1
of
1
The Dictator's Handbook
Why Bad Behavior is Almost Always Good Politics
Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.
Check link for latest rating. ( 11,282 ratings, 1,330 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still
learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Summary
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
TEMPORARILY OUT OF STOCK
Please add to wishlist to be notified when back in stock
Sorry, we're currently out of stock of The Dictator's Handbook. Please add to your Wishlist and we'll send you an email as soon as it's back in stock.
Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
Ideal for readers interested in politics, leadership, and governance, including students, academics, policymakers, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the mechanisms behind political power.
Latest News
Liam's Halloween Spook-tacular
Our newest Bookstore Hero, Liam, is a self-diagnosed horror fanatic, with a love for both books...
The Team's Long Weekend Reading
With the long weekend upon us, the team is hopefully getting some time in the...
What Actually Makes a Jigsaw Puzzle Difficult?
Does more pieces always mean a harder puzzle? Not necessarily! After Dylan surprised me by...
A Court of Splintered Harmony: How to Get Your Copy on Release Day
A Court of Splintered Harmony is almost here, and we have some exciting news for...
The ACOTAR Countdown Is On, But We Need to Talk…
Last week, things started taking a dark turn. The excitement surrounding the release was suddenly...
See moreTwo renowned political scientists show how the rules of politics almost always favor leaders who ignore the national interest and focus on serving their own supporters.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
For eighteen years, Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith have been part of a team revolutionising the study of politics by turning conventional wisdom on its head. They start from a single assertion: Leaders do whatever keeps them in power.
They don't care about the "national interest" or even their subjects, unless they have to. This clever and accessible book shows that the difference between tyrants and democrats is just a convenient fiction. Governments do not differ in kind but only in the number of essential supporters, or backs that need scratching.
The size of this group determines almost everything about politics: what leaders can get away with, and the quality of life or misery under them. The picture the authors paint is not pretty. But it just may be the truth, which is a good starting point for anyone seeking to improve human governance.
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Acclaimed by CGP Grey as "simply the best book on politics written," and praised by R. James Woolsey, former Director of Central Intelligence, the book is described as a "fascinating" and "cynical, but accurate" analysis of leadership and governance. Roger Myerson of the University of Chicago highlights its brilliant historical insight and practical guidance on democracy and rule of law, recommending it as essential reading for citizens.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781610391849
Publisher: PublicAffairs,U.S.
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 31 July 2012
Country: United States
Imprint: PublicAffairs,U.S.
Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 25.0mm
Width: 155.0mm
Height: 209.0mm
Weight: 315g
Pages: 352
About the Author
Bruce Bueno de Mesquita is the Julius Silver Professor of Politics and director of the Alexander Hamilton centre for Political Economy at New York University. He is the author of 16 books, including The Predictioneer's Game. Alastair Smith is professor of politics at New York University. The recipient of three grants from the National Science Foundation and author of three books, he was chosen as the 2005 Karl Deutsch Award winner, given biennially to the best international relations scholar under the age of 40.They are also the authors of The Spoils of War: Greed, Power, and the Conflicts That Made Our Greatest Presidents.
Also by Alastair Smith
View all-
20% offThe Dictator's Handbook
The Dictator's Handbook by Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith is a canonical work on political science that challenges conventional wisdom. The authors begin with a striking assertion: leaders do whatever is necessary to stay in power. They are indifferent to the "national interest" or the welfare of their subjects unless compelled to consider them. Newly updated to reflect...Paperback$3600Usually:$4500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today
Also by Bruce de Mesquita
View all-
20% off
The Dictator's Handbook
The Dictator's Handbook by Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith is a canonical work on political science that challenges conventional wisdom. The authors begin with a striking assertion: leaders do whatever is necessary to stay in power. They are indifferent to the "national interest" or the welfare of their subjects unless compelled to consider them. Newly updated to reflect...Paperback$3600Usually:$4500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Invention of Power
In the tradition of Why Nations Fail, this book solves one of the great puzzles of history: Why did the West become the most powerful civilisation in the world? Western exceptionalism—the idea that European civilisations are freer, wealthier, and less violent—is a widespread and powerful political idea. It has been a source of peace and prosperity in some societies, and...Paperback$5500Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 2-3 weeks -
The Invention of Power
Western exceptionalism—the idea that European civilizations are freer, wealthier, and less violent—is a widespread and powerful political idea. It has been a source of peace and prosperity in some societies, and of ethnic cleansing and havoc in others. Yet in The Invention of Power, Bruce Bueno de Mesquita draws on his expertise in political manoeuvring, deal-making, and game theory to...HardbackSold Out
More from Politics & Current Affairs
View all-
In the Room
'Every Prime Minister needs someone who will challenge them - and that was you.' So said Jacinda Ardern to Andrew Campbell on his final day as her Chief Press Secretary. Now, for the first time, Campbell offers a revealing insider's account of one of New Zealand's most extraordinary political eras. Serving alongside Ardern for almost her entire time in office,...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
One Last Question, Prime Minister
From Muldoon to Luxon, untold stories from the House of Parliament Barry Soper has spent close to five decades questioning New Zealand's prime ministers.From the imposing, larger-than-life characters of Rob Muldoon and David Lange, to the golden age of Helen Clark and John Key, and the post-Covid era of Jacinda Ardern and the 'Chrises', Soper's insight and nose for a...Paperback$2800Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseFacing Up to Our Future
New Zealand's traditional “she'll be right” optimism is no longer adequate to the challenges facing the country. Facing Up to Our Future: Challenges and Choices for New Zealand brings together 21 of the country's leading thinkers to confront the long-term pressures shaping the nation's next decades. Edited by Emeritus Professor Peter Davis, the collection ranges widely, covering issues as diverse as...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$3500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Signed Copy13% offUncomfortable Economics
New Zealand once ranked among the world’s most prosperous nations. Not any longer. Why has our economic performance lagged behind countries we once outpaced? And what will it take to reverse the decline? In Uncomfortable Economics, David Schnauer shows that New Zealand’s underperformance is not inevitable. It is the result of choices — cultural and political — that can be...Paperback$3300Elsewhere:$4000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Regime Change
From the two reporters who have covered him more closely than perhaps anyone else over the past decade comes this definitive portrait of Donald Trump in the White House and the first year of his second presidency. Based on hundreds of interviews and unprecedented reporting from deep within the administration’s most closely guarded rooms, Regime Change takes the reader into...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$4299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseA Different Kind of Power
#1 New Zealand bestseller #1 Amazon bestseller #2 Audible bestseller #3 New York Times bestseller #3 Sunday Times bestseller #4 Australian bestseller From the former prime minister of New Zealand, then the world’s youngest female head of government and just the second to give birth in office, comes a deeply personal memoir chronicling her extraordinary rise and offering inspiration to...Paperback$3200Elsewhere:$4000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Ockham WinnerA Different Kind of Power
What if we could redefine leadership? What if kindness came first? Jacinda Ardern grew up the daughter of a police officer in small-town New Zealand, but as the 40th Prime Minister of her country, she commanded global respect for her empathetic leadership that put people first. This is the remarkable story of how a Mormon girl plagued by self-doubt made...Hardback$4799Elsewhere:$5999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseDirty Work
Twelve years after they were exposed and discredited in the book Dirty Politics, some of the most cynical people in New Zealand politics are back. The epitome is Jordan Williams, with his abysmal attitudes to women, morality-free fundraising as a lobbyist for the tobacco industry and – worst and most destructive in New Zealand’s recent history – him and his...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$3499Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseThe Cauldron
How did an elderly cleric overthrow the Shah of Iran and change the world?Why did Bin Laden attack the USA - and why did the USA destroy Saddam?How did Britain and France carve up the Middle East - and why did the Kurds never get their own state? THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO THE MAKING OF TODAY'S MIDDLE EAST: A SPELLBINDING...Hardback$4999Elsewhere:$6000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Suicidal Empathy
The bestselling author of The Parasitic Mind shows why empathy in politics leads to civilizational collapse. What happens when a society elevates victimhood to a virtue and decides that punishment is cruel? You get the disease Dr. Gad Saad calls suicidal empathy. And the West may be terminally infected. In his new book, Suicidal Empathy, Saad unleashes a blistering critique...Paperback$3099Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
23% off1984 Nineteen Eighty-Four
In the drab and oppressive world of 1984 Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell introduces us to Winston Smith, a man haunted by the omnipresent surveillance and control exercised by the Party and its enigmatic leader, Big Brother. Winston works diligently at the Ministry of Truth, where his job is to alter historical records to fit the ever-changing narrative dictated by the...Paperback$1000Usually:$1299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
22% offNew Release
Go Hard or Go Home
From the front bench to rock bottom: Go Hard or Go Home is Kiri Allan's fearless memoir of ambition, disruption and survival in NZ politics and beyond. Kiri Allan's six-year political career spanned some of the most challenging times in recent history. Events a government might encounter once in a generation stacked up: a terrorist attack, a volcanic eruption, destructive and deadly...Paperback$2500Elsewhere:$4000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
Politics & Current Affairs lists from the team
Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!
-
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listPolitics & Current Affairs
2026 Longlist for The Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction
Celebrating the best of non-fiction writing, here are all 13 books on the longlist for 2026.View the list -
![]()
![Lucky You're Tough]()
![]()
Dylan's listPolitics & Current Affairs
Reading Before Voting
As we head towards New Zealand's general election on 7 November 2026, here are some books that explore many of the issues...View the list
