The Meaning of Conservatism, by Roger Scruton, 3rd ed., South Bend: Saint Augustine's Press, 2002. MANY REVIEWS PROCLAIM that a book is indispensable for a particular readership, but this book actually is. Anyone remotely interested in conservative thought needs to have thoroughly digested Roger Scruton's The Meaning of Conservatism, now available in a revised third edition. The brilliance of this book--and there is no doubt that it is a classic of political philosophy--is its remarkable combination of a fast "narrative" through essential conservative positions with very subtle, intellectually arresting arguments.
