This important book will appeal both to students and academics interested in Philippine politics and the comparative analysis of political patronage. I tackle the familiar phenomenon of patronage democracy in the Philippines. However, they persuasively argue that it is more complex than is commonly understood. Teehankee's comprehensive introduction shows how it has evolved from local landlord-controlled dyadic clientelism, to still localized but more depersonalized machine politics, to a now nationally organized brokerage system. He then adds a brief but useful discussion of the comparative state patronage and weak state literature and points to the centrality of political clans in the Philippines. The local and regional politics-focused chapters by a talented group of contributors flesh out a bottom-up perspective. Calimbahin's conclusion nicely rounds out the volume by offering a top-down analysis of how elections capacitate patronage politics in the Philippines.