Review
"[A] richly packed, colourful and well-written primer on the role the city plays in our lives The sorcery of cities should not be lost; Smith's ebullient guidebook helps to remind us why." Jonathan Glancey, Guardian
"Half a century ago, Lewis Mumford published The City in History, a hugely influential and in some ways controversial book that has been the Bible for students and lovers of city life. But that was half a century ago, and around the world the cityscape has undergone enormous changes. A new look at this great subject has for some time been needed, and in City: A Guidebook for the Urban Age, P.D. Smith provides it. A British scholar connected to University College London, Smith is less philosophical and more empirical than Mumford, but if anything this is welcome, as City is wholly accessible to the serious general reader." Jonathan Yardley, Washington Post
"It¹s a wonderful book: BldgBlog meets Italo Calvino. Gorgeous, smart, fun, and full of surprises, like wandering all the world¹s great cities at once Irresistible." David Dobbs, Wired.com
"handsome and well-written". Times Literary Supplement
"A magnificent achievement." Mark Lamster, Design Observer
"City: A Guidebook for the Urban Age is a well-written ramble, a delightful book for dipping into for new discoveries. It is a love song to cities, large and small. So who is the audience for this wildly entertainment book? Anyone with an inquiring mind. It might be a good summer reading book for children who have an interest in science, history and connections. Good for adults too." McClatchy Newspapers (US)
"An engaging guide" Saul Austerlitz, The National (UAE)
³Discursive, imaginative, and comprehensive, [Smith¹s] analysis of everything from the Hanging Gardens of Babylon to skateboarding and graffiti should be savored.²Publishers Weekly
"As exciting, sprawling and multifarious as a shining city on a hill." Kirkus Reviews
"Like any great city, this is a book to get lost in, to try out new areas, to sample to savor, to enjoy Highly recommended for readers across many subject categories, including urban studies, cultural history, and travel." Library Journal
