The dramatic rise of China over the past few decades and the relative decline of the United States have spawned a veritable cottage industry of observers seeking to explain the life cycle of great powers. Indeed, in 1989, well before China’s boom seemed inevitable—and near the height of U.S. power—historian Paul Kennedy sounded the alarm in his doorstopper book The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers. In it, Kennedy warned that the United States could be headed toward terminal decline if it did not rein in runaway defense spending and invest in domestic capabilities designed to sustain growth. The accessibility of Kennedy’s book made it an instant attraction; its erudition meant that it was widely read and cited for decades.

Since 1989, a number of political scientists have sought to update Kennedy’s work now that China really is rising. They tend to focus on Beijing’s increasing assertiveness and the likely implications for U.S. policy of a world in which it is not the singular power. A new book by Boston University’s Manjari Chatterjee Miller, Why Nations Rise: Narratives and the Path to Great Power, does not directly join this particular debate. However, it attempts to provide a novel explanation for why some states that acquire the requisite material attributes become great powers while others, despite obtaining such capabilities, do not.