"The victory of the Cold War by the US-led West has given more credence to the belief that the market is a magic wand. In this provocative book, Debra Hevenstone attacks this widely accepted but false belief. Drawing on America's extensive experiences and fascination with market-oriented solutions in social policy, Hevenstone shows convincingly that such solutions have not only failed to achieve their stated desirable objectives but also generated undesirable, unintended consequences." - Yu Xie, Professor of Sociology, Princeton University, USA



"In this wise and engagingly written book, Debra Hevenstone uses a mixture of theory, hard social science evidence, cross-national comparisons, and personal anecdotes to puncture many myths about American society and American social policy. Students will find it a pleasure to read, faculty members will find that it sparks lively classroom debates, and experts will find that it speaks uncomfortable truths." - R. Kent Weaver, Georgetown University and the Brookings Institution, USA