Peter Augustine Lawler, professor of political science at Berry College, is coeditor, with Joseph Alulis, of Tocqueville's Defense of Human Liberty (1992) and coeditor, with Robert Schaefer, of American Political Rhetoric, 2nd ed. (Rowman & Littlefield, 1990).

Lawler paints a picture that is significantly more interesting, complete, and accurate than that presented by the bulk of the Tocqueville literature. The Intercollegiate Review A learned and sympathetic profile of Tocqueville and his thought ... First Things A wonderful book. It will be impossible for serious Tocqueville scholars to ignore it. It is simply the only book I know of that offers a coherent interpretation of Tocqueville's writings and, indeed, of his life as a whole. -- Delba Winthrop, Harvard University ... highly original and extremely thoughtful ... everyone interested in liberty can learn from it. -- Glenn Tinder, University of Massachusetts ... opens up new avenues in the study of Tocqueville. -- Roger Boesche Lawler's book synthesizes Tocqueville's thought into a convenient, thoughtful, critical analysis of an influential postmodern writer. CHOICE