James W. Ceaser is professor of politics at the University of Virginia and a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution and member of the Boyd and Jill Task Force on Virtues of a Free Society.

• Chapter 1 Section I: Political FoundationsChapter 2 Chapter 1: The Doctrine of Political NonfoundationalismChapter 3 Chapter 2: The Two-Founding Thesis: Political Foundations in Tocqueville's Democracy in AmericaChapter 4 Chapter 3: American Political Foundations in the Thought of Leo StraussChapter 5 Section II: The Founders, Constitutional Design, and the Role of Political ScienceChapter 6 Chapter 4: Fame and The Federalist: The American Founders and the Recovery of Political ScienceChapter 7 Chapter 5: Demagoguery, Statesmanship, and Presidential PoliticsChapter 8 Chapter 6: Doctrines of Presidential-Congressional RelationsChapter 9 Section III. Modern ConservatismChapter 10 Chapter 7: Four Heads and One Heart: The Modern Conservative MovementChapter 11 Chapter 8: The Social Construction of the Reagan LegacyChapter 12 Section IV. The American Way of LifeChapter 13 Chapter 9: The Theoretical Origins of Anti-Americanism

A Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2011!This book was a pleasure to read. The title implies a treatise on constitutional design; the work really comprises nine well-crafted essays by one of the premier scholars of American political thought. Each essay is a stand-alone gem--Ceaser is well-known for his elegant, dignified style and gentle humor--but they also constitute a compelling story, and are nicely grouped into different sections. The first section contemplates political foundations, and includes an excellent general theoretical treatment of foundationalism and nonfoundationalism, followed by a beautiful and original analysis of Tocqueville, and a piece on Leo Strauss that is worth the entire book price. Ceaser (Univ. of Virginia) then presents three tight essays on applying a science of politics to the questions of fame, statesmanship, and presidential-congressional relations. The third section includes three essays on modern conservatives and the construction of the Reagan legacy. The book concludes with "The Theoretical Origins of Anti-Americanism," which Ceaser writes "is arguably the only ideology of our day that has a worldwide reach." Every serious student of contemporary and historical American politics, or of American political thought, should keep this book handy. Essential. All readership levels.