Book Review - 1213 Words

Book Review by Martha Hall Findlay, March 2011 Approaching Public Administration – Core Debates and Emerging Issues Edited by Roberto P. Leone (Wilfrid Laurier University) and Frank L.K. Ohemeng (University of Ottawa); 2011, Emond Montgomery Publications I recommend this book to all Members of Parliament. I will go further, and suggest that it should be mandatory reading for all Ministers. As an MP, I was very pleased to be asked to read it and to provide my thoughts. As I responded when first asked to do this, â€Å"We are seeing some real challenges in our public administration, and this will encourage me to read a book that I know I should read, but which I might not otherwise rush to.† This is true, and therein lies a big challenge—this†¦show more content†¦The discipline that results from those forces, and how that affects all levels of management, does not naturally exist in government. The book has done a good job of offering the different perspectives to date, but I hope to see more discussion on how to combine the best of both worlds. It is telling that the essays discussing the role of the private sector in delivering public services are NOT part of this discussion, but found in a separate section of the book. My only comment on those chapters would be to suggest that our procurement processes need to evolve to better understand what is being asked for in terms of private delivery of services, why, and what limits there need to be. I hope to see more analysis comparing both theory and practice in this regard. As an MP, I particularly enjoyed the chapters addressing questions such as â€Å"Do Politicians Control Government?†, â€Å"Should the Bureaucracy be Politically Neutral?† and â€Å"Is Ministerial Responsibility a Dead Concept?† These go to the core of the relationship between, on the one side, the politicians and the policies they are mandated to implement by the people who elected them, and on the other side, the civil service, representing the need for a consistent, effective, efficient, reliable provision of the various services that over time we have deemed to be part of the public service. The essay by Tom Urbaniak, â€Å"Ministerial Responsibility: A Post Mortem† is based on a very blunt, butShow MoreRelatedBook Review : A Review Of A Book Review1431 Words   |  6 Pages Book reviews are just that: a review of a book. They can be used for news articles, blogs, or academic journals. 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They use a colloquial style of writing that will have you feeling as if the story could be real, and their short chapters give an impression of it being fast paced andRead MoreReview : Book Review916 Words   |  4 Pageslargely ranged from mixed to positive, with criticism being much more nuanced and muted than the comment books and national press. Former Librarian of the United States Congress and Historian, Daniel Boorstin, was a notable exception, who led the charge against the exhibit commenting in the first guestbook that it was â€Å"perverse, historically inaccurate [and] destructive.† Most academic reviews were positive, especially praising the catalogue which provided considerably more nuance d and detailed analysisRead MoreBook Review822 Words   |  4 PagesBOOK REVIEW FREEDOM IS NOT FREE BY SHIV KHERA Submitted by: Particulars of the Book Title in full : Freedom is Not Free Written by : Shiv Khera Publisher : Macmillan India Ltd Price : Rs 295 Pages : 223 pages Aim 1. To review the book â€Å"FREEDOM IS NOT FREE â€Å"by Shiv Khera. AboutRead MoreBook Review1441 Words   |  6 PagesBOOK REVIEW COMPANY COMMAND THE BOTTOM LINE BY: JOHN G. MEYER,JR. IG ASSESSOR STUDENT OFFICER LT ABHISHEK SHARMA YO’S FD-1606 ‘B’ TP CONTENTS 1. Introduction 2. About the author 3. About the book 4. Quality of presentation Read MoreBook Review : Book 903 Words   |  4 PagesFor this reading assignment we were reading chapters 1, 2, and 3, I find it helpful to me to read, take notes on and write out summaries as if this was two books. I will start off each time with Wes the author. As the book open we have Wes remembering a day that he and his older sister Nikki, were playing a game. Wes caught her and not knowing what to do, punched her in the face. Joy, Wes’ mother was very upset because Wes had hit a â€Å"girl†, and set him to his room. Wes’ father calmed Joy down byRead MoreBook Review1706 Words   |  7 PagesGagandeep Singh Book Review A thesis can be defined as something an author tries to prove to their audience. A History of the World in Six Glasses by Tom Standage provides a very brilliant thesis. Tom Standage’s thesis is to inform the audience reading the book about the six vital drinks that helped make up history. He explains this by showing how the drink influenced major events around the globe. He begins with beer which the oldest from the six drinks and ends with the youngest drink Coca-Cola