In the wake of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, much ink has been spilled relating service member’s personal experiences or discussing the misapplication of American foreign policy. Few of them do both, let alone place such events in the greater context of history. In War, Welfare, & Democracy, Peter J. Munson does both by providing the reader a deep look into the driving factors in American foreign policy, punctuated by vivid images from his own personal travels. Readers will find this book both enlightening and engrossing.