Our Book of the Month choice for June

The SSL ‘Book of the Month’ feature highlights a book in our collection that has been chosen by one of our Subject Consultants. This may be a recent addition to our stock or an existing item that we would like to share with you.

 

June’s book of the month was selected by Jo Gardner, Bodleian Social Science Librarian and Subject Consultant for Politics and International Relations

 

 

 

 

The Return of Great Power Rivalry: Democracy versus autocracy from the Ancient World to the U.S. and China

Kroenig, Matthew

Oxford University Press, 2020

Available as an eBook or a hard copy can be requested from the Bodleian Closed Stacks.

 

Why was it chosen?

It was chosen because it has been described as a ‘must-read’ for understanding the current international environment.

Book Overview

The author seeks to answer a question central to international politics: Why do great powers rise and fall? He offers a sweeping historical analysis of democratic and autocratic competitors from ancient Greece to the Cold War. He employs a unique framework to understand and analyse the state of today’s competition between the democratic United States and its autocratic competitors, Russia and China.

Reviews

“The breadth of Kroenig’s historical case studies and the parsimony of his analyses help this book stand out, making it a must-read for understanding the current international environment.”
J.R. Clardie, Northwest Nazarene University

“At a time when the global struggle between democracy and autocracy is reaching a critical new stage, this book promises to touch nerves and influence minds from Washington to Moscow to Beijing. Policy-relevant social science at its best!”
M. Steven Fish, Professor of Political Science at the University of California

“In this age of widespread pessimism about the future of democracy, this book makes a powerful argument: democracy is not only better for the people, but may have the edge against autocracies in the coming great power rivalry. It is an erudite, well-argued and uplifting book.”
Daron Acemoglu, Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-author of Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty

How can I access it?

This title is available as an eBook via SOLO. Oxford University staff and students can access eBooks remotely by logging into SOLO with their SSO. It is also available in hard copy in the Bodleian Closed Stacks and can be requested via Stack Request to consult in the library.

Image of an open book with the pages curled to form a love heartWhat would your SSL Book of the Month be? Do you have a favourite book in our collection? If so, we would love to know what it is. Add a comment below or email us.

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