Monday, November 18, 2013

American Epic: Reading the Constitution

Garrett Epps (University of Baltimore School of Law). American Epic: Reading the Constitution (Oxford University Press, 2013). 

"Epps has written another masterpiece.  He takes us on a wondrous journey through the Constitution exploring every word of the remarkable document that so many venerate but few actually read.  Even the most devoted student of the Constitution will find much to learn.  American Epic is a revealing, thought-provoking, and wonderfully written examination of American's foundational text."
—Adam Winkler, UCLA School of Law

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Angel Island: Immigrant Gateway to America


Erika Lee (University of Minnesota) & Judy Yung (University of California). Angel Island: Immigrant Gateway to America (Oxford University Press, 2010).

"A place of heartrending history and breathtaking beauty, the Angel Island Immigration Station is a National Historic Landmark, and like Ellis Island, it is recognized as one of the most important sites where America’s immigration history was made. This fascinating history is ultimately about America itself and its complicated relationship to immigration, a story that continues today.”
Angel Island book jacket

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Hate Thy Neighbor: Move-In Violence and the Persistence of Racial Segregation in American Housing

Jeannine Bell (Indiana University).  Hate Thy Neighbor (New York University Press, 2013).

"Puts an unsparing spotlight on one of the least discussed yet most intractable barriers to full civil rights for all Americans. . . . Stunning and tragic. . . . Hate Thy Neighbor is both empirical and poignant.  Her proposals for how to address this enduring scandal will, without any doubt, launch new reflection, new movements, new hope."
—Patricia J. Williams, Columbia Law School

Friday, November 8, 2013

States of the Union: Family and Change in the American Constitutional Order

Mark E. Brandon (Vanderbilt University). States of the Union (University Press of Kansas, 2013).

"A timely, substantive, and deeply engaging book that brilliantly analyzes the ever-changing place of families in American culture and law from colonial settlement to the contemporary debate over the constitutionality of gay marriage."
—David S. Tanenhaus, Boyd School of Law

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

The Wartime President: Executive Influence and the Nationalizing Politics of Threat

William G. Howell (University of Chicago), Saul P. Jackman (Brookings Institution) & Jon C. Rogowski (Washington University). The Wartime President (The University of Chicago Press, 2013).

The Wartime President offers a compelling, original theory of how war affects presidential power. By demonstrating through rigorous empirical analysis that war empowers the president when it leads the public and members of Congress to focus on national concerns rather than local priorities, William G. Howell, Saul P. Jackman, and Jon C. Rogowski dramatically advance our understanding of the presidency and of our separation of powers system.”
Eric Schickler, University of California, Berkeley