I will give credit to the authors that they approached this as a purely academic exercise and present it as such, but as with all research into architectural theory, the isolation of relevant points is often a detriment to a proper understanding of the final result.
The basic theory presented in the book is about the coherent creation of a "whole" in a city. This whole is difficult to describe, it is an inherent feeling that a city projects, indeed it is almost a style, a feeling that the city exists as an entity in itself, and thoughts of any part of the city at any scale also relate directly to any other part of the city and as a whole.
The authors then try to lay down rules that will help create this feeling of wholeness through individual projects.
These rules appear to create a very specific type of urban space, while very coherent; it is also very restrictive in scope.
A good reference book for the concept of city wide unity, don't expect a startling revelation about the future of urban design.