The Nudist on the Late Shift is merely an urban legend in Silicon Valley, but he is representative of the many fascinating characters who live and work in this technical place. According to Po Bronson, Silicon Valley doesn't have any visible signs saying "You have arrived". However, in talking to the many different people who represent the diverse aspects of the computer industry, one can know that this is a place which is unique.

Many people go to Silicon Valley with high hopes of getting jobs with big companies that pay well. Other go in hopes of starting up a company which will earn them millions of dollars, allowing them to retire at an early age. However, the entrepreneurial fever can linger and some of these young retirees go on to found other companies. Basically, "immigrants" to Silicon Valley are looking for the modern version of the American Dream.

This book is an interesting look into a special place in America where people migrate to realise their dreams. The examples of entrepreneurs, programmers, salespeople, newcomers, and others were a microcosm of those who live and work there. For anyone who is interested in the behind-the-scenes activities of the people who design products that computer and Internet users work and play with every day, this book is great reading.

The 1990s have not been kind to Los Angeles. As Mike Davis writes, "The destructive February 1992, January 1993, and January 1995 floods ($500 million in damage) were mere brackets around the April 1992 insurrection ($1 billion), the October-November 1993 firestorms ($1 billion) and the January 1994 earthquake ($42 billion)." But, he argues, the increasing fear about nature's reign of terror in Southern California reflected in Hollywood's preoccupation with apocalypse--L.A. has been destroyed on screen by everything from lava (Volcano) to nukes (Miracle Mile) to alien death rays (Independence Day)--is in reality a strong case of denial. Again, Davis himself says it best: "For generations, market-driven urbanisation has transgressed environmental common sense. Historic wildfire corridors have been turned into view-lot suburbs, wetland liquefaction zones into marinas, and floodplains into industrial districts and housing tracts. Monolithic public works have been substituted for regional planning and a responsible land ethic. As a result, Southern California has reaped flood, fire, and earthquake tragedies that were as avoidable, as unnatural, as the beating of Rodney King and the ensuing explosion in the streets."

As in City of Quartz, his earlier book about Los Angeles, Davis reveals the deeper ideological narratives behind historical events. Whether he's explaining the motivations behind the persistent refusal of civic leaders to admit that a tornado alley runs down the middle of the region, from Long Beach to Pasadena, or discussing, as one chapter refers to it, "the case for letting Malibu burn," he outlines his arguments with a fascinating amount of detail and a subtle sense of irony. There are wonderful chapters here, such as "Maneaters of the Sierra Madre," a zoology of the wild beasts Angelenos fear, including mountain lions that descend from the hills to eat joggers and small children, swarms of Africanised killer bees making their way across the deserts, and El Chupacabra, the "goat-sucking vampire" that joined L.A.'s roster of faddish icons in 1996.

Although this book is specifically about Los Angeles, its lessons about the relationship between urban developments and natural ecosystems and about the dangerous influence of class politics on environmental safety policy are applicable to any city. Anyone with a serious interest in natural history or urban policy should make a point of reading this book. © Amazon.com