Monotown: Urban Dreams Brutal Imperatives examines the post-industrial transformation and transnational legacy of single industry towns which emerged as a distinctive sociopolitical project of urbanization in the Soviet Union during the 1920s. Monotowns took form through the teleological establishment of industrial enterprises strewn across remote parts of the Siberian hinterland around which cities had to be built to provide labor. This model entailed the relocation of vast populations which would require services, housing, and social and physical infrastructure, all linked to a given industrial enterprise. By examining the ways in which monotowns have adapted over time in this expanded field, the work establishes a broader yet more specific dialogue about the challenges faced by towns within this particular single-industry etymology.
