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Title: interesting idea but it doesnt work
Review: Herbst claims to be making a generalizable argument about the implications of political geography (which for him seems to consist solely of population density) on state building. That is, low population densities are problematic for state officials trying to broadcast their authority throughout the territory they supposedly control. Whether or not his theory holds for African states is debatable given the shoddy evidence presented. Even more questionable, though, is whether this theory has any value for understanding state building in the non-African world - lots of countries with low population densities (like canada or australia, for example) dont face nearly the same problems as African states do with regard to authority broadcasting and state formation. overall, this book is an interesting and perhaps innovative take on political development, but it ultimately fails to make a persuasive case for bringing political geography to center stage.
