The Flames.

Another book that wrestled with the civilization's post WWII discomfort. Muir writes well, and is the author of the best example of tech writing I know: How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive, a Manual Of Step By Step Instructions for the Compleat Idiot. This book is his attempt to fix civilization. While it has a great breadth of imagination thinking about hacking civilization and making it better, and while some of what he suggests came to pass with the birth of the internet, Muir's vision is awfully mechanistic (as one might expect from a mechanical engineer and a mechanic), and while it gives lots of opportunities for human-ness, the system is at least as inherently inhuman as the one it would replace.

As a read for amusement's sake, it's frankly a flop. As a cultural artifact of the 1960s to early 1970s it's interesting, and for John Muir fans who want to see his only other work (richly illustrated with Peter Aschwanden cartoons, much like the VW book) it's interesting. There are some good ideas, but it gets awfully dry in spots.