The Dictator's Handbook
The Dictator's Handbook by Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smithby Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith
Shares rank 2 of 5 political science books by recommenders
Recommended as an accessible, systemic explanation of why regimes stay stable and why bad behavior can pay politically.
Recommended as an accessible, systemic explanation of why regimes stay stable and why bad behavior can pay politically.
4 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 4
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 4 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Systemic explanation of regime stability
“I find interesting the systemic explanation”
Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible” “This book discusses why regimes are stable.”
Comment from 14 May 2026 in “USDA Projects Smallest US Wheat Harvest Since 1972 Due to Plains Drought” Good introduction by recognized researchers
“This is a good intro by recognized researchers”
Comment from 26 Jun 2026 in “Mullvad founder gave millions to extremist far right party” Entertaining summary of its subjects
“This book discusses why regimes are stable.”
Comment from 14 May 2026 in “USDA Projects Smallest US Wheat Harvest Since 1972 Due to Plains Drought”
Other political science books people recommend
The four most recommended other political science books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policyby Mearsheimer and Walt | 5 | 1 | 83% | 6 | — | — |
| The Dictator's Handbookby Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair SmithThis page | 4 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
| What's the Matter with Kansas?by Thomas Frank | 4 | 1 | 80% | 4 | — | — |
| The Logic of Political Survivalby Bruce Bueno de Mesquita | 4 | 1 | 80% | 3 | — | — |
| Network Propagandaby Yochai Benkler, Robert Faris and Hal Roberts | 2 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | — |
What people said
4 of the 5 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“This is a good intro by recognized researchers”
“I find interesting the systemic explanation”
“is an entertaining summary of the books subjects”
“This book discusses why regimes are stable.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.