City: A Guidebook for the Urban Age

by P.D. Smith

For the first time in the history of our planet, more than half the population-3.3 billion people-is now living in cities. City is the ultimate guidebook to our urban centers-the signature unit of human civilization. With erudite prose and carefully chosen illustrations, this unique work of metatourism explores what cities are and how they work. It covers history, customs and language, districts, transport, money, work, shops and markets, and tourist sites, creating a fantastically detailed portrait of the city through history and into the future.

The urban explorer will revel in essays on downtowns, suburbs, shantytowns and favelas, graffiti, skylines, crime, the theater, street food, sport, eco-cities, and sacred sites, as well as mini essays on the Tower of Babel, flash mobs, ghettos, skateboarding, and SimCity, among many others. Drawing on a vast range of examples from across the world and throughout history, City is extensively illustrated with full-color photographs, maps, and other images. Acclaimed author and independent scholar P. D. Smith explores what it was like to live in the first cities, how they have evolved, and why in the future, cities will play an even greater role in human life.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Cities, Urbanism, Architecture, Travel, Reference

400 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2011

About the author

P.D. Smith is an independent researcher and writer. His most recent book is City: A Guidebook to the Urban Age, published by Bloomsbury in 2012. His previous book, Doomsday Men: The Real Dr Strangelove and the Dream of the Superweapon (2007, Penguin), was described by the Daily Telegraph as "chilling" and "irresistible".

He regularly reviews non-fiction books for the Guardian, and has also written for the Independent, the Financial Times and the Times Literary Supplement. His interests include genre fiction, cities, the life of Einstein and the way science is explored in literature.

Reviews

[Jason Pettus · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)

This is being promoted as one of those "NPR-worthy" books that combines an academic's precision with the witty style of a commercial writer, all about the rise and development of urban centers over the last 20,000 or so years of human history. But alas, this slick, photo-heavy doorstop seems to have been designed more to look good on a coffeetable than to be a fascinating read; split into infuriatingly non-intuitive sections on the various random things that make up a typical city, the scattershot writing tends to read along the lines of, "Here's a chapter about bridges! And now here are some famous bridges! Here's a chapter about city walls! And now here are some famous city walls!" A book that could've been dense and fascinating like a Peter Ackroyd title, it's instead more along the lines of a forgettable basic-cable documentary, and despite looking great does not come recommended.

Out of 10: 6.7

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter sent me a copy of this, and I love it. Not so much a linear read for me - although you could absolutely approach it that way and it would deliver - as a selection of insanely fascinating sections about cities and how they came to be what they are, what they are and may become, the forces at play inside them and how those forces show themselves in architecture and society. In many ways the perfect brainfood for a writer, and a book you can dip into and immediately get lost in. Korea's new digital cities? Check. The creation of the London Underground? Check. Slums, Boswell, and ecology? Check. A stream of enlightening flashes. And perfect, now that I think of it, for an iPad app of epic wonder. PETER! iPad! :)

Mind-expanding.

[Obeida Takriti · Rating 5 out of 5]

المدينة ليست بتلك البساطة التي نتخيلها فقط لأننا نعيش اليوم في أحضانها..
فمن أنشأها من البشر كانت لديهم آمال ورؤى نسيناها بفعل الزمن..
جميل أن نتذكر دائماً ما هي المدينة بالفعل وما هي عناصرها الأساسية..

[cat! · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book is terrible. completely uninteresting collection of factoids, no inclusion of serious or even pop social theory, urban design, etc. reads (and looks) like a crappy grade school text book.

[Kristen Luppino · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW...so many fun facts. I LOVED reading this book. Such an interesting structure and so much info. Loved it!!!!!!

[James Foley · Rating 5 out of 5]

P.D. Smith examines the things that have been fixtures in cities since Mesopotamia. It is first amazing at how little changes in terms of what the city provides over time. By the end of the book he has also covered some critical ways in which cities have changed for the worse but also for the better. He discusses the future of cities in the light of global warming, wildly increasing demands and increased distance between the ruling class and the bulk of the people in the cities. This is a bright, entertaining and very thought-provoking book. I've lived in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles. The only time I lived in a small town was when I was in the Army. If you love cities or even a city this is a book you will enjoy.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This was my cities read for March. As its subtitle suggests, this book is modeled after a guidebook, so it's not necessarily meant to be read linearly, meaning you can skip around if you want (something Smith outright suggests in the introduction). Some other reviewers have complained about the "disjointed" nature of this book, but you can't say the author didn't warn you. I did read the book in order instead of moving around, but I personally didn't have a problem with the more episodic nature since the introduction had prepared me.

The quality of City's various sections varies from one to the other, with some being very interesting and well-researched and others not at all. For example, Smith paints city parks in glowing terms (really, as a cure to all the city-dweller's woes) without acknowledging that these open and often poorly-lit areas can become hotspots for drugs and other criminal activities at night. However, I did appreciate Smith's inclusion of ancient and non-Western cities, which helped to give a more well-rounded view than other books that focus more solely on Western urbanism.

Much of the information and stories Smith touches on felt rather basic, and this clearly isn't meant for advanced (or even slightly-beyond-beginner) urbanists — although it is much more readable than many of those more advanced books I have read, which is a point in its favor. City looks like a thick textbook, but it's only 400 pages total, or about 340 pages if you don't include the notes etc. Plus some of those 340 pages are photographs (both full page and not so) so this book is even shorter than that. I did like the images, though I felt like some of the colored filters were unnecessary and interfered with my ability to actually see what was in the photos. In a way, this book felt like one of those DK encyclopedias, but for grownups, which isn't necessarily bad but is certainly different, and I can see how some readers would have mixed feelings about the premise.

[Tito Quiling, Jr. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like many other books tracing historical developments of societies, of cities and towns, this title provided an interesting take on the conception of cities in present-day Iran, Mexico, Iraq, Egypt, among others. From these early settlements, grew people's consciousness of relating to one another, where communication became one of the key factors in devising records, languages, urban planning (or lack thereof in contemporary cities), government, to name a few ways of managing citizens and societies. While there were a few instances where it feels the book jumps from one point to another, there are interesting facts about why people have engaged in living in such a dense location in line with the expansion of politics, economy, and social conditions over time. We then question if cities today can actually sustain an amplified mode of living, or will it also collapse inadvertently if it's not managed well, similar to what happened to all of the other historical cities.

[Russell · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not good, not great. While the writing was clear enough, the book was a difficult read because it was boring. I would not recommend this collection of arbitrary "facts" strung poorly together disguised as a book with chapters that attempt to pass it off as having some narrative effort. A more in-depth study of the city or urban age would be more appreciated, given the length of this work. Despite the book's summary and shallow nature, I do appreciate the author's efforts in citation and footnotes.

[Ramona · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most interesting book I have read, so far, about cities and urban life, from around the world. The world is molded by dreamers, builders, artists, and of course, money. Architecture and how it changes the landscape is very evident in the book. The photos, illustrations, and other picture extras made the reading enjoyable. This is a book that takes months to read, meditate on, and benefit from. The exploration, investigation, and effort put into the book are amazing. Very few people, if any, would take this task on, for personal pleasure. The cost would be unimaginable.

[Nikky Southerland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not entirely groundbreaking, but gives a good historical reminder of where urban institutions came through. Picking various topics, such as housing, transportation, and markets, the author follows their evolution throughout written history and places them within the current and future context of cities.

[Dionysia · Rating 3 out of 5]

the advice to the reader to pick up the book and read sections randomly as you would any tourist guide of a foreign city applies beautifully to this guidebook.
Travels through history to old and new cities and the major things that make them cities, from infrastructure and economy to food, crime and culture. Interesting take on what makes cities special but also similar across time and space.

[Tom Baikin-O'hayon · Rating 4 out of 5]

excellent book. each time I opened it it was like "lets go back to the city". highly informative and well written.

[jzthompson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Densely packed with factoids, but too dry fo the casual reader and not enough analysis/theory for anyone who has read around the subject a bit. Not recommended.

[Jen]

paged through - interesting

[Elaad Yair · Rating 4 out of 5]

City by Peter D Smith is an ambitious project. The author attempts to cover all aspects of urbanism, a phenomenon that has been touching the life of literally billions of people within a time span of thousands of years. In slightly more than 300 pages (that include many examples of a magnificent well-selected urban photography) he covers numerous topics such as the history of ancient cities, their evolution and development, architecture, urban planning, street food, shopping, entertainment, culture and so on and so forth.

The result is a highly readable book that is interesting and fascinating. It is always refreshing to read a book that aims to the stars rather than deals with a minor earthly issue. However, this is also the book's main point of weakness. It feels too brief and sketchy to capture such a complex issue.

Smith brings up so many facts and quotations, but more than once it made me wonder whether he actually checked the facts he writes about. He oversimplifies stories, for instance, when he unfolds the history of marathons there is only one version of the Battle of Marathon, whereas in practice the route of the original marathon is debatable (see this wonderful article in The Economist). Similarly, when he writes about other books it sometimes seems that he missed their point. Eg the reference to The Republic seemed far off Plato's original concept of the polis.

Peter D Smith writes with a genuine passion for urban life. It is great and makes reading the book enjoyable. But in some parts it feels as if unrelated issues are being forced into his city analysis, while it could be written about pretty much anything. For example never before had I thought about empires like Babylon and Assyria as city-empires. For Smith these empires were primarily urban, cities that ruled the world. In the same way technology that is not uniquely urban (mobile phones, water treatment system etc) were portrayed as hugely influenced by cities. It might be true, but in some cases it seems like a stretch and in such a short book the author has no chance to prove these theses.

In his words, the author has "tried to create a book in which you can wander and drift" so you can "open the book anywhere and begin", just as you would "explore a real city". In theory it is an interesting approach that turns the book into a sort of a magazine from which the reader can choose subjects of interest to focus on. However, in practice, if you tried to read the book in the traditional way (ie from cover to cover), you would find that some stories repeat over and over again throughout the book. This repetition seems essential in some points, but in other cases it seems that a lack of a serious editor led to a waste of precious space.

One more tiny editorial issue I had with the book was the measurement units. They are mixed (KM, miles feet and metres are used randomly or at least based on Smith's sources). This could have been fixed easily with a bit more care.

In any case, don't let these minor issues turn you off. The book City: A Guidebook for the Urban Age is super interesting and covers plenty of wonderful urban stories (not to confuse with urban legends, which are not mentioned). It will unfold numerous facts you haven't heard of and shed a new light on familiar subjects. It is highly recommended!

[Bernie Gourley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Desmond Morris wrote about the rise of super-tribes—groupings of people in which it was no longer possible for every member to know every other. Morris controversially proposed that super-tribes facilitated the growth of many behaviors that are considered weird, perverse, or aberrant. The fact that the seedy underbelly of society resides right under the greatest concentration of noses is one of the reasons we find cities fascinating. But it’s not the only reason. (Smith touches on but doesn’t dwell on the seamy side of the city, including sidebars on gangs and red-light districts.) The tremendous challenges of governance, distribution, transportation, and security that arise when people are packed together are huge.

Smith gives a fascinating overview of the past, present, and possible future of the city. We learn about a time when the most advanced cities in the world weren’t New York, London, or Tokyo, but instead were Sumer, Tenochtitlan, or Angkor. (A nice feature of this book is how much ground it covers geographically. Smith brings in examples from ancient Alexandria to modern-day Mumbai in addition to those from cities--such as New York, Tokyo, and Paris--that might first pop to mind when one thinks of a city.) The reader is shown a city as an organism that has to get food and workers to its heart while expelling a massive accumulation of wastes. Cities require homeostasis as much as does the human body.

The book has eight chapters that discuss topics such as the rise of the city and how it was tied to human endeavors more generally (e.g. on the agricultural front), the development of neighborhoods, the challenge of transportation in an ever-growing community, how cities manage to be exemplary of both wealth and poverty at the same time, how the masses are entertained given the free time that arose from specialization and regulation of the labor market, and what the future of cities might bring. It’s topically, rather than chronologically arranged (though the discussion of the rise of the city is early in the book), and the organization works though it’s not necessarily what would spring to mind if one were outlining such a book.

I found this book fascinating. It’s full of interesting information and uses graphics and sidebars to good effect. If it can be called a micro-history (the subject of the urban world being so encompassing), it’s among the most interesting micro-histories that I’ve read. Whether it’s churches, Chinatowns, or coffee houses, this book lends insight into the nooks and crannies of the modern metropolis. The sections on subway systems and skyscrapers are among the most fascinating sub-chapters. (It just occurred to me that the last sentence could be taken in some sort of freaky, sexual way. That wasn’t my intention. I just find the engineering challenges of such infrastructure to be intriguing.) From gladiatorial combat to the birth of libraries, there’s something in this book to pique a reader’s interest.

I’d highly recommend this book for readers of non-fiction, and in particularly those who enjoy micro-histories.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to urban planning, City organizes itself using themes rather than a timeline. Instead of looking at the progression of urbanization on the global level, the book looks at distinct attractions in cities that are found in every urban area. Simple things like food, restaurants, and hotels are discussed, but also more complex ideas like defense, infrastructure, and technology are also introduced.

Anecdotes about street art, lighting, and gangs are also throughout the story and provided more insight into the people within the city. However, I did not understand what made these anecdotes unique. They were separated from the rest of the writing, and yet I did not see them as being more important than the overall theme for the chapter.

Still, this book was an introduction and many of the ideas discussed were more of a review. I did not find any new arguments, or understand where cities will go in the future, despite an entire chapter devoted to it. It was an easy read, easily divided into segments perfect for the metro commute, but it didn't inspire me to think further about city life or urban planning.

[Mark McTague · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this for our son who recently completed a masters in urban planning, and I've decided not to give it to him but will donate it to our local public library. It is, as other reviewers have noted, more of a compendium of occasionally interesting, but too often commonplace, observations on various aspects of the city as an historical phenomenon. I found myself progressively impatient for the author to develop a theme, my patience giving out on page 163. It is not, as the subtitle suggests, a guidebook for the urban age, unless it is to guide you to more serious works on the subject (e.g., Mumford's "The City in History"). The amount of non-textual material should have warned me - every chapter is prefaced with a two-page spread, numerous insert pictures fill space on the page, and 1-2 colored inserts on various asides related to that topic flesh out each chapter.

In short, this is a nice book for an intelligent, inquisitive teenager with a fascination for urban history, but for adults, it's more of a coffee table book, light reading but something you might enjoy while waiting for your appointment.

[Kater Cheek · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this as an audiobook, and in the introduction he mentions that it's not meant to necessarily be read end to end, but rather that you can skip around, much as you would in a city. Perhaps that would have made it a better experience.

This book does provide an in-depth discussion of urban life, from antiquities to the future. It covers everything from shopping and ampitheaters to sewage and city walls. The examples focus mostly on the United States, London, and Mesopotamia. He talks about the first cities, how and why they were formed, the challenges they faced, and why they were abandoned (or more often, just had new cities built on the rubble.)

My main problem with the book is that it seemed repetitious. Even at 1.25X speed, it dragged on, and the last three hours felt interminable. I learned a few new things, and it made me think about cities in a new way (valuable for world-building) but after about the midway point none of it felt new anymore.

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a mixed bag, lots of interesting points, but terribly rambling, and quite a few factual errors(from my understanding of the topic). It feels like the book is still in it's notes phase and would have benefited greatly from an active editor. The one benefit of this is that it really doesn't matter where you pick it up.

It feels like a book that someone like Bill Bryson would have done far more successfully.

A nice book that I wouldn't warn against, and I can't think of a superior alternative, but it left me feeling like I had just finished skimming through wikipedia, rather than having read a distinct piece, which is rather unsatisfying.

[Du · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the book a great flip through and learn from book. It is academic enough to stimulate, but it is highly readable and accessible. The only complaintis that the book itself, physical not content, is too small. I would love some of the images and illustrations at a larger scale. The are really the driving force of illustrating the different development patterns and other characterizations demonstrated in the text.

Th is book would be a get tool for citizen planners or those interested in urban studies, but who don't want a masters in planning.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nonfiction book all about urbanity. The author examines various aspects of urban living--the arts, crime, economics, the environment, transportation, infrastructure, culture, community--in light of various cities worldwide stretching back over time all the way back to Mesopotamia. The book includes lots of wonderful photos, and insets on specific topics (like a textbook, but a really cool and interesting one).

Really appealed to the geography nerd in me. This is a book I want to own and flip through periodically.

[Marleah (marleah_a) · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy the hustle and bustle of urban areas, you might like this book, modeled after those ubiquitous travel guides featuring a particular metropolis. P. D. Smith takes you through various areas and attractions found in virtually every city: downtown, street food, parks, and transportation, among others. Smith also draws parallels between historic cities and those of today, showing that cities have always been a place for innovation and development.

[Tim Jin · Rating 1 out of 5]

The information that is presented in "City: A Guidebook for the Urban Age" is jumble together. The author has no organization skills. The book jumps from topic to topic with no cohesiveness. I don't mind text book writing, but I would hate to see the index of this book because the audiobook wasn't well put together. I don't know what Peter D. Smith was thinking, but the information of the topic is so random, that you feel that you are playing Trivial Pursuit. Poorly written in all counts.

[Salem · Rating 1 out of 5]

Moves jerkily through time and space, and loosely organized, this is ultimately pro-urban propaganda lacking a balanced critique of the city as human achievement or enough research to inform the reader what a city should be. Basically, an incredibly wordy coffee table book. Disappointing, given the promise of the jacket blurb.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a pretty book with lots of interesting information about cities past and present, green cities, futuristic cities, mythical and sci-fi cities. the shot of the abandoned ballroom in detroit is pretty sad. descriptions of immigrants arriving in new york for the first time are good. overall this is a good book with a nice conversational tone.

[Vincent Eaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dense, readable, most essential areas of city living from way back when to right here and a little beyond. Bought and read because in my capacity as (the video) part of an international research team in sustainable urban development, urban mobility, and public space. General background on this subject has been amply filled with this book.

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute treasure. Smith highlights the yearning for human connection that has always drawn people to cities across the years. It made me want to just be in a busy street and feel the seething mass of people around me. That and buy a plane ticket to Mumbai! I especially enjoyed his chapter discussing modern cities and what they may look like in the future. Must-read.

[Kari · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great overview of urban history from ancient Mesopotamian cities to futuristic manmade eco-cities of today such as Masdar City in Abu Dhabi. Very well organized into separate sections that highlight the history of different aspects of the city, which was nice because it was easy to skip sections which I did not find interesting, such as the history of the hotel.