The GOVERNANCE blog » book reviews

Book reviews: Democracy in Latin America, Olsen on institution building, public administration in Singapore

governancejournal — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 17:33:29 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (24.3, July 2011), Stephanie L. Smith of the University of New Mexico reviews Participatory Innovation and Representative Democracy in Latin America, edited by Andrew Selee and Enrique Peruzotti. The book “expands our knowledge of how participatory institutions emerge under less than ideal conditions,” says Smith. Read the review. Jozef Bátora of Comenius University considers Governing Through Institution Building, by Governance board member Johan P. Olsen. Olsen’s book “argues persuasively that European integration has not produced any new and substantial theoretical innovation in political science.” Read the review. And John Burns of the University of Hong Kong reviews Public Administration Singapore-Style by Jon S.T. Quah — “a book of immense value not only to the academic community but also those doing business in Singapore.” Read the review.

Book reviews: The privatization of security, and the myth of fiscal control

governancejournal — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:19:54 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (24.3, July 2011), Renée de Nevers of Syracuse University reviews States, Citizens, and the Privatization of Security by Elke Krahmann. It is “a valuable addition to the study of private military contractors,” says de Nevers. The book examines how domestic ideologies have shaped the expansion of privatization in the security sector in the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany. Read the review.

And Richard Allen of the World Bank reviews Legislatures and the Budget Process: The Myth of Fiscal Control by Joachim Wehner of the London School of Economics. The book enters into the ongoing debate about proper role of legislatures in fiscal policy and the extent to which they aggravate or moderate problems of budgetary indiscipline. The empirical analysis, says Allen, is “rigorous and thorough.” Read the review.

Book reviews: Latin American utility regulation; influencing health outcomes in the global South

governancejournal — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 23:43:39 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (24.2, April 2011) Mauricio Dussauge Laguna reviews Political Competition, Partisanship and Policymaking in Latin American Public Utilities by Maria Victoria Murillo. Murillo “offers a comprehensive analysis of how the region’s electricity and telecommunications regimes have been transformed . . . [and] shows that political parties still matter” in shaping regulatory policies. Read the review. And Joseph Wong reviews Wealth, Health and Democracy in East Asia and Latin America by James W. McGuire. McGuire challenges the idea that economic development is the key determinant of health outcomes in the global South, pointing out the effectiveness of relatively inexpensive interventions “even in the context of difficult economic circumstances.” Wong says McGuire’s analysis is “powerful and provocative.” Read the review.

Book reviews: Democratic governance, IMF decisionmaking, groupthink in international relations

governancejournal — Sun, 22 May 2011 17:15:59 +0000

In the current issue of Governance, Henrik Enroth of Linnaeus University reviews Democratic Governance by Mark Bevir. The book makes “vital contributions to our understanding” of the rise and spread of the language of governance, Enroth says. Read the review. Richard Allen reviews The International Monetary Fund in the Global Economy by M.S. Copelovitch. Allen says that Copelovitch “provides a comprehensive review of how decisions are taken in the IMF . . . and is exceptional in terms of the depth of its coverage and adroit use” of evidence. Read the review. And Paul ‘t Hart reviews Groupthink vs. High Quality Decision Making in International Relations by Mark Schafer and Scott Crichlow. Their study “adds a whole new layer of analysis” about the way leaders’ traits and behavior can affect high-level policymaking, ‘t Hart concludes. Read the review.

Book reviews: Business and government, sustainable development

governancejournal — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 06:21:32 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (24.1, January 2011), Sandra Suarez reviews the Oxford Handbook of Business and Government edited by David Coen, Wyn Grant and Graham Wilson. The volume “offers a comprehensive view of this fragmented subfield,” Suarez says. And Robert Cox reviews Governing Sustainability edited by W. Neil Adger and Andrew Jordan. The volume, says Cox, “is the best outline to date of the emerging discourse” on sustainability. Read the reviews.

Book reviews: French administrative reforms, developing countries and trade, conceptions of community and identity

governancejournal — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 15:20:03 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (24.4, October 2010), Julie Gervais says that Phillipe Bezes‘ new book Réinventer l’Etat: les réformes de l’administration française makes a “significant contribution to French academic literature on public administration,” showing how change happens “discreetly and slowly,” but with an eventually profound effect on administration. Read the review. John Whalley of University of Western Ontario says that Chad Brown‘s Self-Enforcing Trade provides “a rich array of evidence” about the use of WTO dispute settlement procedures developing countries, and an “extremely helpful” entry point on this complicated subject. Read the review. Cara Wong‘s Boundaries of Obligation in American Politics examines how community boundaries are socially constructed in the minds of ordinary Americans. Yves Laberge says that it is “an important and very special book,” useful in reminding political scientists about the ways in which conceptions of identity shape policy. Read the review.

Book reviews: Institutional change, workers and welfare, the rise of the unelected

governancejournal — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 06:00:27 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (23.4, October 2010), Jennifer Widner reviews Explaining Institutional Change: Ambiguity, Agency and Power, edited by James Mahoney and Kathleen Thelen — a collection of “thoughtful theoretical essays . . . and lively and interesting case studies” about institutional change. Read the review. Kathleen Bruhn reviews Workers and Welfare: Comparative Institutional Change in Twentieth Century Mexico by Michelle Dion: “an insightful and original analysis of the development of social insurance policies in Mexico.” Read the review. And Adriejan van Veen reviews The Rise of the Unelected: Democracy and the New Separation of Powers by Frank Vibert: “a strong picture of the recent rise of an entire branch of unelected institutions.” Read the review.

Book reviews: Chinese unemployment, Laegrid festschrift

governancejournal — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 19:39:29 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (23.4, October 2010), Lu Zhang reviews The Chinese Worker After Socialism by William Hurst of the University of Texas Austin. Zhang says that the book “stands out” for its careful examination of the fate of workers laid off by China’s state-owned enterprises: “The book is comprehensive, informative, and rich in details concerning several main issues regarding the laid-off SOE workers.” Read the review. And Martin Painter reviews Change and Continuity in Public Sector Organizations, a festschrift in honor of SOG member Per Laegrid. “The book is a showcase of the kind of public administration scholarship that Laegrid has exemplified,” says Painter. Read the review.

Book reviews in Governance: Fiscal federalism, Canadian agricultural policy

governancejournal — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 19:46:06 +0000

In the new issue of Governance (July 2010), Larry Schroeder of Syracuse University reviews Fiscal Federalism: Principles and Practice of Multi-Order Governance by Robin Boadway and Anwar Shah. Schroeder says that the book “fills an important void in the literature . . . a very complete and balanced review” of the principles of fiscal federalism. Read the review.

Grace Skogstad‘s Internationalization and Canadian Agriculture: Policy and Governing Paradigms provides “an invaluable guide” to the ways in which Canadian agricultural policy has responded — or not — to international pressures, according to Tim Josling of Stanford University. Read the review.

Book reviews in Governance

governancejournal — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 10:33:39 +0000

In the current issue of Governance (23.2), Alison Post reviews The Political Economy of Water and Sanitation by Matthias Krause. Post says that the Krause’s book “provides a helpful reminder that the effects of privatization and other types of reforms in infrastructure sector will vary greatly depending upon both the broader institutional and political environment and sector-specific institutions and policies.” Read the review.

And Eric Heinze of the University of Oklahoma reviews two books that examine changing ideas about state sovereignty. The State of Sovereignty: Territories, Laws Populations, edited by Douglas Howland and Luise White, demonstrates how “the notion of sovereignty changes over time,” while Humanitarian Intervention: Confronting the Contradictions, edited by Michael Newman, illustrates “how international human rights and humanitarian principles are affecting traditional conceptions of state sovereignty.” Read the review.