Gianpaolo Baiocchi & Elizabeth A Bennett 
Civic Imagination 
Making a Difference in American Political Life

The Civic Imagination provides a rich empirical description of civic life and a broader discussion of the future of democracy in contemporary America. Over the course of a year, five researchers observed and participated in 7 civic organisations in a mid-sized US city. They draw on this ethnographic evidence to map the  »civic imaginations » that motivate citizenship engagement in America today. The book unpacks how contemporary Americans think about and act toward positive social and political change while the authors » findings challenge contemporary assertions of American apathy. This will be an important book for students and academics interested in political science and sociology.