Choice Review

A painstakingly detailed review of the historical evolution of the city, as perceived by a European economic historian. Bairoch associates the original concept known as the city with "economic development" resulting from improved agricultural technologies and productivity. He then plods through the urban succession, era by era, ending up with a broad review of the contemporary Third World city and its shanty towns. By manipulating archaeological and historical records, Bairoch is able to assess not only the populations and vital statistics for cities before census data were available (and thus to account for their rise and fall), but also to reinterpret possible reasons for change. An excellent wide-ranging bibliography offers powerful evidence of the author's catholic interests in the field of urban study. A flawless text with numerous well-designed tables suffers from the absence of regional maps and city plans. The index consists of a list of place names and authors. The English translation effectively conveys the author's genial style of presenting his material. All urbanists should be aware of this excellently produced book. College, university, and public libraries. -D. L. Niddrie, University of Florida