Forty outstanding urban spaces of the Western world, analyzed and drawn at a common scale for easy comparison.

The history of cities is also the history of city squares. The agora, the forum, the piazza, the plaza: All presuppose the idea of a center. It’s a material and mental phenomenon. Literature is an important part of this history, and the interplay between the square as physical space and the square as literature is the topic of this book. This is an encyclopedic book combining an overview of the history of city squares with a plethora of analytical examples of its reflection in literature: Literature uses the city square as a frame; city squares serve as frames for drama; novels and other kinds of literature comment on city squares; city squares are sources of inspiration for all sorts of literary activities. Socrates in the agora, Cicero in the Forum, Calderón in the Plaza Mayor, Corneille in the Place Royale, Richardson in Grosvenor Square, James in Washington Square, Woolf in Bloomsbury Square, Döblin and Gröschner in Alexanderplatz, Rodoreda in Diamond Square in Barcelona, DeLillo in Times Square, Al Aswany in Tahrir Square, the Maidanistas in the Maidan of Kyiv: These are just some of the examples presented and analyzed in this book. The book is of direct interest for researchers, students, and professionals such as architects and urban planners, but it is written in a way that makes it accessible for all readers with an interest in urban culture, architecture, history, literature, and cultural studies.

To attract investment and tourists and to enhance the quality of life of their citizens, municipal authorities are paying considerable attention to the quality of the public domain of their cities – including their urban squares. Politicians find them good places for rallies. Children consider squares to be playgrounds, the elderly as places to catch-up with each other, and for many others squares are simply a place to pause for a moment. Urban Squares as Places, Links and Displays: Successes and Failures discusses how people experience squares and the nature of the people who use them. It presents a ‘typology of squares’ based on the dimensions of ownership, the square’s instrumental functions, and a series of their basic physical attributes including size, degree of enclosure, configuration and organization of the space within them and finally based on their aesthetic attributes – their meanings. Twenty case studies illustrate what works and what does not work in different cities around the world. It discusses the qualities of lively squares and quieter, more restorative places as well as what contributes to making urban squares less desirable as destinations for the general public. The book closes with the policy implications, stressing the importance and difficulties of designing good public places. Urban Squares offers how-to guidance along with a strong theoretical framework making it ideal for architects, city planners and landscape architects working on the design and upgrade of squares.

Nineteen-year-old Simon Fawkes suffers from a spasmodic wind problem as he hauls his fat bulk through this hilarious account of a journey through the Americas. From seedy San Francisco sex clubs through stomach upsets in Mexico, uncontrollable flatulence at Machu Picchu, becoming stranded in a snowdrift in Bolivia to being sick at a foam party, the tale is told in a way that makes the tears stream. His humour operates at many levels; from the subtle to the toilet. But this is much more than just a tale about farting. Skilfully crafted, we gain a witty insight into the places and characters the author encounters in this illuminating travel story. 'A bizarre cross between Bill Bryson and Viz' Fairlight and Richmond Times 'Michael Palin with wind...a mix of fantastic humour and fascinating insights' Penny Trait, Yorkshire Evening Telegraph 'Superb...a breath of fresh air' R Spoker, New Lad Magazine

This book discusses global dynamics behind the synchronous outburst of protests in China and Germany in 1989 and the local acts of dissent on the squares comparatively. It breaks with the national timelines protests in 1989 have so far been identified with and offers insights into the spatial manifestation of the global moment of 1989. Concluding on the importance of the "SpaceTime" on the seized squares in 1989, it also discusses more recent protests forming on city squares. Offering a global perspective on a phenomenon that itself became global in the last decades, the book provides a view on globalization processes operating from below that puts the occupied space on city squares at the heart of interest.

DescriptionThe 21st Century is one of the most turbulent and critical in our history. When the blueprints that guided us through the last two centuries have been torn up or found wanting there is a great need to recreate our future through thought discussion and action. Well-being is about being happy with ourselves and comfortable with our environment and without the public space to create that and forge new maps and purpose then we are in danger of an intellectual and emotional void. This book is about creating and expanding the public sphere or square where this can happen and where we can make connections that will make a difference. But the public square in the 21st century is both local and global and based around constantly changing networks. How we give public space to these new networks is central to the theme of this book. This book emphasises that it is these local and global networks that have the power to shape our future by bringing into focus the need to change both our environment and ourselves. It is the connections made that are the engines and energy of networks and relationships created between individual and organisations can become the effective agents of change and reinvigorate our political life. The 21st century has to be about making the connections that will simultaneously change both our environment and ourselves. It is in the global public square of the present century that we can recreate our future in a sustainable way when faced with constant diversity and change. About the AuthorFrancis Sealey was born in 1944 and was a Producer and Executive Producer for many years working for both the BBC Open University and the Community Programmes Unit. He has been active in politics and community action for most of his life, being a Parliamentary Candidate in 1974 and founder and activist in a number of social & community networks. Since 1993 he has been a freelance producer working with a number of training, public and voluntary organisations. In 2007 he founded 21st Century Network to help recreate public space and bring genuine debate back to public life.

The Interwar World collects an international group of over 50 contributors to discuss, analyze, and interpret this crucial period in twentieth-century history. A comprehensive understanding of the interwar era has been limited by Euro-American approaches and strict adherence to the temporal limits of the world wars. The volume’s contributors challenge the era’s accepted temporal and geographic framings by privileging global processes and interactions. Each contribution takes a global, thematic approach, integrating world regions into a shared narrative. Three central questions frame the chapters. First, when was the interwar? Viewed globally, the years 1918 and 1939 are arbitrary limits, and the volume explicitly engages with the artificiality of the temporal framework while closely examining the specific dynamics of the 1920s and 1930s. Second, where was the interwar? Contributors use global history methodologies and training in varied world regions to decenter Euro-American frameworks, engaging directly with the usefulness of the interwar as both an era and an analytical category. Third, how global was the interwar? Authors trace accelerating connections in areas such as public health and mass culture counterbalanced by processes of economic protectionism, exclusive nationalism, and limits to migration. By approaching the era thematically, the volume disaggregates and interrogates the meaning of the ‘global’ in this era. As a comprehensive guide, this volume offers overviews of key themes of the interwar period for undergraduates, while offering up-to-date historiographical insights for postgraduates and scholars interested in this pivotal period in global history.