“What is impressive about this collection is the way many authors take received ideas from political science, political philosophy, cultural studies, or world systems theory and, by subjecting them to ethnographic scrutiny, transform them in new and powerful ways. Anthropology makes a difference.” Marshall Sahlins, University of Chicago

"The Blackwell Companions to Anthropology, of which this volume is the second to appear, are set fair to blow cobwebs from dormant minds ... this volume is an exemplar of scholarship at its meticulous, dynamic, and demanding best ... we have here an erudite analysis of problems of direct relevance to the lives of every individual person on our planet, and an inspired exploration of “things to come”. This is scholarly, sophisticated, unsparing, courageous political thinking, far removed from the shams, slogans, shibboleths, stupidities, and silliness of much of the political comment and conditioning purveyed by our mass media – even by our elected “representatives” ... This is an admirable work that will fertilise the rugged field of the anthropology of politics for decades to come. All academic libraries need it. It would also be a salutary Christmas present choice for our pet political representative, an earnest hope of a positive revolution in political theory and practice.” Reference Reviews