforward and journalistic, and Bloch’s research makes a somewhat niche climate topic easy to read and absorb. Told through personal anecdotes and case studies, Bloch illustrates how innovative urban designs can transform cities into more sustainable and livable environments. From the first chapter, I found myself sharing random facts with family, friends, and colleagues. Bloch’s message is powerful, and I’m looking forward to reading some of his other writing. This book is a call to action, urging policymakers, planners, and citizens alike to reconsider the power of shade in our urban landscapes. As someone deeply invested in city planning, I found Bloch’s vision for a cooler future inspiring.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.
Want to read
May 12, 2025Just this title makes me feel like I might cry and nonfiction is usually hard for me to get through, so idk if I'll ever actually read this. But as a fair-skinned redhead (I can burn in under half an hour) who has sensory meltdowns when I'm too hot and grew up in a ton of glorious tree cover (you can't see my parents' house through the trees on google earth), shade is something I'm searching for, and often missing, all the time.
September 3, 2025
4.5 stars. So interesting!The author starts with the history of shade, how it shaped city planning and architecture until air conditioning was invented and then we went away from natural cooling. I will think about shade differently and our move away has contributed to climate change.
After a few days, I kept thinking about this book and decided to up my review stars.
After a few days, I kept thinking about this book and decided to up my review stars.
August 27, 2025
this book gave me much to think about.
i’m gonna be honest it got pretty repetitive in those middle chapters to a point i don’t see how they were separate topics. and i don’t know enough about the issue of geothermal engineering to understand the complexities and consequences of the examples in the last chapter. but i thoroughly enjoyed this read! the california central valley and its man-made desert climate and the agriculture workers who make california the economic powerhouse that it is are very close to my heart so i appreciated how much they were highlighted here.
i’m gonna be honest it got pretty repetitive in those middle chapters to a point i don’t see how they were separate topics. and i don’t know enough about the issue of geothermal engineering to understand the complexities and consequences of the examples in the last chapter. but i thoroughly enjoyed this read! the california central valley and its man-made desert climate and the agriculture workers who make california the economic powerhouse that it is are very close to my heart so i appreciated how much they were highlighted here.
October 19, 2025
In summary, trees and shade are good, air conditioning is bad, climate inequalities exist, the US government sucks at accomplishing anything unless it benefits the rich, solar geoengineering is a thing, and the future is bleak :’) Can’t believe it took me reading this book to realize my dream job is an urban planner.
December 20, 2025
parts were super interesting, especially when bloch focused on the ways in which access to shade follow socioeconomic lines. a little slow overall for my tastes, but well worth a read (or listen). it definitely made me think more critically about my reliance on cooling systems and the different kinds of heat and sun exposure that my communities have had to deal with throughout my life, moving from suburbia into denser city neighborhoods.
unsurprised to find out that it all does, once again, come down to colonialism.
unsurprised to find out that it all does, once again, come down to colonialism.
November 4, 2025
Another great installment on my quest to read more about science!!! Sam Bloch’s Shade: The Promise of a Forgotten Natural Resource is a surprisingly hopeful discussion on one of the most pressing environmental and health crises of our time: heat. Block lays out several stunning facts to start his book, including that every year, our warming planet’s increasing heat is responsible for more deaths than floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes COMBINED. Even if we stopped all carbon emissions tomorrow, the existing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would continue to warm our planet, and the effects wouldn’t taper off until the year 3000. So basically, we are stuck with heat, and it is worse than we often understand. Bloch’s resolution is that we must come to terms with this—we have to “begin new life on a new earth”, and that requires shade.
Heat is a commercial problem, but shade poses communal solutions
Bloch’s early chapters answer this question of how societies before our own have dealt with the problem of heat, and what shade looked like throughout history. Many societies and species relied on natural forms of shade, and all animals have been proven to need it, whether we are exotherms or endotherms. In Mesopotamia, they didn’t even have windows in their homes to keep them cool from the sun. This really helped me put into perspective how recent our obsession with sunlight is in the course of human history. Prior to our current time’s growth wars, density was also seen as a good thing for encouraging shade. When the Roman emperor Nero wanted to sprawl residences across long promenades after The Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD, people hated this idea because they wanted to maintain the shade that close by buildings offered. How things have changed! The Greek Empire had its own preferred form of shade, the portico. These designs influence architecture throughout the world, including in Seville, Spain, an area that is known for its heat waves and is finding creative shade interventions to beat the heat. (Fun fact: my sister studied abroad in Seville, and walked through one of the parks mentioned on her way to class! She mentioned that the street shading devices are still not everywhere in the city, though.)
After an enjoyable tour of different historic approaches to shade, Bloch introduces one of his core points—to do any of these interventions, it will take all of us. As he says at the end:
This emphasis on shade as a societal priority made me think a lot about my profession’s role in all this. Bloch shares several instances where planners are on the wrong side of shade, such as preventing DIY shade installations on Figueroa Blvd in Los Angeles because they don’t comply with the sidewalk code, or setting out building codes that require setbacks and lot sizes that are not conducive to shade. So like with everything, it raises the perpetual question of how planners can become supporters of progress, instead of intermediaries to the enemies of progress. One idea I have: getting more insistent on shade as a critical design feature, whenever we can!! I just asked about this in a recent project I’m reviewing for my job, and probably wouldn’t have honed in on this feature prior to this book. For transit planners, there are lots of shade interventions to be made around bus riders (Bloch discusses this in depth.) For instance, here in NC, many elders don’t have the shelters they need when waiting for the bus , and are forced to use things like paint buckets. Committing more public resources to shaded bus shelters could be an example of combining environmental and disability justice, helping more people have access to transportation in their area. Bloch’s investigation of bus riders seeking to beat the heat also made me rethink a bit of the modal preference debate that often comes up in planning school. Many people are quick to say that our preference for subways and light rail over buses is all about elitism, and I’m still willing to bet a good portion of it is that! But, what if it was partially about shade—like which transit modes allow for comfortable, covered waits for their passengers, and which don’t? Of course, that creates a chicken or egg argument, but I digress!!
Bloch’s additional solutions that are relevant to planners on the housing side of things include an explanation of how passive homes could help reduce AC needs. Of course, the problem is that these homes are only 1% of newly constructed American houses. This transition won’t work at an individual level—it’s an industry wide issue that would require shifts from developers, home furnishing companies, HVAC manufacturers, and many other groups that benefit from the status quo.
AC is kind of the devil
Speaking of the status quo, I had NOT realized just how much our modern scarcity of shade is deeply tied to the proliferation of air conditioning. Again, Sam Bloch says it best:
Basically, our society has fallen asleep at the wheel, all because the most fortunate of us are able to hide from the heat! But of course, the heat is still there, and it’s actually getting worse thanks to the disastrous environmental consequences of AC. I didn’t realize that AC is the main home contributor to fossil fuel pollution…like there are more emissions from our AC units than the fridges, ovens, dishwaters, washing machines, everything!!! And unless we get on a clean grid, this isn’t going to be sustainable. The grid is the other issue with AC: it breaks down whenever we truly need it!!! In deadly heat waves, we can’t rely on the air conditioning units to all work at once because the grid can’t sustain that level of use. Unfortunately though, our past several decades of reliance on AC has eliminated many of the natural forms of shade that many prior societies embraced. We no longer have residences with limited windows—we have floor-to-ceiling glass heat traps called office buildings and apartments, meaning that we couldn’t get enough shade if we wanted to inside our homes. When we exit those homes, the constantly-repaved asphalt surrounding us makes our environment even warmer, and the shaded structures that could have prevented this?!? We tore them all down to police Black people and persecute unhoused people!!!
All oppression is connected
Okay, so now to that last point. Bloch is diligent at making it clear that the people most burdened by global warming, and most in need of shade, are often the ones who have been restricted from accessing it. What’s more, many of these people have actually been directly stripped of the natural shade of their environments. We all know that white and wealthy neighborhoods have more shade (and thus lower temperatures) in nearly every city. However, Bloch investigates LAPD records to show that in some cities, the removal of shade in Black neighborhoods was directly tied to urban warfare!! Just as the US military poured ruinous deforestation chemicals on trees in Vietnam to find their “enemies”, US police departments have also supported the tearing down of trees to rout out suspected gang members. The surveillance state’s connection to the lack of shade was a stunning revelation for me—I’d never fully connected those dots before.
Shade is also being decimated because of our society’s disdain for unhoused people, who are THREE TIMES more likely to die of heat-related illnesses than those of us with homes. It’s truly evil because providing more shade would cost us nothing, but provide people who need it with everything. However, we’d rather let everyone be miserable to make “loitering” less possible for some people. We are literally privatizing and deforesting our parks because we don’t want them to be safe havens for people without shelter (again, Raleigh’s Moore Square renovation is a textbook case of this.) We are ruining our public benches and bus shelters and everything else that gives us shade or rest, like literally depriving ourselves to make things miserable for the homeless.
Another group who is unfairly suffering in all this?!?! FARMWORKERS. Bloch shows heartbreaking cases of how many farmworkers are experiencing preventable deaths from heat stroke, kidney failure, and other illnesses related to lack of shade, water, and rest. Surprisingly, he shows that the US military has already figured out how to solve these same injuries for their outdoor trainees—people need mandatory, timed breaks under real shade structures and access to water even when they don’t think they’re thirsty. The challenge with providing these things to the people who grow our food is that the profit motive is not strong enough—major companies see their labor sources as disposable and easily replenishable, and everyday people like myself are not doing enough to change this. One horrifying example was with berry farms, which have shaded structures to protect the produce, but no shaded structures to protect the workers picking them. Bloch even investigates policies in different states, showing how California’s laws have been more successful, while Oregon’s have been more successful because they mandate shade instead of suggesting it or leaving it to the workers. This makes me realize I need to learn more about farmworker protection in NC, and which groups are supporting workers.
Finally, Bloch discusses the countries outside of the imperial core, and how they are faring with shade. For instance, the country of Burkina Faso is responsible for 1/50th of 1% of global emissions, but they are facing barriers to shade, as 80% of the country does not have electricity or AC. Bloch’s question is an important one: how do they get more of the comforts we have (ex: AC), and how do we get more of the tolerance for heat that they have? Said another way, he’s asking will Americans Americans get more uncomfortable so others can have some comfort? As Barbara, a Burkinabe woman that Bloch’s interviewed said, “When it’s 140 degrees, I hope I have an air conditioner, and you do too. But when it’s 85 degrees, please just open the window.”
Final Thoughts
I am so glad I read this!!! I need to work to understand more of the applications in my life, and I also want to learn more about this concept of stratospheric shade, which seemingly disincentivizes people to divert from fossil fuels and reduce carbon emissions. It also could have other consequences that we don’t know about yet. However, like with many tech “innovations” geoengineering and solar radiation management (SRM) solutions are being promoted as the fix for problems that technology is causing. But anyway, would highly recommend this one to any interested readers!
Heat is a commercial problem, but shade poses communal solutions
Bloch’s early chapters answer this question of how societies before our own have dealt with the problem of heat, and what shade looked like throughout history. Many societies and species relied on natural forms of shade, and all animals have been proven to need it, whether we are exotherms or endotherms. In Mesopotamia, they didn’t even have windows in their homes to keep them cool from the sun. This really helped me put into perspective how recent our obsession with sunlight is in the course of human history. Prior to our current time’s growth wars, density was also seen as a good thing for encouraging shade. When the Roman emperor Nero wanted to sprawl residences across long promenades after The Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD, people hated this idea because they wanted to maintain the shade that close by buildings offered. How things have changed! The Greek Empire had its own preferred form of shade, the portico. These designs influence architecture throughout the world, including in Seville, Spain, an area that is known for its heat waves and is finding creative shade interventions to beat the heat. (Fun fact: my sister studied abroad in Seville, and walked through one of the parks mentioned on her way to class! She mentioned that the street shading devices are still not everywhere in the city, though.)
After an enjoyable tour of different historic approaches to shade, Bloch introduces one of his core points—to do any of these interventions, it will take all of us. As he says at the end:
“No amount of individual creativity will ever solve a planetary problem like climate change…To keep the earth livable, we need collective planning, management, and action. This is where shade comes in. In most cases, it does not require innovation or cutting edge technology. It is a concept so instinctive that it is grasped by insects, lizards, and fish, and it scales. It could be one of our most powerful defenses against rising heat. Effectively governing the global climate may be the most challenging thing humanity ever does, but we cannot be daunted by this task, because if we do not find a way to act responsibly in the collective interest, than we will all be left to travel our individual paths.”
This emphasis on shade as a societal priority made me think a lot about my profession’s role in all this. Bloch shares several instances where planners are on the wrong side of shade, such as preventing DIY shade installations on Figueroa Blvd in Los Angeles because they don’t comply with the sidewalk code, or setting out building codes that require setbacks and lot sizes that are not conducive to shade. So like with everything, it raises the perpetual question of how planners can become supporters of progress, instead of intermediaries to the enemies of progress. One idea I have: getting more insistent on shade as a critical design feature, whenever we can!! I just asked about this in a recent project I’m reviewing for my job, and probably wouldn’t have honed in on this feature prior to this book. For transit planners, there are lots of shade interventions to be made around bus riders (Bloch discusses this in depth.) For instance, here in NC, many elders don’t have the shelters they need when waiting for the bus , and are forced to use things like paint buckets. Committing more public resources to shaded bus shelters could be an example of combining environmental and disability justice, helping more people have access to transportation in their area. Bloch’s investigation of bus riders seeking to beat the heat also made me rethink a bit of the modal preference debate that often comes up in planning school. Many people are quick to say that our preference for subways and light rail over buses is all about elitism, and I’m still willing to bet a good portion of it is that! But, what if it was partially about shade—like which transit modes allow for comfortable, covered waits for their passengers, and which don’t? Of course, that creates a chicken or egg argument, but I digress!!
Bloch’s additional solutions that are relevant to planners on the housing side of things include an explanation of how passive homes could help reduce AC needs. Of course, the problem is that these homes are only 1% of newly constructed American houses. This transition won’t work at an individual level—it’s an industry wide issue that would require shifts from developers, home furnishing companies, HVAC manufacturers, and many other groups that benefit from the status quo.
AC is kind of the devil
Speaking of the status quo, I had NOT realized just how much our modern scarcity of shade is deeply tied to the proliferation of air conditioning. Again, Sam Bloch says it best:
“When we moved into conditioned interiors, we lost our connection to the climate outside. AC gave us permission to desecrate an urban environment that we no longer relied on for cooling, nor traveled on foot. And even worse, AC began to desecrate the planet, because we must consume huge amounts of energy to create so much artificial chill…Now we’re stuck with machines that cool us indoors, at the cost of hellish conditions outside.”
Basically, our society has fallen asleep at the wheel, all because the most fortunate of us are able to hide from the heat! But of course, the heat is still there, and it’s actually getting worse thanks to the disastrous environmental consequences of AC. I didn’t realize that AC is the main home contributor to fossil fuel pollution…like there are more emissions from our AC units than the fridges, ovens, dishwaters, washing machines, everything!!! And unless we get on a clean grid, this isn’t going to be sustainable. The grid is the other issue with AC: it breaks down whenever we truly need it!!! In deadly heat waves, we can’t rely on the air conditioning units to all work at once because the grid can’t sustain that level of use. Unfortunately though, our past several decades of reliance on AC has eliminated many of the natural forms of shade that many prior societies embraced. We no longer have residences with limited windows—we have floor-to-ceiling glass heat traps called office buildings and apartments, meaning that we couldn’t get enough shade if we wanted to inside our homes. When we exit those homes, the constantly-repaved asphalt surrounding us makes our environment even warmer, and the shaded structures that could have prevented this?!? We tore them all down to police Black people and persecute unhoused people!!!
All oppression is connected
Okay, so now to that last point. Bloch is diligent at making it clear that the people most burdened by global warming, and most in need of shade, are often the ones who have been restricted from accessing it. What’s more, many of these people have actually been directly stripped of the natural shade of their environments. We all know that white and wealthy neighborhoods have more shade (and thus lower temperatures) in nearly every city. However, Bloch investigates LAPD records to show that in some cities, the removal of shade in Black neighborhoods was directly tied to urban warfare!! Just as the US military poured ruinous deforestation chemicals on trees in Vietnam to find their “enemies”, US police departments have also supported the tearing down of trees to rout out suspected gang members. The surveillance state’s connection to the lack of shade was a stunning revelation for me—I’d never fully connected those dots before.
Shade is also being decimated because of our society’s disdain for unhoused people, who are THREE TIMES more likely to die of heat-related illnesses than those of us with homes. It’s truly evil because providing more shade would cost us nothing, but provide people who need it with everything. However, we’d rather let everyone be miserable to make “loitering” less possible for some people. We are literally privatizing and deforesting our parks because we don’t want them to be safe havens for people without shelter (again, Raleigh’s Moore Square renovation is a textbook case of this.) We are ruining our public benches and bus shelters and everything else that gives us shade or rest, like literally depriving ourselves to make things miserable for the homeless.
Another group who is unfairly suffering in all this?!?! FARMWORKERS. Bloch shows heartbreaking cases of how many farmworkers are experiencing preventable deaths from heat stroke, kidney failure, and other illnesses related to lack of shade, water, and rest. Surprisingly, he shows that the US military has already figured out how to solve these same injuries for their outdoor trainees—people need mandatory, timed breaks under real shade structures and access to water even when they don’t think they’re thirsty. The challenge with providing these things to the people who grow our food is that the profit motive is not strong enough—major companies see their labor sources as disposable and easily replenishable, and everyday people like myself are not doing enough to change this. One horrifying example was with berry farms, which have shaded structures to protect the produce, but no shaded structures to protect the workers picking them. Bloch even investigates policies in different states, showing how California’s laws have been more successful, while Oregon’s have been more successful because they mandate shade instead of suggesting it or leaving it to the workers. This makes me realize I need to learn more about farmworker protection in NC, and which groups are supporting workers.
Finally, Bloch discusses the countries outside of the imperial core, and how they are faring with shade. For instance, the country of Burkina Faso is responsible for 1/50th of 1% of global emissions, but they are facing barriers to shade, as 80% of the country does not have electricity or AC. Bloch’s question is an important one: how do they get more of the comforts we have (ex: AC), and how do we get more of the tolerance for heat that they have? Said another way, he’s asking will Americans Americans get more uncomfortable so others can have some comfort? As Barbara, a Burkinabe woman that Bloch’s interviewed said, “When it’s 140 degrees, I hope I have an air conditioner, and you do too. But when it’s 85 degrees, please just open the window.”
Final Thoughts
I am so glad I read this!!! I need to work to understand more of the applications in my life, and I also want to learn more about this concept of stratospheric shade, which seemingly disincentivizes people to divert from fossil fuels and reduce carbon emissions. It also could have other consequences that we don’t know about yet. However, like with many tech “innovations” geoengineering and solar radiation management (SRM) solutions are being promoted as the fix for problems that technology is causing. But anyway, would highly recommend this one to any interested readers!
January 5, 2026
Most of my friends don't get why I read this but it was great. Coming from a not sunny country I probably hadn't thought too much about it, but I can see it becoming infinitely more important in the coming years.
Read mainly in bed.
Read mainly in bed.
September 11, 2025
WOW! this is an essential text for all people, but especially architects, civil engineers, consultants, and city planners. sam uses YEARS of research to back up his claim that we need to bring shade back to our communities. this book uses science, history, urban planning, interviews, case studies and so much more to build up its argument. not only that, he is intent on calling out how his techniques to bring back cooler communities will not only impact the lives of those of us who work and live indoors, but also those who are most marginalized by the impacts of climate change.
the biology lessons on the impact of shade on the body? AMAZING. the ecology lessons on shade? AMAZING. the history lessons on shade and how only in the past 150 years have we removed shade from our communities? AMAZINGGGG.
the removal of shade brought us to a world with A/C and A/C has allowed us to desecrate our urban environments and the climate because of our dependence on it. HFCs (emitted by A/Cs) are 1,300x (!!!!!) more effective at trapping heat in the environment in the atmosphere than CO2. A/C changed the political and social landscape of America by creating “the great indoors.” taking away trees from our communities was done to drive away homeless people and other deemed deviant who use social spaces like parks. the good news is that shade brings people together across the political spectrum.
as someone who LOVE Passive House standards, i was so happy to see such a large part of this book be about how we need to push for improved building designs to combat the problem of no shade. a Passive House certified house consumes no more than 15 kilowatt hours of electricity to heat or cool every square meter of living space over the course of a year… passive house can help us cool the Earth down! architects and engineers must call into question the data sets they use that were developed by climate trends that no longer exist or will soon be gone. passive house developments only make 1% of new development in the United States.
americans need stronger building codes that mandate higher efficiency standards and developers need higher financial standards to build sustainable homes. that’s where states like MA are taking the lead in offsetting the increased costs that energy efficiency standards like Passive House bring about.
all in all, i loved this book. i think everyone should read or listen to it. it calls on us to cooperate and work with one another to build the world that we need. i am so impressed by sam’s work.
the biology lessons on the impact of shade on the body? AMAZING. the ecology lessons on shade? AMAZING. the history lessons on shade and how only in the past 150 years have we removed shade from our communities? AMAZINGGGG.
the removal of shade brought us to a world with A/C and A/C has allowed us to desecrate our urban environments and the climate because of our dependence on it. HFCs (emitted by A/Cs) are 1,300x (!!!!!) more effective at trapping heat in the environment in the atmosphere than CO2. A/C changed the political and social landscape of America by creating “the great indoors.” taking away trees from our communities was done to drive away homeless people and other deemed deviant who use social spaces like parks. the good news is that shade brings people together across the political spectrum.
as someone who LOVE Passive House standards, i was so happy to see such a large part of this book be about how we need to push for improved building designs to combat the problem of no shade. a Passive House certified house consumes no more than 15 kilowatt hours of electricity to heat or cool every square meter of living space over the course of a year… passive house can help us cool the Earth down! architects and engineers must call into question the data sets they use that were developed by climate trends that no longer exist or will soon be gone. passive house developments only make 1% of new development in the United States.
americans need stronger building codes that mandate higher efficiency standards and developers need higher financial standards to build sustainable homes. that’s where states like MA are taking the lead in offsetting the increased costs that energy efficiency standards like Passive House bring about.
all in all, i loved this book. i think everyone should read or listen to it. it calls on us to cooperate and work with one another to build the world that we need. i am so impressed by sam’s work.
January 24, 2026
I’d say this one is very information dense! The topic of ‘shade’ took me back to my environmental and occupational health class (KESLINGKER haha) in college, where we talked about heat exposure and climate change (especially when WBGT was mentioned in the book hahaha). I totally agree that heat is a serious but often overlooked impact of climate change, and this book explains well how shade can help mitigate the brutal heat we deal with every day as the climate shifts.
The book begins with a brief history of shade, and tbh it’s so enlightening to see how animals rely on shades to survive. I also loved how it traces the story back to ancient civilizations and how they thought about shade back then. Theeeen it moves on to why shade is often low-priority, especially in the US, where it’s sometimes seen as ‘suspicious’. The reasons? Because it’s associated with drug dealing or other crimes. But come on, shade matters (at least in my opinion)! The book also brings up environmental justice, pointing out that in the US, how much shade a neighborhood has can actually reveal inequality and discrimination.
It wraps up with stories from countries that intentionally consider shade in fair and inclusive urban planning, like Singapore and Australia. Read this book i’m deadly serious because it’s so worth it!
The book begins with a brief history of shade, and tbh it’s so enlightening to see how animals rely on shades to survive. I also loved how it traces the story back to ancient civilizations and how they thought about shade back then. Theeeen it moves on to why shade is often low-priority, especially in the US, where it’s sometimes seen as ‘suspicious’. The reasons? Because it’s associated with drug dealing or other crimes. But come on, shade matters (at least in my opinion)! The book also brings up environmental justice, pointing out that in the US, how much shade a neighborhood has can actually reveal inequality and discrimination.
It wraps up with stories from countries that intentionally consider shade in fair and inclusive urban planning, like Singapore and Australia. Read this book i’m deadly serious because it’s so worth it!
December 30, 2025
I would like to force this into the hands of many policymakers, specifically ones that were yay-abundance people (so Obama?). This is really excellent, the information here will surely make me very annoying at parties, although I wish it read a little better. It’s pretty dry in parts (no pun intended) and while I see myself rereading it might actually be a listen.
Quotes like this one “If a hurricane or flood was a week away, he believed officials would not hesitate to act. But unlike those natural disasters, heat does not destroy property. It kills people.” stick with me and helps me push through more text-book like portions.
Quotes like this one “If a hurricane or flood was a week away, he believed officials would not hesitate to act. But unlike those natural disasters, heat does not destroy property. It kills people.” stick with me and helps me push through more text-book like portions.
October 11, 2025
This book had so much more to it than meets the eye. You think, “shade? How can a whole book be about shade?” But there is so much to it. History. Our current addiction to air conditioning. Shade focused housing. Geoengineering of the stratosphere to reflect sunshine back into space. And more.
Now I’m the cool guy at parties that talks about shade.
Now I’m the cool guy at parties that talks about shade.
October 14, 2025
“To keep the earth livable, we need collective planning, management, and action. This is where shade comes in. In most cases, it does not require innovation or cutting-edge technology. It is a concept so simple that it is grasped instinctively by insects, lizards, and fish, and it scales. It could be one of our most powerful defenses against rising heat.”
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 3, 2025
Not a fun read, but a necessary one. Thorough foundational work of our lives before a/c and well-executed emphasis on what we should be doing now for the sustainable future, this book reinforced my on-going donations to treepeople.org. If we are to survive the next 50 years of global warming, we need to plant trees and develop cooling covers for our cities NOW.
October 28, 2025
It’s never easy to read a book about climate change and how we’ve destroyed the planet, but he clearly lays out that there are solutions and that we need to work together to achieve this. Getting more shade is definitely a first step.
October 12, 2025
What a great book about a naturally occurring resource that saves lives and could save our planet. Super interesting the inequities of shade and how now it’s expensive (passive housing) to add it in. I hope we bring back unique native architecture - great read
October 24, 2025
I have been telling everyone to read this book, it has fundamentally altered the way I see the built environment
Read
December 13, 2025Meticulously researched, although things got a little weird at the end with the author’s somewhat sympathetic case study on chemical-tech-bros.
Bottom line, you just can’t read a book like this and come away thinking that capitalism and billionaires are the answer.
Bottom line, you just can’t read a book like this and come away thinking that capitalism and billionaires are the answer.
September 1, 2025
Rounded up to 4.5. During every walk with my dogs during the hot North Carolina summers, I think about shade--I *feel* the palpable difference in temperature when I step into and then back out of shade as we progress on our walks. Bloch here sets out how shade functions and how and where we have it and where and why we most need it. Ultimately, this book is as much a commentary on climate change and socioeconomic inequality. In short, shade, like other natural resources, can be hard to come by, and some have more ready access to it than others. He presents some interesting ideas of how to increase it and how it can help address climate change at both the micro and macro levels. Definitely recommend this one!
November 27, 2025
I didn’t realize there was so much to be said about shade
September 27, 2025
This book, unfortunately, could have been a well written article. It tackles the historical importance of shade, the rise of air conditioning and modern architecture, the health benefits of shade/temperature regulation, structural injustice which has left some areas as “shade deserts”, and possible future solution to combat climate change.
While these are all worthy and interesting topics of discussion, I found it, like many climate change topics, to be extremely fatalistic. Despite providing some small pieces of “hope” the conclusion is that we are extremely unlikely to change the ways of American cities to incorporate essential climate change combatting measures. Again, this is my complaint about a lot of climate commentary. Yes, government red tape and NIMBYism are both major challenges, but to focus so heavily on them is a disservice and only lets air out of casual readers. Why even write a book about how important shade is if, at the same time, we will never be able to implement it because building codes are too strict? Instead, lead with hope. Lead with actions that individuals can take. Even when the author does talk about individuals taking action, it always ends with a crushing crackdown by city officials.
The sections on how we developed our current cities around shade and the discussion on how the impacts of redlining show up today in the amount of shade a neighborhood has were very interesting. For that reason, 3 stars.
While these are all worthy and interesting topics of discussion, I found it, like many climate change topics, to be extremely fatalistic. Despite providing some small pieces of “hope” the conclusion is that we are extremely unlikely to change the ways of American cities to incorporate essential climate change combatting measures. Again, this is my complaint about a lot of climate commentary. Yes, government red tape and NIMBYism are both major challenges, but to focus so heavily on them is a disservice and only lets air out of casual readers. Why even write a book about how important shade is if, at the same time, we will never be able to implement it because building codes are too strict? Instead, lead with hope. Lead with actions that individuals can take. Even when the author does talk about individuals taking action, it always ends with a crushing crackdown by city officials.
The sections on how we developed our current cities around shade and the discussion on how the impacts of redlining show up today in the amount of shade a neighborhood has were very interesting. For that reason, 3 stars.
May 24, 2025
My thanks to NetGalley and Random House for an advance copy of this new look at something that once was everywhere, streets, outside buildings, planned by designers, and now like so much we once took for granted, has been taken away, as a way inconvenience people, and of course to make money.
I live in New England, and a few weeks ago my nephews were visiting my Mom who lives in a colonial two-story that is surrounded by trees. Being New England it was close to eighty degrees, as I type this weeks later it is closer to fifty. That is weather standard weather here. Always changing. The youngest loves to ask questions, and being his uncle I love to try and answer. He kept asking why it was so much cooler up here and I told him well its probably the shade. Go out on the driveway its going to be hot, like crossing the streets in New York close to the trees its going to be warmer. He sat on the grass, looked at me, and said "Brooklyn needs more shade." I wish I had read this book then so I could give him better reasons. I know he would have loved learning. Shade: The Promise of a Forgotten Natural Resource by Sam Bloch is a look at something that we have always taken for granted, one that as cars have more rights than people, data farms need more water, and the Earth gets hotter, might be the solutions to a lot of problems many in power fear to face.
The book opens in Los Angeles at a bus stop. The street is exposed to the sun, a sun that is getting hotter and hotter as the climate changes. People taking the bus can't afford cars, and are basically prisoners of public transportation. In an effect to punish those who live on the streets, the answer is to remove seating and take away shade, so all must suffer in the sun. Attempts by local businesses to create shade, are met with fines, thought most of the community found the shade rewarding. As the Earth gets warmer heat will continue to be a problem. Most areas are ill-equipped to deal with this kind of heat, but shade might be the answer. Bloch goes into the history of urban design that included shade, from square where people could meet, or even be educated, to tree lined boulevards, that had to be cut down as cars became more important than people. Bloch looks at what shade does, lowering temperatures in the area, helping things grow, helping animals, and people. Also Block looks at how governments punish low-income areas with a lack of shade, causing businesses to fail, crime to go up, and people to not care anymore.
I went into this book not knowing what to expect, and learning far more than I thought. Bloch uses science, observation, plans and interviews to tell a story about something that seems so simple and easy to incorporate, but one that seems to be easily ignored also. Bloch talks to designers and scientists, and even more to people who have to work out in the sun, or just wait for a bus. Bloch is a good writer, able to make complex facts easy to understand and interesting to share with others. The book is well-written and has a nice pace to it, flowing well and never getting bogged down.
This is the kind of book I enjoy. Taking something that seems simple and making it not only interesting but important, far more important than people might think. I enjoyed this a lot, and can't wait to share some facts with my nephew.
I live in New England, and a few weeks ago my nephews were visiting my Mom who lives in a colonial two-story that is surrounded by trees. Being New England it was close to eighty degrees, as I type this weeks later it is closer to fifty. That is weather standard weather here. Always changing. The youngest loves to ask questions, and being his uncle I love to try and answer. He kept asking why it was so much cooler up here and I told him well its probably the shade. Go out on the driveway its going to be hot, like crossing the streets in New York close to the trees its going to be warmer. He sat on the grass, looked at me, and said "Brooklyn needs more shade." I wish I had read this book then so I could give him better reasons. I know he would have loved learning. Shade: The Promise of a Forgotten Natural Resource by Sam Bloch is a look at something that we have always taken for granted, one that as cars have more rights than people, data farms need more water, and the Earth gets hotter, might be the solutions to a lot of problems many in power fear to face.
The book opens in Los Angeles at a bus stop. The street is exposed to the sun, a sun that is getting hotter and hotter as the climate changes. People taking the bus can't afford cars, and are basically prisoners of public transportation. In an effect to punish those who live on the streets, the answer is to remove seating and take away shade, so all must suffer in the sun. Attempts by local businesses to create shade, are met with fines, thought most of the community found the shade rewarding. As the Earth gets warmer heat will continue to be a problem. Most areas are ill-equipped to deal with this kind of heat, but shade might be the answer. Bloch goes into the history of urban design that included shade, from square where people could meet, or even be educated, to tree lined boulevards, that had to be cut down as cars became more important than people. Bloch looks at what shade does, lowering temperatures in the area, helping things grow, helping animals, and people. Also Block looks at how governments punish low-income areas with a lack of shade, causing businesses to fail, crime to go up, and people to not care anymore.
I went into this book not knowing what to expect, and learning far more than I thought. Bloch uses science, observation, plans and interviews to tell a story about something that seems so simple and easy to incorporate, but one that seems to be easily ignored also. Bloch talks to designers and scientists, and even more to people who have to work out in the sun, or just wait for a bus. Bloch is a good writer, able to make complex facts easy to understand and interesting to share with others. The book is well-written and has a nice pace to it, flowing well and never getting bogged down.
This is the kind of book I enjoy. Taking something that seems simple and making it not only interesting but important, far more important than people might think. I enjoyed this a lot, and can't wait to share some facts with my nephew.
August 28, 2025
Thanks to NetGalley & Random House for the ARC!
Sam Bloch’s Shade: The Promise of a Forgotten Natural Resource sheds a warm light on everything that casts a cool shadow, stressing sociological interest as much as ecological urgency.
This is a book about learning to not be afraid of the dark.
We are pummeled by messages about how our climate is in crisis, and if you’re like me, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. What are we even supposed to do? I can only recycle so much! Within the first few pages of Shade, though, Bloch grabs the reader’s attention by inspiring a different reaction: excitement.
What if, he argues, the pleasure of sitting in the shade is key to imagining a brighter future?
This hopeful premise allows Bloch to use shade almost as a material metaphor, serving as the basis for discussing intentional architecture, the dissolution of public space, and issues of social equity and health inequality.
Rather than condemning the reader for turning up the AC, the author invites us to reflect on an infrastructure that assumes we will always have it. Instead of ridiculing the forces behind deforestation and sun-scorched cities, he points out how architectural planning was influenced by the belief that light would kill tuberculosis.
Bloch writes as if nothing’s more human than inhumanity, and in order for us to understand systemic problems, we need to be more understanding toward each other.
There's a constant tension between capitalistic priorities and human needs. As Bloch notes in chapter 4, it’s wonderful that shade coverage is given to crops, but why isn’t that privilege afforded to the people farming them? Why is it easy to make advances in passive home design but so economically difficult to implement them? Why are we so unwilling to accept the mild discomfort of turning off the air conditioning for a bit?
These are big questions, but Sam Bloch shares them with such a light touch that they never feel burdensome. He writes with the joy of a conspiracy theorist but the rigor of a researcher as he pulls disparate threads into conversation with each other. As much as this is a strength, it periodically lends itself to redundancy, and certain sentences are repeated almost verbatim across chapters. That said, Bloch’s writing style more than makes up for these small structural issues by being enthusiastic without being pessimistic, gently reminding readers that climate issues aren’t our fault, but they are our problem.
Shade is a blast, and I think Sam Bloch’s excellent work will encourage readers who feel (sun)burnt out. Dwell on the climate problem, but only long enough to envision a solution—go enjoy your park, but don’t forget to advocate for others to have the same privilege.
Sam Bloch’s Shade: The Promise of a Forgotten Natural Resource sheds a warm light on everything that casts a cool shadow, stressing sociological interest as much as ecological urgency.
This is a book about learning to not be afraid of the dark.
We are pummeled by messages about how our climate is in crisis, and if you’re like me, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. What are we even supposed to do? I can only recycle so much! Within the first few pages of Shade, though, Bloch grabs the reader’s attention by inspiring a different reaction: excitement.
What if, he argues, the pleasure of sitting in the shade is key to imagining a brighter future?
This hopeful premise allows Bloch to use shade almost as a material metaphor, serving as the basis for discussing intentional architecture, the dissolution of public space, and issues of social equity and health inequality.
Rather than condemning the reader for turning up the AC, the author invites us to reflect on an infrastructure that assumes we will always have it. Instead of ridiculing the forces behind deforestation and sun-scorched cities, he points out how architectural planning was influenced by the belief that light would kill tuberculosis.
Bloch writes as if nothing’s more human than inhumanity, and in order for us to understand systemic problems, we need to be more understanding toward each other.
There's a constant tension between capitalistic priorities and human needs. As Bloch notes in chapter 4, it’s wonderful that shade coverage is given to crops, but why isn’t that privilege afforded to the people farming them? Why is it easy to make advances in passive home design but so economically difficult to implement them? Why are we so unwilling to accept the mild discomfort of turning off the air conditioning for a bit?
These are big questions, but Sam Bloch shares them with such a light touch that they never feel burdensome. He writes with the joy of a conspiracy theorist but the rigor of a researcher as he pulls disparate threads into conversation with each other. As much as this is a strength, it periodically lends itself to redundancy, and certain sentences are repeated almost verbatim across chapters. That said, Bloch’s writing style more than makes up for these small structural issues by being enthusiastic without being pessimistic, gently reminding readers that climate issues aren’t our fault, but they are our problem.
Shade is a blast, and I think Sam Bloch’s excellent work will encourage readers who feel (sun)burnt out. Dwell on the climate problem, but only long enough to envision a solution—go enjoy your park, but don’t forget to advocate for others to have the same privilege.
October 9, 2025
As a California born and raised civil engineering public servant with a keen interest in the intersections of humanity-forward engineering, land stewardship, and natural solutions, I approached this book with enthusiasm and an open mind.
The thesis and premise started off so strong. the millennia-old history of intentional architecture and shade infrastructure, as well as the rise and implementation of AC, were interesting to me. I was willing to forgive how West coast US centric the case studies were, having just come from another nonfiction text that spread itself way wayyyy too thin; at least the depth of information presented here was not as shallow as the worst I've seen. and I'll also admit my own West coast bias! still, I would have appreciated clear citations and footnotes. the examples of simple shade requests ballooning into multi-agency urban legacy projects are both frustrating and all too familiar in my field of work, but the author using their whole chest to proclaim that LA would do better combining their Public Works and Transportation agencies together for the sole purpose of streamlining projects to resource the city with shade as a bottom line gave me pause...
the last chapter on geoengineering put a horrible taste in my mouth - the author's reporting is biased and disrespectfully tone deaf. just as I was wondering why insufferable SF tech bro Luke Iseman got such a strong feature, the author admits personal direct investment into Iseman's and Song's startup via cooling credit - followed by a blurb about how their efforts (and bitching about legislation - literally quoted verbatim) prioritize entrepreneurship and capital over genuine or exact climate science. last chapter also featured people who try to find moral niches in their work when explicitly funded by genocidal and egotistical investors, only to throw up their hands saying this is the best they can do in this system, because investors are investing and because someone like musk will make their own sexy SRM program, anyways. this is the best that could be pulled together for a "next steps forward" roundup chapter? I didn't pick this up because I wanna suck tech entrepreneur dick but that's what I ultimately got, against my will.
what i thought would be a thoughtfully consolidated historical and STEM research book was actually poor and biased environmental reporting, with the author failing to see beyond the limits of their own unimaginative bias. i'll be returning to Ayana Elizabeth Johnson's What if We Get it Right interviews and resources for the scientific discourse and education I was initially seeking from this book.
The thesis and premise started off so strong. the millennia-old history of intentional architecture and shade infrastructure, as well as the rise and implementation of AC, were interesting to me. I was willing to forgive how West coast US centric the case studies were, having just come from another nonfiction text that spread itself way wayyyy too thin; at least the depth of information presented here was not as shallow as the worst I've seen. and I'll also admit my own West coast bias! still, I would have appreciated clear citations and footnotes. the examples of simple shade requests ballooning into multi-agency urban legacy projects are both frustrating and all too familiar in my field of work, but the author using their whole chest to proclaim that LA would do better combining their Public Works and Transportation agencies together for the sole purpose of streamlining projects to resource the city with shade as a bottom line gave me pause...
the last chapter on geoengineering put a horrible taste in my mouth - the author's reporting is biased and disrespectfully tone deaf. just as I was wondering why insufferable SF tech bro Luke Iseman got such a strong feature, the author admits personal direct investment into Iseman's and Song's startup via cooling credit - followed by a blurb about how their efforts (and bitching about legislation - literally quoted verbatim) prioritize entrepreneurship and capital over genuine or exact climate science. last chapter also featured people who try to find moral niches in their work when explicitly funded by genocidal and egotistical investors, only to throw up their hands saying this is the best they can do in this system, because investors are investing and because someone like musk will make their own sexy SRM program, anyways. this is the best that could be pulled together for a "next steps forward" roundup chapter? I didn't pick this up because I wanna suck tech entrepreneur dick but that's what I ultimately got, against my will.
what i thought would be a thoughtfully consolidated historical and STEM research book was actually poor and biased environmental reporting, with the author failing to see beyond the limits of their own unimaginative bias. i'll be returning to Ayana Elizabeth Johnson's What if We Get it Right interviews and resources for the scientific discourse and education I was initially seeking from this book.
December 25, 2025
An enjoyable read written by someone with passion for the subject. Bloch gives an overview of the history of environmental adaptations to hot weather - utilizing not just shade but wind, building materials, orientation of buildings - and how we got to our current landscape which truly depressed me. We've had heat management figured out for ages; we've had experts concerned about and offering solutions to climate change for decades. And yet market forces lead us to building and buying the little ticky-tacky boxes on the hillside that work against the landscape instead of with. Good intentions have lead to knock on effects that make building environmentally conscious, shade-friendly infrastructure nearly impossible in so many locations.
The case studies he presents in this book offer a well-rounded look at current and historical examples of attempts at mitigating climate change and rising heat, and even the failures are given empathetic scrutiny. Bloch always seeks to understand the full story behind each attempt (thinking especially about the embarrassment of La Sombrita, where he went out of his way to bring the designer's intentions to light in context of LA's strict regulations and existing infrastructure), and each example comes with respect for everyone involved, from the top-level administrators making the decisions to the individuals affected by the adaptations in question.
Just, a very good book. I recommend it for anyone interested in climate change and the ways we can work to mitigate the suffering we face in the next century.
The case studies he presents in this book offer a well-rounded look at current and historical examples of attempts at mitigating climate change and rising heat, and even the failures are given empathetic scrutiny. Bloch always seeks to understand the full story behind each attempt (thinking especially about the embarrassment of La Sombrita, where he went out of his way to bring the designer's intentions to light in context of LA's strict regulations and existing infrastructure), and each example comes with respect for everyone involved, from the top-level administrators making the decisions to the individuals affected by the adaptations in question.
Just, a very good book. I recommend it for anyone interested in climate change and the ways we can work to mitigate the suffering we face in the next century.
November 20, 2025
Like the majority of non-fiction books that promise to be about one topic, this book is not entirely about shade. In this case, that is a huge credit to this book - this book describes how ancient cities were built around shade, how modern cities lost their connection to shade as vehicles and air conditioning became more popular, and ends the book with a look at the future of geoengineers designing a shade cloak for the entire planet.
This book really highlights how important microclimates and small actions can be on our perception of the heat around us. It's no secret the planet will get warmer - those areas at risk that proactively take measures to add shade to their environment will be better off. Some reviews call this fatalistic, but it's not - it's the same action as somebody ducking when a wrench is thrown out them. He also highlights the climate justice issues of poorer, minority communities in the US often having less access to shade, sometimes spurred on by an organization like the LAPD, yet cities like Singapore can equally invest in shade for everyone and make the whole city more livable. I really enjoy what cities are doing today with more pocket parks, awnings, and trees - really nothing humans can invent will solve as many problems as trees can.
Start to finish, a great read, though maybe the first chapter will be a little dry if you already have a scientific understanding of shade and the sun's rays.
This book really highlights how important microclimates and small actions can be on our perception of the heat around us. It's no secret the planet will get warmer - those areas at risk that proactively take measures to add shade to their environment will be better off. Some reviews call this fatalistic, but it's not - it's the same action as somebody ducking when a wrench is thrown out them. He also highlights the climate justice issues of poorer, minority communities in the US often having less access to shade, sometimes spurred on by an organization like the LAPD, yet cities like Singapore can equally invest in shade for everyone and make the whole city more livable. I really enjoy what cities are doing today with more pocket parks, awnings, and trees - really nothing humans can invent will solve as many problems as trees can.
Start to finish, a great read, though maybe the first chapter will be a little dry if you already have a scientific understanding of shade and the sun's rays.
August 22, 2025
An unexpected page tuner! I honestly haven’t read a nonfiction book this fast in a long time. But saw this book at random when searching for a new read, and glad I took the chance.
A well-written and insightful look into the power of shade in a rapidly warming world. Definitely recommend if you are interested in urban planning, sustainability, or like me, consider yourself a passionate hater of the sun. My only comment for improvement would be to include more pictures, as sometimes I wanted to see more examples of the designs describes.
May the world gain more shaded parks, bus stops, trees, and thoughtful design where no one is forced to choose between burning alive and escaping into blasted AC, if that choice is even available to them. Read this book in your best bucket hat in a hammock beneath some big old trees.
Recommended for: grumpy overheated people, tree lovers, vampires, and everyone else
A well-written and insightful look into the power of shade in a rapidly warming world. Definitely recommend if you are interested in urban planning, sustainability, or like me, consider yourself a passionate hater of the sun. My only comment for improvement would be to include more pictures, as sometimes I wanted to see more examples of the designs describes.
May the world gain more shaded parks, bus stops, trees, and thoughtful design where no one is forced to choose between burning alive and escaping into blasted AC, if that choice is even available to them. Read this book in your best bucket hat in a hammock beneath some big old trees.
Recommended for: grumpy overheated people, tree lovers, vampires, and everyone else
October 16, 2025
A great book that looks at the importance of shade in the past, present, and future. Climate change means shade, an already important resource, will become even more sought out as record temperatures are reached and summers become longer. One quote that really stood out to me is "If a hurricane or flood was a week away, he believed officials would not be afraid to act. But unlike natural disasters, heat does not destroy property. It kills people." We need to get in touch with our humanity and step out of our air conditioned bubbles and this book makes a great point of that. Lost me a little on the geoengineering the climate section but I do think it is worth being aware of on some level. Overall, a very interesting read and I love love to learn more about how humans created shade and natural cooling in the past beyond what was talked about in this book.
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