First published 2012
Maps define how humans navigate, own property, and understand their world. Simon Garfield argues that cartography, not language, may have distinguished early humans from their ape ancestors. He traces mapping from ancient explorers through medieval masterworks like the Mappa Mundi to modern Google Maps and smartphone satellites. Garfield shows how maps reshape our relationship with history and geography while revealing both humanity's greatest achievements and deepest flaws. The book includes Dava Sobel's foreword and explores cartographic mysteries, larger than life mapmakers, and quirky mini essays on topics from proper map folding techniques to the internet's strangest geographical representations. Garfield brings his storytelling skills to this global journey through centuries of human attempts to chart and comprehend space.
Genres: history, geography, non-fiction, cartography
Vibes: thought-provoking
Tropes: informative
Period: Ancient, Medieval, Modern
464 pages · Hardcover · Gotham