Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age

"What does the ancient city of Pompeii have in common with the even more ancient metropolis known as Cahokia, located alongside the Mississippi River near present-day St. Louis? Or Angkor, a medieval capital of the Khmer Empire? Or the Neolithic settlement of Çatalhöyük, the first known city in the world? All of these cities were eventually abandoned. Journalist Annalee Newitz sifts through the mystique around their demises in this graceful, engrossing urban history, unearthing not only fascinating narratives but poignant warnings about why some places slide into the past."