Glenn Firebaugh is Professor and Chair in the Department of Sociology at Pennsylvania State University.

• Preface PART I. THE NEW GEOGRAPHY HYPOTHESIS 1. Massive Global Income Inequality: When Did It Arise and Why Does It Matter? The Growing World Income Pie Other Welfare Changes The Rise in Income Disparities over the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries Why Nations? Why Not Focus on Poverty Rather than on Inequality? 2. The Reversal of Historical Inequality Trends Myths of the Trade Protest Model Causes of the Reversal: An Overview The Inequality Transition PART II. MEASUREMENT 3. How Is National Income Measured, and Can We Trust the Data? How Is National Income Measured? Are Income Estimates Plausible? Are the Historical Income Data Reliable Enough? Are the Contemporary Income Data Reliable Enough? Measuring Income over Time Appendix A3: Adjusting for Household Economies in Poor

If you want to understand how global income equality has evolved in recent decades and why, look no further. Glenn Firebaugh has provided the most complete, thoughtful, and intriguing study on the subject, The New Geography of Global Income Inequality… This is an outstanding book, showcasing what sociology can offer by enhancing our empirical knowledge of the world… Firebaugh’s argument is articulate, forceful, and well-presented. All who are concerned with issues of income inequality, scholars and laypersons alike, will find much to learn from this book, as will students seeking to master the art of conducting empirical social science. For these reasons, I highly recommend Firebaugh’s latest contribution.