This text focuses on issues of health in today's cities. By arguing that place matters in relation to the population's health, Kevin Fitzpatrick and Mark LaGory make a convincing argument about the general unhealthiness of urban environments and thus, of the urban dweller. The authors offer a place-oriented approach to health and cover such topics as: the ecology of everyday urban life; the sociology of health, needs and risks of the socially disadvantaged; needs and risks of children and the elderly in cities; and strategies for better health services in urban environments.

This book provides an outstanding collection of interdisciplinary and international essays examining the food-place relationship. It explores such topics as the history of food and agriculture, the globalization and localization of food, and the role of place in defining not only the how, why, when, and with whom we eat, but the broader societal consequences of this ever-changing phenomena. With the interdisciplinary nature of this volume comes a multitude of perspectives on what those broader social consequences are, how they came to be, and what ought to be done to solve those issues we...