Key Concepts in Urban Studies (Second Edition)

In this second edition of Key Concepts in Urban Studies, Professor Panu Lehtovuori from Tampere University of Technology, Finland joins with the original authors, Mark Gottdiener and Leslie Budd, to “critically analyze the dynamic changes in the field of urban studies” (p. viii). Notably, Lehtovuori brings with him a particular planning and architectural perspective (Ibid.).

The book covers 35 topics, each discussed over a maximum of six pages. The authors do not profess to address all concepts in the field of urban studies, but rather present topics that they deem appropriate and include commentaries that reflect their own expertise and perspectives. As such some topics that existed in the first edition have been either rewritten or combined in this second edition, and six new topics have been inserted, including Sustainable Urbanization, Temporary Uses and Adaptive Urbanism, and Globalization and Meltdown. Furthermore, the authors have expanded the cases and examples given throughout the book to stretch beyond UK and US experiences. 

Key Concepts in Urban Studies is intended to encourage thinking on urban studies in a way that “does not seek to underpin and reinforce the conventional” (p. viii). It is intended to be dipped into as need determines rather than be read from cover to cover, and used as a reference work to supplement other books that delve into its topics in greater depth. Although relevant and highly accessible to anyone with an interest in urban studies, this new edition is primarily a resource for students of “urban studies, economics, geography, planning, sociology and architecture” (p. viii).

Book note prepared by Hannah Keren Lee