$20 Per Gallon

Reading Christopher Steiner's $20 Per Gallon: How the Inevitable Rise in the Price of Gasoline Will Change Our Lives for the Better was like breathing in a breath of fresh air.

$20 Per Gallon explores what the world and average American life would look like at different levels of gasoline prices. There's no doubt that petroleum is running out: even the big oil execs (like T. Boone Pickens) have admitted that. There's still enough for now, but gas prices will inevitably rise - and some day at a much faster rate than what we see currently. Steiner goes with this premise and has a chapter for each even dollar increment: $4, $6, $8, and so on up to $20 a gallon for gas.

Unlike many environmentally-themed books, this one does not get preachy. Steiner did not write this book to push an agenda. He simply explores what each price level of gas would do to society. He does show some of the negative effects of high gas prices, but also explains what benefits would come as well. Rather than presenting a doom-and-gloom book, Steiner winds up creating a mostly hopeful depiction of a society weaning itself off of petroleum.

Each chapter took on a gas price and focused in on a particular issue that would be most impacted at a particular level. At $6 SUVs will in extremely low demand, at $8 air travel becomes too costly for most people,  at $10 gasoline-only cars become irrelevant, and so on. Steiner did his research on the big topics but gives educated guesses on what other changes may happen at each level.

It was very exciting to read this book. His goal of depicting high gasoline prices as a societal blessing was achieved. I hope that our society can keep up with the technological advancements required to prevent society from degrading into mass chaos. If we can, and if people can give up their stubborn selfishness, the world may very well become a much better place with $20 gasoline than it was with $1, $2, or even $4 gas.

I'd recommend this book to just about anyone interested in these topics!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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