text: I am reading this for a college course called "History of the American City". This book is a typical 'college texbook' in that it is FILLED with numbers, dates, percentages, figures, numbers, oh did I say numbers, dates, figures, and years, oh and plenty of numbers... The brilliant,dilligent,honored, and esteemed scolar of a  woman that wrote it sure knows her numbers, facts, years, etc... I, on the other hand, am absolutley hating it and foolishly I have allowed the drop date to pass, so I have to read the book or fail the class. I am getting nothing from the book regarding any kind of understanding of any of these cities , unless I am willing to spend years interpreting the multitude of data the book heaps upon me. Needless to say, from (attempting)reading it I am getting a headache and don't really even have the time to write this review. I say that if even one person is deterred from reading this expose' of numbers, names, dates, figures, facts, percentages, orders, years, dates and more numbers, dates, facts, figures (are you getting my drift yet?), it will be time well served though.--- AVOID--- THIS--- BOOK.
      please -- Find another book. Maybe if people told the truth about THIS BRAND OF WRITING,more professors might have to teach and people like Ms. Abu-Lughod wouldn't continue to  make money off of writing books such as this, and folks like her might have to write to COMMUNICATE!!!!, like the rest of us.Thank you for taking the time to read this.
    OK, I have to say it: This sucks.
  
   
  