Buchanan's The Heart of Human Rights is a valuable contribution, moving beyond the debate between the political and the orthodox conception and inviting philosophers to engage with the task of justifying human rights law. We should accept his invitation, his book is as an essential reference in the philosophy of human rights law.

Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews

Allen Buchanan's book is an impressive addition to the contemporary philosophical discussions about human rights...The most significant philosophical contribution that Buchanan makes is undoubtedly his dismissal of the "orthodox" philosophical accounts of human rights. Buchanan powerfully forces philosophers of human rights, especially those who hold the orthodox view, to confront the problem of institutional justification.

International Dialogue, A Multidisciplinary Journal of World Affairs

...it makes an indispensable contribution to human rights theory...Buchanan both broadens our understanding of the international human rights regime by considering what other interests and values it serves beyond this core of moral human rights, and provides a promising normative account of the legal norms and institutions of this system.

Philosophy in Review