Cities are firmly back on the agenda. This Reader brings together work by prestigious academics, literary figures, and other intellectuals, which challenges established ways of thinking about urban life. Looking towards the future of urban studies, the editors have selected both canonical texts and those that will surprise and intrigue the reader. They have organized the material in a manner that breaks down conventional categories and boundaries while still covering the field comprehensively. An overall introduction and focused introductions to each section help to develop a new framework for interpreting cities. The volume is interdisciplinary, including pieces not only from the field of urban studies, but also from literature, cultural studies, philosophy, gender studies, design, and planning. Its approach is global, with nonwestern and Western cities, colonial and postcolonial cities, and megacities all represented. While it can be used alone, the Reader has been designed to accompany A Companion to the City (Blackwell Publishing, 2000), which is comprised of specially commissioned pieces organized within the same framework by Bridge and Watson.

Gary Bridge is Senior Lecturer in the School of Policy Studies at the University of Bristol. He is the co-editor of A Companion to the City (Blackwell Publishing, 2000).

Sophie Watson is Professor of Sociology at the Open University. She is the co-author of Surface City: Sydney at the Millennium (1997) and co-editor of Postmodern Cities and Spaces (Blackwell Publishing, 1995), Metropolis Now (1994) and A Companion to the City (Blackwell Publishing 2000), among other publications.