Opello and Rosow (professors of political science at the State U. of New York at Oswego) take a historical-constructivist approach to understanding the modern state, describing how war has been central to the formation of the state, arguing that it advantaged political-military systems in which a monarch exercised hierarchical authority over a sizable demarcated territory. They examine the specific forms that these sovereign states have taken and the internal and external factors that have caused them to evolve through different forms of the state. They examine the exportation of the sovereign state outside of Europe and the way that helped constitute the current global order. Finally, they assess the challenge of globalization to the sovereign state. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)