Introduction -- River 1: Nile. Ancient ecosystems and the art of recycling -- Regime change on the river -- Source -- River 2: Danube. Corridors and frontiers -- Gods of the transboundary river -- The case of the undredged delta -- River 3: Ganges. Numinous rivers -- River under occupation -- Dividing the waters -- River 4: Thames. Birth of a river -- Shadows of an imperial river -- Thames gateway -- River 5: Mississippi. Disappearances? -- Sold down the river -- Globalising the river basin -- River 6: Niger. River at the crossroads -- Oil rivers -- Who are the masters now? -- River 7: Yangtze. Grand canal -- The riverfly -- Sinking city -- Conclusion

"... History of the seven rivers representing the great natural arteries running through civilization, by virtue of the roles they have played in our shared and conflicted world history."--Provided by publisher