Bradley Bravard reviewed City of quartz by Davis, Mike (The Haymarket series)
City of Quartz
5 stars
In City of Quarts, Mike Davis explores L.A.’s contradictory status as both utopia and dystopia: for the majority of residents, the utopian perception ends up being more about marketing. Davis doesn’t write a conventional history, but instead explores the roles of real estate development, city/county/state governments, architecture and planning, law enforcement, organized religion, and other civic and capitalist enterprises in shaping life in the greater Los Angeles area. This is a heartbreaking account as Davis describes cruelty toward people of color, immigrants, and the poor, while rich white guys lie their way to fabulous wealth. But it’s an important story, because much of what happened in Los Angeles in prior decades (City of Quartz was published in 1990) helped pave the way for some of what’s happening at the national level in 2026. Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties, by Mike Davis and Jon Wiener, makes a …
In City of Quarts, Mike Davis explores L.A.’s contradictory status as both utopia and dystopia: for the majority of residents, the utopian perception ends up being more about marketing. Davis doesn’t write a conventional history, but instead explores the roles of real estate development, city/county/state governments, architecture and planning, law enforcement, organized religion, and other civic and capitalist enterprises in shaping life in the greater Los Angeles area. This is a heartbreaking account as Davis describes cruelty toward people of color, immigrants, and the poor, while rich white guys lie their way to fabulous wealth. But it’s an important story, because much of what happened in Los Angeles in prior decades (City of Quartz was published in 1990) helped pave the way for some of what’s happening at the national level in 2026. Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties, by Mike Davis and Jon Wiener, makes a great companion read.