Norman Yoffee

This book only to a limited extent fulfills what it aims to offer: a comparative insight into the formation and functioning of early cities and their role in the civilization process. The premise is also the outcome, namely that civilizations have come about in and through cities. Some contributions sketch more the evolution of a particular culture or civilization than that of the cities in that culture/civilization, and most of them constantly point out that we know very little about them, which makes it difficult to go in-depth. The synthesis chapters after each part offer interesting views, but what stands out is that they are sometimes only partly based on the previous case studies. As far as those case studies are concerned, the question remains whether cities such as Rome, Baghdad and Cuzco can really be categorized as 'early cities'. Geographically, this book certainly lives up to what a World History should be: the case studies are carefully spread across the continents, with a slight overrepresentation of the Americas; and with the exception of the Greco-Hellenistic cities and Rome, Europe is not covered, and rightly so. Finally, this overview reinforces the distorted view that civilizations are essentially urban. A missed opportunity!
More on this in my History-account on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4458195802.… (more)