Book reviews: How states develop, the welfare of children, what the US expects from development
Steve Webb reviews Political Order and Inequality by Carles Boix. The book is a “valuable complement” to other recent attempts to explain why states exist and how they emerge. Read the review.Melissa Habedank reviews Children’s Chances: How Countries Can Move From Surviving to Thriving by Jody Heymann withKristen McNeill. The book’s survey of laws and policies around the world illustrate how “where a child is raised can profoundly affect his or her chances of thriving.” Read the review.
Clay Wescott reviews Govern Like Us: U.S. Expectations of Poor Countries by M.A. Thomas. Wescott says that the book emphasizes the need to “destigmatize the governance of poor countries, finding ways to leverage their patronage networks and corrupt practices to make incremental progress toward a better life for their citizens.” Read the review.
