'With this book, some of the best scholars in comparative politics hit a home run. The book is both a major contribution to institutional analysis and the best substantive overview of contemporary Latin American politics that I have read in many years.' James Mahoney, Northwestern University

'An all-star roster of scholars explores Latin America's most persistent political puzzle - the origins and impact of weak institutions. Institutional incapacity has a variety of faces, from insignificance by design, to non-compliance, to instability. Which version we observe can tell us a lot about the political forces at play. But you need a map, and you need to know how to read it. Brinks, Levitsky, and Murillo are master cartographers.' John M. Carey, Wentworth Professor in the Social Sciences, Dartmouth College

'Kudos to Brinks, Levitsky, and Murillo for this impressive volume. They have produced an agenda-setting book, including leading scholars, that significantly advances our conceptual, theoretical, and empirical understanding of institutional fragility in Latin America. The volume challenges the idea that weak institutions are an accident. To explain variations in institutional significance, stability, enforcement, and compliance, the book examines the coalitional bases, strategic causes, and political uses of a wide range of institutions and cases. This volume is a must read for comparative scholars interested in institutions, in general, and Latin American politics, in particular.' Deborah J. Yashar, Princeton University