American Government: Brief Version [Paperback]

James Q. Wilson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0669326771 | ISBN-13: 978-0669326772 | Publication Date: June 1994 | Edition: 3rd

This popular brief edition text for the one-semester or one-quarter American Government course maintains the framework of Wilson's complete text, emphasizing the historical development of the American political system, who governs, and to what end. Completely up to date, AMERICAN GOVERNMENT, BRIEF, 9e offers new coverage of such key and emerging issues as creationism and the establishment clause, tactics from the 2008 presidential campaign, Congressional ethics, repercussions from the Valerie Plume scandal, national debt, the Social Security debate, military involvement in Iraq, and much more.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Wilson has always had the gift of lucidity. … I like the idea of Enduring Questions, as today's students seem to need the bottom line." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

James Q. Wilson now teaches at Pepperdine University. He is Professor Emeritus of Management and Public Administration at UCLA and was previously Shattuck Professor of Government at Harvard University. He has written more than a dozen books on the subjects of public policy, bureaucracy, and political philosophy. He is a past President of the American Political Science Association, and he is the only political scientist to win three of the four lifetime achievement awards presented by the APSA. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 473 pages
• Publisher: D C Heath & Co; 3rd edition (June 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0669326771
• ISBN-13: 978-0669326772
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,704,172 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A practical, basic textbook, May 3, 2000

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Government: Brief Version (Paperback)

This book offers a foundation for political concepts and historic background about the U.S. Using standard survey course format, the author skims the broad topics of government from the core documents, including the Declaration and the Constitution, to the general structures and processes of governing. While I must conclude with a prior reviewer that the writing is unexciting, I have yet to find THE basic government text equivalent of "Democracy - Not 4 Dummies"

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars American Government, September 5, 2000

By 

Raoul Gravel (Des Plaines, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Government : Institutions and Policies (Hardcover)

A trully remarkable text book! This text strives where many fail, in communicating with students from AP level high school to Doctoral studies. Includded are full color diagrams on the political process, governmental structure dating back to the 1600s. Also, philisophical viewpoints from Plato to John Locke. The benefit of the text, is its current up-to-date information on the 'insides' of political views and parties. This text would assist anyone in learning about our nations history and government.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent introduction to Politics, March 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: American Government: Brief Version (Political Science College Titl) (Paperback)

American Government covered everything and anything on politics. I could not have asked for a better introduction on politics! It covered everything from the US Constitution to interest groups and the bureaucracy. If you are interested in politics, but need a simple, solid introduction, this book is for you! However, I found the book was difficult to read, as it was poorly written and tedious at times. Although this book is probably the best intro to Government around, do not buy it if you have a short attention span.