A work of graphic nonfiction exploring the powerful, often toxic relationship between people and cars. Using the comic book format, this book vehemently dispels the notion that traffic accidents are inevitable and/or acceptable on any level, insisting that drivers own their responsibility, and consider the consequences of careless and dangerous behavior. It also addresses such timely issues as the use of cars as murder weapons in places like Charlottesville, VA. What People Are Saying “The author’s probing commentary, combined with its stark visuals, effectively stokes the complicated emotions its author intended to instill in his readers: ‘I wrote this book to make you mad.’ Mission accomplished. A keen and unapologetic consideration of how driving often brings out the worst in us.”—Kirkus Reviews. June 1, 2020 “This is a resolute protest against vehicular deaths as a silent epidemic, though its impact is ironically buckled-in by static visuals.” Publishers Weekly “A singular, passionate, and imploring wake-up call that shines a long overdue spotlight on the most prolific killer of our time.” -Ezra Claytan Daniels, author of Upgrade Soul and Bttm Fdrs “Crash Course shows with stark, painful precision what we lost when we surrendered our streets to cars. Woodrow Phoenix is a street fighter, using a strong visual language to put our eyes back on the road.” -Janette Sadik-Khan, former NYC Department of Transportation Commissioner, and author of Street Fight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution “In a country where we’re taught that driving is an expression of our all-American independence, Woodrow Phoenix’s disassembly of our car culture is a powerful and necessary critique. He makes an important case that our cities must be built for people.” -Danny Harris, Director of Transportation Alternatives “A very important work. Essential even. At this particular crossroads we need to audit these 20th-century metanarratives about the automobile and how it relates to notions of freedom and self.”—Ronald Wimberly, author of Prince of Cats “Phoenix's starkly beautiful artwork portrays a dreamlike, depopulated world of empty roads, parking lots, highways, and overpasses. In this land where car is king, Crash Course dares to show that the emperor has no clothes.”—Josh Neufeld, author of A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge About the Author: Woodrow Phoenix grew up in South London after his parents emigrated from Guyana. He is the author of Plastic Culture: How Japanese Toys Conquered the World. Twitter @mrphoenix
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