“John Swales’ textography might also be called ‘comparative rhetoric in a small building,’ offering proof, once again, that another culture may be only a trip up or down a flight of stairs. . . .such an appealing and original book.” ---BAAL News

Originally published in 1998, Other Floors, Other Voices uses texts to capture the lives of three communities operating within a single building (the North University Building, or NUBS) on the University of Michigan campus. Swales' thoughtful exploration of the three units—the Computer Resource Site, the University Herbarium (botany), and the English Language Institute—centers around the individuals who work on each floor and the discourse-related activities they engage in.

The Twentieth Anniversary Edition of Other Floors, Other Voices includes: a new preface, an introductory essay on the value of rereading this volume many years after publication, and an epilogue that reflects on and reveals what has happened to the three units in the past 20 years.