A ny social formation that aspires to long-term persistence complemented by social justice, including a concern with the issue of diversity and social inclusion, requires a system of governance grounded in an ethics of collective well-being, and facilitated by regulations and practices that are suitably responsive to the exigencies of collective life and its complexity. Indeed, good governance is a sine qua non in an age of: mobile capital, goods and people; increasing social diversity as a

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... equence of that mobility; globalized competition; and more. And of course, cities across the globe are at the epicentre of this rapidly metabolizing world. Consequently, it is arguable that good governance at the level of the urban is more important today than ever. It is that recognition that might be said to be one important animating variable for this very engaging, illuminating, and relevant work by the sociolegal scholar, Marianne Valverde, which examines "mundane details of how cities regulate space, settle disputes, and interpret ordinances and regulations," (2) in the context of multiculturalism and increasing social diversity, directed to bringing to view the dynamics of urban governance and the "complex network of legal and administrative mechanisms" (11) by which it is constituted. Here it is important to note that while Valverde takes as her case study the city of Toronto, her objective is to secure findings that are relevant for urban governance in general. A second motivation for this work is Valverde's desire to correct for what she argues has been the neglect, in urban studies, of the role of the law and its power-those legal and regulatory mechanisms that give shape to the routine dimensions of everyday urban infrastructure and practices-such as, "paving roads, maintaining parks, dictating the size of yards, inspecting homes and public buildings, regulating city traffic, and issuing marriage licenses, taxi plates, and building permits" (7-8). Thus, the first substantive chapter of the book, chapter two, discloses and analyzes "how urban space is put together by the city's legal tools" (28). Here, she reminds us that both the physical and social dimensions of city sidewalks are deeply regulated by the law. For example, she reveals that the street foods available in the city are strictly regulated in