"When the authors concluded the first edition with an optimistic appraisal of policy options that could alleviate poverty and inequality, they could not have known that the nation was on the cusp of a political and economic transformation that would greatly exacerbate existing inequalities. Therefore, this second edition is all the more welcome." - Contemporary Sociology "[A] coherent account that draws on an extensive array of sources to describe the divisions that isolate poorer residents from the majority of the population...After a thoughtful overview, they amass their evidence to shed light on 'separate assets' (income distribution, and differences by race and gender), 'separate opportunities' (participation in the labour market, international comparisons) and 'separate places' (the changing social and economic contours of city regions). For many readers...the chapter on the changing shape of the American metropolis will be of most interest... [A] generally incisive and well-argued book." -Housing Studies