Swept Up Lives?: Re-envisioning the Homeless City

“Overall, this book makes a substantial contribution to research on urban homelessness. It provides a glimpse into a network of emotions relationships, and service provision that is underacknowledged in urban geography.”  (The Canadian Geographer, 4 September 2014)

"Swept up Lives? lives up toexpectations and delivers a well argued and insightful analysis that progresses established paradigmatic ways of understanding homelessness in the Western world." (UGRG Book Review Series, 19 December 2011)

"I cannot praise this book highly enough or hope to do justice to it in a short review. It is a considerable and possibly unprecedented achievement . . . I would recommend that this book be read by everyone who has anything to do with homelessness, and by every policy work, every politician, and every academic analyst of the policy process." (The Geographical Journal, 2011)

"A compelling narrative, moving from 'the street' to structure and back again, to argue that more attention needs to be paid to the neoliberalist welfare state. The authors highlight examples of hope and caring, providing a critical but optimistic view of what can be done by individuals, institutions, and governing bodies. A must read for researchers and students interested in understanding not only homelessness, but also the complexities of governance.’
—Lois M. Takahashi, University of California, Los Angeles

‘Challenging theories of urban revanchism that deny homeless people agency and neglect the complexities of today’s welfare state, Swept Up Lives provides a sharp conceptual corrective and rich portrayal of geographies of homelessness in Britain. Detailed ethnographies and institutional analysis offer a window on homeless subjectivities and voluntary organizations as spaces of caring and active citizenship. I highly recommend this book.’
—Jennifer Wolch, University of California, Berkeley

‘A well crafted, insightful and timely book that overturns existing orthodoxies, exploring the experience of homelessness in the UK and providing a thought-provoking portrayal of the human face of homelessness.’
—Christine Milligan, Lancaster University