Items23The creator’s order
  1. 1How Democracies Die (2017)How Democracies Die (2017) 7.9/10 on Open LibraryPublished Jan 1, 2017Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt look at how elected leaders can weaken institutions after taking office. Their discussion of rivals accepting one another’s legitimacy and officials choosing when to exercise their powers gives a reader a way to distinguish written rules from the habits that…0
  2. 2On Democracy (2015)On Democracy (2015)Published Jan 1, 2015Robert A. Dahl works from criteria such as meaningful participation and access to information to the institutions that can make them possible in a large country. The steps keep the meaning of democratic government separate from any one constitution. Choose it for a short grounding before reading…0
  3. 3Democracy in America (2010)Democracy in America (2010)Published Jan 1, 2010Alexis de Tocqueville pays attention to American townships and voluntary associations in the nineteenth century. The detail helps a reader see what people can learn about acting together away from a national election. Choose it for an early outsider’s observations on local habits, including the…0
  4. 4Making democracy work (1994)Making democracy work (1994)Published Jan 1, 1994Robert D. Putnam, Robert Leonardi, and Raffaella Y. Nanetti compare regional governments created under a common framework in Italy. Their study asks why they performed differently and what older civic associations might have contributed. Read it to see what a shared set of rules can leave…0
  5. 5Political order and political decay (2014)Political order and political decay (2014)Published Jan 1, 2014Francis Fukuyama gives state capacity, the rule of law, and accountability distinct places in his account of political development. Civil service reform is one way to see how governing can change while the people authorized to vote stay the same. Choose it to compare the institutions by what each…0
  6. 6Patterns of Democracy (2012)Patterns of Democracy (2012)Published Jan 1, 2012Arend Lijphart compares democracies that concentrate power with ones that distribute it across more institutions or parties. Looking at legislatures, executives, and parties together lets you see why an election can produce different governing bargains. Choose it when you want to put a familiar…0
  7. 7The public and its problems (1926)The public and its problems (1926) 7.0/10 on Open LibraryPublished Jan 1, 1926John Dewey starts with the consequences that one person’s actions can have for other people. A public can take form when people affected by those consequences recognize that they need a way to act together. Choose this short book for a starting question about democratic life whose answer depends on…0
  8. 8The broken branch (2006)The broken branch (2006)Published Jan 1, 2006Thomas E. Mann and Norman J. Ornstein examine how Congress legislates and oversees the executive. Changes in committee work, deliberation, and the use of procedures help explain what legislators can do with the offices they win. Read it for a historical account of why the daily work of a…0
  9. 9Democracy When the People Are Thinking (2018)Democracy When the People Are Thinking (2018)Published Jan 1, 2018James S. Fishkin studies what happens when a public with access to common information has time to discuss a question before answering it. The comparison between initial views and views after deliberation gives a reader something concrete to look for in a participation exercise. Choose it for a…0
  10. 10Against elections (2013)Against elections (2013) 10.0/10 on Open LibraryPublished Jan 1, 2013David Van Reybrouck asks how choosing citizens by lot could give some people a chance to help make public decisions. The proposals and historical cases give a reader a way to compare selection by lot with elected representation. Choose it for a book that treats deliberation as work citizens might…0