Lee Edwards is the in-house historian of the conservative movement. A distinguished fellow at the Heritage Foundation, Dr. Edwards has published a number of books on a host of topics. Future DLDs may cover two, his biography of Walter Judd and his history of the conservative movement.

Bringing Justice to the People is a volume edited by Edwards. It is “the Story of the freedom-based public interest law movement.” Eight chapters by eight different authors track different issue areas – school choice, religious freedom, free speech, etc – and the work done by conservative litigation groups in each. The chapters are written by the heads of those litigation groups, which makes the book terribly self-congradulatory in tone. Moreover, the book fails to include certain important groups/issues, like Judicial Watch and term limits. It’s a quick read, only about two hours (215 pages), but only if you’re really interested in the topic.

In Defense of the Religious Right is just that. A slim volume (238 pages) from political consultant Patrick Hynes, it serves two purposes: one is to document the demographic voting power of the Religous Right, which is the book’s unique contribution to the field, and the second is to document elite culture and secular America’s attacks on the Religious Right, a field well covered by a host of other volumes. It is also a two hour read, but it’s worth it… Also watch for the moments when Hynes dispells some well-accepted myths, about the election of 1994 or the demographic composition of the Religious Right. For junkies only. Also check out Hynes’ blog, AnkleBitingPundits.

Next off the shelf: What Would the Founders Do?, Building a Healthy Culture, and the Claremont Review of Books.

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One Response to “DLD: Bringing Justice to the People and In Defense of the Religious Right”

  1. Great finds Dan, now I just have to find the time to do some reading.

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