Imagining Urban Futures

"By day Carl Abbott is one of the most respected urban historians of his generation; by night he is among the most omnivorous and omniscient sci-fi fanboys of all time. This book brings together both sides of his brain for a unique guided tour of science fiction cities in their many manifestations, familiar and obscure.  As he shows, science fiction has found its own radical way to represent, to critique, and ultimately to re-design the city."—Robert Fishman, University of Michigan

"By day Carl Abbott is one of the most respected urban historians of his generation; by night he is among the most omnivorous and omniscient sci-fi fanboys of all time. This book brings together both sides of his brain for a unique guided tour of science fiction cities in their many manifestations, familiar and obscure.  As he shows, science fiction has found its own radical way to represent, to critique, and ultimately to re-design the city."—Robert Fishman, University of Michigan

"Carl Abbott has long been valued as a thoughtful and creative urban historian. Here he has organized the 'thought experiments' we call science fiction into sensible categories that explain the imaginative responses to technological and social change in cities. The book is encyclopedic in its reach and will be consulted for years to come."—Sam Bass Warner, Jr., author of American Urban Form