Intended AudienceTrade
Reviews"'Form follows function' was the watchword of twentieth-century modernists but, as the Atlas of Cities deftly shows, the concept has undergirded city building from the start. From imperial Rome and industrial Manchester to today's Asian megacities and border-transcending anomalies like Miami and Dubai, Paul Knox and his talented team of scholars read each city's meaning through its built environment. Packed with info-graphics that are often quirky but always relevant, reading the Atlas of Cities is like walking through the world's great metropolises--something new to ponder around every corner." --Daniel Brook, author of A History of Future Cities, Atlas of Cities serves its purpose as an easy-to-read, graphically-compelling entry point to understanding some of the complexity of cities exceedingly well--ideal for planning and design students, as well as budding urbanists of all ages. The high-quality of information design and printing will also appeal to those interested in city visualizations. For well-seasoned urban professionals and academics, the wide cross-section of cities covered in the book offers an easy and quick reference for information on some of the dominant cities in the contemporary world. Overall, Atlas of Cities follows in the footsteps of the most engaging atlases of recent decades, offering a little something special for everyone....in a beautifully designed package. ---Erick Villagomez, Spacing, "This atlas does not graph the usual geographic shapes of cities, but tries to diagram the many other dimensions within cities around the world. Taking example from many specific cities (such as Istanbul, or Cairo) it tries to dissect, almost like an x-ray, the many organs, tissues, cells, and anatomy of a typical city. . . . This book will likely illuminate your world." ---Kevin Kelly, Wink, Compelling and unique. . . . This is one of the most thought-provoking and accessible books available on contemporary urbanism., "[T]he large format of this coffee-table book provides room for a stunning abundance of photographs, charts, graphs, maps, and other enhancements that make Atlas of Cities as much a visual experience as a narrative one." --Ray Bert, Civil Engineering, A lavish, exhaustive look at the history, transformation, and future of urban centres around the globe. The perfect book for the Richard Florida--who, coincidentally, wrote the foreword--in your life., "A lavish, exhaustive look at the history, transformation, and future of urban centres around the globe. The perfect book for the Richard Florida--who, coincidentally, wrote the foreword--in your life." -- Globe and Mail, "A cartographic buffet that lays out how our metropolises came to be and what makes them tick." --John King, San Francisco Chronicle, "Much more than a book. Through innovative maps, charts, info-graphics and tables, Atlas lays out the cycles of consumption, creation, and decay that drive the living spaces that will soon house three-fourths of the human race, up from today's half. This book doesn't tell you about cities, it lets you understand them." --Dan Bischoff, Newark Star-Ledger, "This vibrant book provides an exciting and insightful tour of the cities that are shaping humanity's future; every would-be urbanist can learn something from this volume." --Edward Glaeser, author of Triumph of the City: How Our Greatest Invention Makes Us Richer, Smarter, Greener, Healthier, and Happier, [T]his is a volume that could excite exploration of those more flexible sources, and its prose, design and illustration will surely achieve that for some who come across it--perhaps in libraries or classrooms. ---Alan Mabin, Urban Africa, "[T]his is a volume that could excite exploration of those more flexible sources, and its prose, design and illustration will surely achieve that for some who come across it--perhaps in libraries or classrooms." --Alan Mabin, Urban Africa, "The kind of book I imagine anyone in the field of Urban Studies would like to own. . . . Atlas of Cities is not just a well-edited book full of useful didactical maps but also the kind of book that the members of our map-loving species want to have." --Manuel B, Aalbers, Urban Studies, This fascinating survey effectively complemented and enriched by color maps, charts, and illustrations, celebrates the urban landscape's past, present, and potential for the future. Intended for the general reader, Knox's reference is recommended to anyone interested in urban studies and geography., Much more than a book. Through innovative maps, charts, info-graphics and tables, Atlas lays out the cycles of consumption, creation, and decay that drive the living spaces that will soon house three-fourths of the human race, up from today's half. This book doesn't tell you about cities, it lets you understand them. ---Dan Bischoff, Newark Star-Ledger, Winner of the 2014 AAG Globe Book Award for Public Understanding of Geography, Association of American Geographers, "The kind of book I imagine anyone in the field of Urban Studies would like to own. . . . Atlas of Cities is not just a well-edited book full of useful didactical maps but also the kind of book that the members of our map-loving species want to have." ---Manuel B, Aalbers, Urban Studies, "A cartographic buffet that lays out how our metropolises came to be and what makes them tick." ---John King, San Francisco Chronicle, "This elegantly illustrated volume is a feast of maps and graphics. . . . Geographers, sociologists, architects, and urban planners have contributed clear thematic chapters, and the result is a book that will encourage readers to think differently about many cities, including their own." ---Graeme Wood, Pacific Standard, "[T]he large format of this coffee-table book provides room for a stunning abundance of photographs, charts, graphs, maps, and other enhancements that make Atlas of Cities as much a visual experience as a narrative one." ---Ray Bert, Civil Engineering, "This fascinating survey effectively complemented and enriched by color maps, charts, and illustrations, celebrates the urban landscape's past, present, and potential for the future. Intended for the general reader, Knox's reference is recommended to anyone interested in urban studies and geography." -- Library Journal (Starred Review), Winner of the 2014 AAG Globe Book Award for Public Understanding of Geography, Association of American Geographers One of The Globe and Mail 75 Book Ideas for Christmas 2014, [T]he large format of this coffee-table book provides room for a stunning abundance of photographs, charts, graphs, maps, and other enhancements that make Atlas of Cities as much a visual experience as a narrative one. ---Ray Bert, Civil Engineering, This atlas does not graph the usual geographic shapes of cities, but tries to diagram the many other dimensions within cities around the world. Taking example from many specific cities (such as Istanbul, or Cairo) it tries to dissect, almost like an x-ray, the many organs, tissues, cells, and anatomy of a typical city. . . . This book will likely illuminate your world. ---Kevin Kelly, Wink, " Atlas of Cities serves its purpose as an easy-to-read, graphically-compelling entry point to understanding some of the complexity of cities exceedingly well--ideal for planning and design students, as well as budding urbanists of all ages. The high-quality of information design and printing will also appeal to those interested in city visualizations. For well-seasoned urban professionals and academics, the wide cross-section of cities covered in the book offers an easy and quick reference for information on some of the dominant cities in the contemporary world. Overall, Atlas of Cities follows in the footsteps of the most engaging atlases of recent decades, offering a little something special for everyone....in a beautifully designed package." ---Erick Villagomez, Spacing, The kind of book I imagine anyone in the field of Urban Studies would like to own. . . . Atlas of Cities is not just a well-edited book full of useful didactical maps but also the kind of book that the members of our map-loving species want to have. ---Manuel B, Aalbers, Urban Studies, A cartographic buffet that lays out how our metropolises came to be and what makes them tick. ---John King, San Francisco Chronicle, "This fascinating survey effectively complemented and enriched by color maps, charts, and illustrations, celebrates the urban landscape's past, present, and potential for the future. Intended for the general reader, Knox's reference is recommended to anyone interested in urban studies and geography."-- Library Journal (Starred Review), "This is an atlas with a difference. It broaches the complexity of the urban experience directly and in a beautifully persuasive graphical way, showing how this great variety of city types and features can be explained both chronologically and geographically. A wonderful book of new insights about how our contemporary cities have evolved." --Michael Batty, author of The New Science of Cities, " The Atlas of Cities is a major contribution to our understanding of the place of cities in today's world. This is a new type of map. It does what words alone cannot do; it makes visible the thick patterns that are cutting across old divides." --Saskia Sassen, Columbia University and author of Expulsions: Brutality and Complexity in the Global Economy, "This atlas does not graph the usual geographic shapes of cities, but tries to diagram the many other dimensions within cities around the world. Taking example from many specific cities (such as Istanbul, or Cairo) it tries to dissect, almost like an x-ray, the many organs, tissues, cells, and anatomy of a typical city. . . . This book will likely illuminate your world." --Kevin Kelly, Wink, "Much more than a book. Through innovative maps, charts, info-graphics and tables, Atlas lays out the cycles of consumption, creation, and decay that drive the living spaces that will soon house three-fourths of the human race, up from today's half. This book doesn't tell you about cities, it lets you understand them." ---Dan Bischoff, Newark Star-Ledger, This elegantly illustrated volume is a feast of maps and graphics. . . . Geographers, sociologists, architects, and urban planners have contributed clear thematic chapters, and the result is a book that will encourage readers to think differently about many cities, including their own. ---Graeme Wood, Pacific Standard, "[T]his is a volume that could excite exploration of those more flexible sources, and its prose, design and illustration will surely achieve that for some who come across it--perhaps in libraries or classrooms." ---Alan Mabin, Urban Africa, "This elegantly illustrated volume is a feast of maps and graphics. . . . Geographers, sociologists, architects, and urban planners have contributed clear thematic chapters, and the result is a book that will encourage readers to think differently about many cities, including their own." --Graeme Wood, Pacific Standard, " The Atlas of Cities is an exhaustive and visually captivating field guide to the past history, present tensions, and future transformation of our planet by humanity's city builders." --Anthony M. Townsend, author of Smart Cities: Big Data, Civic Hackers, and the Quest for a New Utopia