The Secret History of Cars Begins With Bicycles

When Carlton Reid set out to write his book about the history of how bicyclists led the late-19th-century push for better roads—and later became the vanguard of the motoring movement—he thought it might be of interest to a relatively select few. He posted the project, titled Roads Were Not Built for Cars, on Kickstarter, and hoped for the best. Reid, the executive editor of the United Kingdom trade publication Bike Biz, was shocked when he met his £4,000 goal (about $6,250) in less than 24 hours. He eventually brought in more than £17,000 in pledges, and when he published the book this fall, the first print edition immediately sold out.

Fortunately, Reid’s meticulously researched and handsome work is available for the iPad, where it comes with 10 videos and more than 500 fascinating historical illustrations. (A second printing is in the works.)