Scan barcode
teokajlibroj's review
2.0
Disappointing. The first half of the book is stuck in debates from centuries ago about democracy with no connection or relevance to modern day. The second half is too vague and general to actually say anything.
jonsploder's review
3.0
Just an information dump of the history of democracy, barely shaped to make any arguments or drawing out similarities. Kind of like one of my high school essays, where you just stuff as many quotes from famous people into it and barely explain or argue anything. The appendix on Brexit was the best part, but in terms of a non-biased non-emotional mechanical explanation and comparison of democracy vs other political systems, a failure.
It at least did a good job giving the sense that in the past people really didn’t believe a democracy could ever work, without mob rule and maintaining private property rights.
Not worth the read, find another book. Slightly related topics, not exactly but together give a good background: Power by Bertrand Russel and Capitalism and Freedom by Milton Friedman (or any economic perspective of politics, doesn’t matter if you agree with it, the style of thinking is relevant)
It at least did a good job giving the sense that in the past people really didn’t believe a democracy could ever work, without mob rule and maintaining private property rights.
Not worth the read, find another book. Slightly related topics, not exactly but together give a good background: Power by Bertrand Russel and Capitalism and Freedom by Milton Friedman (or any economic perspective of politics, doesn’t matter if you agree with it, the style of thinking is relevant)
elizabethdavies's review against another edition
4.0
This book was thought-provoking and as a piece of scholarly literature, it was relatively accessible. However, the focus seemed to be slightly different from what I expected, and in many ways, I believe it failed to provide a workable solution besides simply extending the franchise to include 16-year-olds and making voting mandatory, which I don't believe will truly address the issue. Despite that, it was interesting and is an important part of a wider debate that is essential during such turbulent political times.
perseuspip's review
2.0
All this book provided were half-baked centrist opinions from an author who seemed to be bored with the topic. It was bland, failed to offer any new or unique insight, and spent little time on making its points. Rather, the first half is the dullest history of democracy I have ever read (and I love history... it's the sort of thing I should have enjoyed) and the second half is just jammed up with opinions that seem not to have been fully formed or at least, if they are, certainly were not fully explained or defended. I give it two stars because it certainly could have been much worse but it's far from good at the same time.
Since A.C. Grayling seems somewhat well-liked, I'll probably give him another chance at some point maybe with one of his more popular books but this one was a huge bore and disappointment.
Since A.C. Grayling seems somewhat well-liked, I'll probably give him another chance at some point maybe with one of his more popular books but this one was a huge bore and disappointment.
More...