This edited volume addresses themes pertinent to all who study politics and gender, namely, how to incorporate claims for both equality and difference into politics, constitutional politics particularly. It achieves a difficult balance for any edited volume by discussing common themes and avoiding a focus on overly narrow debates. Thus, a range of problems and concepts are explored using empirical and theoretical research that provides a comprehensive insight into women's attempts to transform constitutions. The chapters are synthesized in the introduction and the conclusion, providing the reader with a more general insight. The editors highlight the tendency for mainstream analysis to oversimplify women's role in constitutional change. This theme is developed in other chapters. Anne Marie Goetz considers gender and accountability systems. She demonstrates the gendered assumptions underlying what is usually described as accountability failure. For example, should audit offices review whether resources are unequally distributed between the sexes?

A core theme of the book is the sometimes-contested relationship between demands for race and class equality and feminism. Almost all of the contributors consider competing demands for equality and attempt to describe how the concepts of diversity and, for example, gender mainstreaming have been integrated into women's demands for constitutional change. Ronalda Murphey's comparison of Canada and South Africa traces the influence of context, namely, social conditions and dominant discourses, on the shaping of women's claims for constitutional rights. The relationship between claims for group differentiated rights and women's rights is examined through empirical and theoretical research. Amy Bartholomew suggests that by employing a procedural conception of rights, feminist concerns about the sometimes patriarchal demands of minority groups can be avoided. A procedural conception of rights is borne of theories of deliberative democracy, whereby groups have rights to participate in a “complex cultural dialogue” but the cultural practices of particular groups are understood to be historically situated and are not frozen in their current formation into the constitution itself. Joyce Green highlights how aboriginal women in Canada have been agents for constitutional change and have demanded recognition as both women and members of aboriginal communities. Perhaps this is an empirical example of Bartholomew's description of demands for procedural group rights?

Another theme evident within the book is the importance of political parties as a site for women's activism. Catherine Albertyn demonstrates that in South Africa, the women's movement within the African National Congress was crucial for the adoption of a gender-sensitive constitution. Meg Russell illustrates how the centralized nature of the Labour Party, and the cohort of feminist women within it, helped it to institute all-women shortlists for the 1997 general election and twinning for the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly elections.

A number of chapters point to the importance of women activists within civil society and social movements for generating constitutional change. Fiona Mackay and colleagues describe a coalition of women who “seized the opportunities presented by constitutional change” (p. 84) in Scotland in order to promote gender equality. Paul Chaney describes how women activists also played a crucial role in setting the blueprint for the Welsh Assembly. Judith Squires states that “where women worked proactively to shape the constitution, and have a sense of ownership in it as a result, their civil society involvement is bolstered” (p. 214).

Throughout the chapters a cautionary note is often made. Green describes the situation in Canada whereby “the prince and the pauper are still equally entitled to sleep under the bridge” (p. 48). In her analysis of women and politics in South Africa, Albertyn states that the legal rights gained for women in the constitution have yet to “translate into material gains” (p. 111). Thus, constitutional rights are not sufficient to guarantee equality. Equality demands both descriptive and substantive representation. A number of contributors conclude that substantive representation requires both constitutional change and the presence of women, or feminist women, in decision-making bodies. A number of the authors note that the constitutional reform in the UK is too recent to permit a full evaluation of women activists' success or failure in bringing about real change in the lives of women. However, Albertyn notes that in South Africa, as politics have solidified, the “political space [given] to women has declined” (p. 114).

A number of contributors are careful to highlight that constitutional politics and human rights legislation are not automatically beneficial to women. Colin Harvey reminds us that “rules do not apply themselves,” and therefore institutional contexts must be studied alongside constitutional change (p. 136). Furthermore, Susan Millns explores how the British Human Rights Act can be exploited by the counterclaimants to women's rights (p. 153).

These cautionary notes trace themes familiar to feminist researchers, namely, the tension between demands for equality and recognition of difference. A dominant concern of feminist discourse is that equality legislation often formalizes masculine norms as the standard for equality and therefore cannot deliver real equality. A potential resolution to “Wollstonecraft's dilemma” (p. 201) might be the application of positive rights. Chaney outlines the unique obligation of the Welsh Assembly to promote equality. This duty, in combination with the high number of female Assembly Members, has led to an integrated equality agenda, although it is too early to assess outcomes.

More positively Alexandra Dobrowolsky concludes that “constitutional change can hold great promise for women” (p. 236). She also claims that constitutional reform favorable to women is usually attributable to women's ongoing political involvement.

Women Making Constitutions traces themes of interest to anyone concerned with gender and politics. The diverse range of approaches and countries analyzed provides a comprehensive and sophisticated resource that will be a useful update for those already familiar with the area and a thoughtful introduction to those new to the study of women and constitutional politics.