How Democracies Die

Narrated by:
Fred Sanders

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
48
Narrator
6
Release Date
January 16, 2018
Duration
8 hours 25 minutes
Summary
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Comprehensive, enlightening, and terrifyingly timely.”—The New York Times Book Review (Editors' Choice)

WINNER OF THE GOLDSMITH BOOK PRIZE • SHORTLISTED FOR THE LIONEL GELBER PRIZE • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Washington Post • Time • Foreign Affairs • WBUR • Paste

Donald Trump’s presidency has raised a question that many of us never thought we’d be asking: Is our democracy in danger? Harvard professors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt have spent more than twenty years studying the breakdown of democracies in Europe and Latin America, and they believe the answer is yes. Democracy no longer ends with a bang—in a revolution or military coup—but with a whimper: the slow, steady weakening of critical institutions, such as the judiciary and the press, and the gradual erosion of long-standing political norms. The good news is that there are several exit ramps on the road to authoritarianism. The bad news is that, by electing Trump, we have already passed the first one.

Drawing on decades of research and a wide range of historical and global examples, from 1930s Europe to contemporary Hungary, Turkey, and Venezuela, to the American South during Jim Crow, Levitsky and Ziblatt show how democracies die. Now the question is, can our democracy be saved?

Praise for How Democracies Die

“What we desperately need is a sober, dispassionate look at the current state of affairs. Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, two of the most respected scholars in the field of democracy studies, offer just that.”—The Washington Post

“Where Levitsky and Ziblatt make their mark is in weaving together political science and historical analysis of both domestic and international democratic crises; in doing so, they expand the conversation beyond Trump and before him, to other countries and to the deep structure of American democracy and politics.”—Ezra Klein, Vox

“If you only read one book for the rest of the year, read How Democracies Die. . . .This is not a book for just Democrats or Republicans. It is a book for all Americans. It is nonpartisan. It is fact based. It is deeply rooted in history. . . . The best commentary on our politics, no contest.”—Michael Morrell, former Acting Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (via Twitter)

“A smart and deeply informed book about the ways in which democracy is being undermined in dozens of countries around the world, and in ways that are perfectly legal.”—Fareed Zakaria, CNN
Reviews
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David A

The book actually had some great information in certain areas and serves as another opinion on the status of the USA political and governmental system in 2017. The author has every right to address the issues as he sees them but his doom and gloom about all things Trump and almost as much the Republican Party was over the top. The political and governmental system that our nation has become is not a one party issue. The author reinforces the notion that the only way to get along is for the progressive agenda to win. The author pointed out many negatives about the right but neglected to point out the same issues on the left. The division in our nation is widening and our future is fading without real solutions to our problems. It is worth a read but only to see the blindness of others

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Matthew K.

The authors obviously have studied much history, but thought about it none. Unscholarly drivel. It's conclusion is that you must get in line with Progressive taking points, or you are the problem. They give a pretense of neutrality, but end up being part of the problem they are trying to analyze. They also list a bunch of statistically and causally insignificant examples, but that fit their narrative. Their 3 main criteria for democracies to perish are picked while excluding others, specifically to prove their own idiological narrative. You can just read the first 4 hours, and learn everything this book can teach. The narrator was excellent though.

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Patrick M.

Woodrow Wilson lives

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Miquel D.

A book with magnificent insights, entertaining with many historical references and easy to listen to for most parts.

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Tim T.

This book is an outstanding resource. I have listened to it completely three times through, and even bought the hard-copy in order to highlight its main talking points. It is well written, provides poignant and relevant examples of its key points as they occurred in American history, and relates them to current events and threats that have surfaced since the 2016 election. Hopefully, it is not too late...

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Francesco C

The book is of an intersting level of analysis but nothing particular

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