Why mince words? The 1502 scheme concocted by Leonardo da Vinci and Niccolo Machiavelli -- a rare case of collaboration between geniuses of the first order -- proved an utter fiasco.

Michael J. Sandel tackles the widely shared dissatisfaction with contemporary America from a "communitarian" perspective in his newly published Democracy's Discontent: America in Search of a Public Philosophy (Harvard University Press, 417 pages, $ 24.95).