Kevin R. Cox is Professor of Geography at Ohio State University and the author/editor of numerous other books, including Spaces of Globalization (editor, 1997).

"Geographically wide-ranging but theoretically coherent, this book provides a sophisticated yet accessible introduction to the essentials of political geography... it conveys a way of thinking about the territorial organization of the world and its consequences for the world's peoples that students can carry with them long after they have forgotten the details of the examples." John Agnew, University of California Los Angeles "This is a very interesting, thorough and readable treatment of the political-economic formation of the contemporary world. Cox integrates contemporary theoretical and political concerns centered on difference and identity into a political-economy framework for understanding capitalism, the state, and territoriality. Addressing processes at a variety of geographic scales, and providing numerous empirical examples, Cox fascinatingly integrates and de-mystifies material that is frequently, but artificially, treated separately." Byron Miller, Director of the Urban Studies Programme, University of Calgary "Many aspects of the text make it worth considering for undergraduate or graduate courses, especially the excellent case studies and the inclusion of race and gender issues" Douglas Reardon, Coppin State College. "Cox has written a carefully structured publication for students and lecturers with an interset in political geography. A wealth of historical and political science knowledge is offered." South African Geographical Journal

• 1. Fundamental Concepts of Political Geography: An Introduction. 2. The Political Economy of the Contemporary World: Fundamental Considerations.3. The Political Geography of Capitalist Development I: The Workplace.4. The Political Geography of Capitalist Development II: The Living Place.5. Difference, Identity and Political Geography.6. Political Geographies of Imagined Communities: The Nation.7. A World of Difference.8. The State in Geographic Context.9 the Politics of Geographically Uneven Development.10. The Politics of Globalization and Its Illusions.Conclusion.Index.