Decentralization and Democracy in Latin America

"The book... adopts a predominantly political focus in its analysis of decentralization. The concentration is on process rather than outcome—and what outcomes are discussed are those at the level of intergovernmental relations, rather than the results on the ground. This approach has the virtue of concentrating the analytical focus, and the editors have done a splendid job in ensuring that the various contributors not only focus on the same issues and adopt broadly but not entirely the same approach, but even engage in a certain level of interchange—occasionally a mild disagreement—between the chapters. The book also has a strong sense of history—something often lacking among the more committed advocates of decentralization." —Perspectives on Politics

“The authors of Decentralization and Democracy in Latin America are primarily concerned with understanding the dynamics of state reform and decentralization in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Uruguay, and Venezuela." —Latin American Research Review

"Montero, Samuels, and the contributors are to be congratulated for producing a volume that is coherent, integrated, and timely. Graduate students and professionals will not only find it useful empirically and analytically but also will consider it a mine for endless propositions and hypotheses for testing and investigating. Overall, Decentralization and Democracy in Latin America is a valuable and solid volume." —Perspectives on Political Science

"This edited volume brings together some of the finest works on decentralization in Latin America produced in the U.S. in recent years. The book is sound, both theoretically and empirically, and the different chapters nicely complement each other. ...this book is likely to become part of the reading lists of Latin American politics seminars." —The Americas

"This book deals with an interesting topic, but at the same time offers the reader an excellent starting point for understanding the phenomenon in its contextual and comparative dimension without losing the particular development of each individual country. It is without doubt a well-written book." —Political Studies Review