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Fault Lines in the Constitution


Fault Lines in the Constitution: The Framers, Their Fights, and the Flaws that Affect Us Today
by Cynthia and Sanford Levinson
Peachtree, 2017. Informational. 235 p.
This is an informational book that is getting a lot of attention this fall.  In it the authors talk about some of the provisions of the Constitution that have made it difficult for the government to run smoothly.  There are chapters on the Electoral College, the uneven representation in Congress, the difficulty in making amendments and others.  In each chapter they discuss how the provision started and specific troubles is has caused in modern times. They end each chapter, and the whole book, with ideas of how the Constitution could be improved.

In all honesty, I can't really see kids picking this off the shelf. What kid wants to read a 235 page book about the Constitution? When my kids were younger I used to bribe then to read certain books. This one just may be bribe worthy.  If I sixth grader read this it would help them ace all their government classes later. It is written well enough, they might even enjoy it.

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