Geographic Information Systems & Cartography

The Middle East is a major focus of world interest. This revised and updated atlas provides accessible, concisely written entries on the most important current issues in the Middle East, combining maps with their geopolitical background. Providing a clear context for analysis of key concerns, it includes background topics, the position of the Middle East in the world and profiles of the constituent countries. Features include: clearly and thematically organised sections covering the continuing importance of the Middle East, the background, fundamental concerns, the states and the crucial issues related to the area original maps integrated into the text, placing international issues and conflicts in their geographical contexts case studies and detailed analysis of each country, complete with relevant statistics and key facts coverage of fundamental considerations such as: water shortage the petroleum industry conflicts and boundary issues a comprehensive further reading section, enabling students to cover the topic in more depth. key features and flashpoints A valuable introduction to undergraduate students of political science and Middle East studies and designed as a primary teaching aid for courses related to the Middle East in the areas of politics, history, geography, economics and military studies, this book is also an outstanding reference source for libraries and anyone interested in these fields.

Fantasy worlds are never mere backdrops. They are an integral part of the work, and refuse to remain separate from other elements. These worlds combine landscape with narrative logic by incorporating alternative rules about cause and effect or physical transformation. They become actors in the drama—interacting with the characters, offering assistance or hindrance, and making ethical demands. In Here Be Dragons, Stefan Ekman provides a wide-ranging survey of the ubiquitous fantasy map as the point of departure for an in-depth discussion of what such maps can tell us about what is important in the fictional worlds and the stories that take place there. With particular focus on J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, Ekman shows how fantasy settings deserve serious attention from both readers and critics. Includes insightful readings of works by Steven Brust, Garth Nix, Robert Holdstock, Terry Pratchett, Charles de Lint, China Miéville, Patricia McKillip, Tim Powers, Lisa Goldstein, Steven R. Donaldson, Robert Jordan, and Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
Available in print and online.

A vivid and frequently surprising picture of America in the twenty-first century. Packed with fascinating facts and illustrated throughout with clear, easy-to-read, four-color graphics, The Real State of America Atlas draws back the curtain on our complex nation to reveal the myriad realities of the American experience-from our changing demographics to patterns of home ownership to the kinds of food we eat. Cowritten by two esteemed scholars, this comprehensive and enlightening work upends many long-held myths and shows us who we are today. It is the perfect read for anyone who wants to better understand our ever-changing nation.

Like the bestselling Infinite City: A San Francisco Atlas, this book is a brilliant reinvention of the traditional atlas, one that provides a vivid, complex look at the multi-faceted nature of New Orleans, a city replete with contradictions. More than twenty essays assemble a chorus of vibrant voices, including geographers, scholars of sugar and bananas, the city's remarkable musicians, prison activists, environmentalists, Arab and Native voices, and local experts, as well as the coauthors' compelling contributions. Featuring 22 full-color two-page-spread maps, Unfathomable City plumbs the depths of this major tourist destination, pivotal scene of American history and culture and, most recently, site of monumental disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and the BP oil spill. The innovative maps' precision and specificity shift our notions of the Mississippi, the Caribbean, Mardi Gras, jazz, soils and trees, generational roots, and many other subjects, and expand our ideas of how any city is imagined and experienced. Together with the inspired texts, they show New Orleans as both an imperiled city―by erosion, crime, corruption, and sea level rise―and an ageless city that lives in music as a form of cultural resistance. Compact, lively, and completely original, Unfathomable City takes readers on a tour that will forever change the way they think about place.