Place: A Short Introduction

by Tim Cresswell

This text introduces students of human geography to the fundamental concept of place, marrying everyday uses of the term with the complex theoretical debates that have grown up around it.

Genres: Geography, Nonfiction, Academic, Sociology, Research, Theory, Philosophy

153 pages, Paperback

First published May 17, 2004

Reviews

[Andrew]

I guess if you're interested at all in place theory, this is a fantastic overview. I want to show this to all my non-geography-inclined friends and prove to them all the ways that spatiality puts a verve on our daily lives. It's a bit of an informational barrage, but a very good one.

[Mike Bularz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the simplest way to understand modern geography, I wish this was the first thing I read, it would have saved me a lot of time and headaches. Cresswell goes through some of the history of thought in geography, particularly the humanist branch, and brings it in smoothly all the way to modern thinkers like Doreen Massey, Nigel Coates, David Harvey, and a lot of Yi-Fu Tuan interspersed. In the end, you're left with a vocabulary to think with, and a belief that just thinking about these theories in daily life will yield your own perspective; this is a field that's been developing since before the icons, but is never really complete. Highly recommend.

[steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cresswell offers a great introduction to spatial theory in relation to place. Anyone interested in starting out in this field, should read this book just to get his or her feet wet. The bibliography was extensive.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

helpful & poorly written

[Linda Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent classroom text for those who like the idea of cultural studies in the writing classroom. It would work well in an introductory interdisciplinary American Studies course. It's accessible to students, provides clear definitions, excellent resources and justification for why humanist geography is a lens to understanding homelessness, sexuality, race, class and more. Chapter three models working with a reading (Doreen Massey's "A Global Sense of Place"). Resources, suggestions for student projects and more. Highly readable and practical for the classroom. Reading this book illuminates why "place is a way of understanding the world."

[Will Ballew iv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely some fascinating ideas in here but as a well read college freshmen this was not a very easily interpreted book. Be sure to have a dictionary and an up to date encyclopedia on current philosophies on humanist geography.

The one thing that was really disappointing about the book was the atrocious editing. I would think that a book of this scholastic stature would have the decency to go through and correct at least the blatantly obvious grammatical errors.

[Harrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is best read either during or after a course regarding humanist/human geography. It isn't dense or overly academic, but you'll get more out of it that way. That said, this is an excellent overview of some of the most salient and influential topics in the field.

There are also some really shockingly atrocious typos. But I'll put that on the editor, not Cresswell.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Total textbook, but I'm loving it as I introduce myself into the world of Human/Cultural Geography and space/place as really rich concepts when thinking about people work such as education, advocacy and activism.

[Elisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an introduction on Place Theory this small book is great. Reading it made me really rethink the spaces and places around me and how value is imbued into such innocuous entities. Informative but dry at times I enjoyed reading this just for the new theory and ideas it outlined for me.

[Kat Dixon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating subject. Horrendous editing.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

well-written, clear, and informative. Good bibliography too.

[Raya Al-Raddadi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very insightful introduction to the concept of place and the conceptual problems of thinking about place through the history of human geography.

[Matias P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una maravilla. El centro de giro del libro sería cómo la idea de "lugar" no hace referencia tanto a un espacio geográfico determinado como a una forma de observar el mundo. Desde el ámbito de la geografía, hace un repaso a cómo se ha definido el concepto "lugar" desde que empezase a ganar presencia teórica propia en los años 70. Cortito pero muy completo y bien armado. Muy accesible y con afán introductorio pero denso en ideas estimulantes.

9/10

[A.Alhomsi]

Meh

[Niamh]

For MA