City of Quartz is a book by Mike Davis examining problems facing Los Angeles. The underlying material was originally intended as as Ph.D. submission in completion of the requirements for his history doctorate, but it was rejected. Davis completed the work and found a publisher for it. Mike Davis, 1999 (Photo by Anne Fishbein) Mike Davis is an American social commentator, urban theorist, and sociographer. ... This article is about the largest city in California. ... Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. ...

The book is a historical, economic, and cultural dissection of Los Angeles, its residents, and their lifestyles. Given its origin as a Ph.D. dissertation, the book is well-annotated. However, this abundance of citation has also led to criticism by many who have found the source material not to support Davis's assertions.

City of Quartz, and various stories from the work, are occasionally cited in local newspaper articles in the Los Angeles Times, the now-defunct New Times LA, and particularly, LA Weekly. The Los Angeles Times (also known as the LA Times) is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California and distributed throughout the western United States. ... New Times LA is a now-defunct alternative weekly newspaper, published in Los Angeles , until 2002, by the New Times Media corporation. ... The L.A. Weekly is a weekly free paper in Los Angeles, owned by the same parent company as New York Citys Village Voice. ...

Reviews

• Blanchard, Marc. Cultural Anthropology, Vol. 7, No. 4 (November, 1992).
• Decker, Jeffrey Louis. American Quarterly, Vol. 44, No. 1 (March, 1992)
• Erie. Steven P. Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 107., No. 1 (Spring, 1992).
• Ford, Richard T. Transition, No. 57 (1992).
• Horton, John. Contemporary Sociology, Vol. 20, No. 6 (November, 1991).
• Kirkham, Pat. Journal of Design History, Vol. 5., No. 2 (1992).
• Knox, Paul. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 83, No. 1 (March 1993).
• Williams, Rosalind. Journal of American History, Vol. 79, No. 4 (March, 1993).