MWSA Review

Political Art of War: Winning Strategy for Local Campaigns by Shawn R. Frost and Gary Gagliardi offers, on pages 27-227, the basic strategies adapted from Sun Tzu’s Art of War, as translated by Gary Gagliardi. The left-hand page has a translation of Sun Tzu, and the right-hand page applies each line to local campaign strategy. In addition, each chapter has an introductory page, and the two strategy pages are followed by a list of related articles from another of their books. Additional information is offered for each chapter in a section at the back called Chapter Summaries.

There are two sections at the beginning of the book, Foreword and Introduction. The Foreword explains that this book is to introduce how Sun Tzu’s strategic policies for war apply to politics and the idea of strategic agility. The book is designed to help you “analyze political situations, spot political opportunities, and make the appropriate decisions.” (page 10) The Introduction discusses Sun Tzu’s basic concepts and teachings, including this gem: “A good general is one who finds a position that wins without fighting a single battle.” (page 20) The authors talk about five key elements and nine skills, giving you much to think about.

Review by Nancy Kauffman (June 2024)

Author's Synopsis

Two books in one. The left page is Sun Tzu’s Bing Fa, translated into English as the Art of War by Gary Gagliardi. The right page is Shawn R. Frost’s commentary on how this relates to winning local elections. There are also chapter summaries, a glossary of chinese terms, and an epilogue highlighting Frost’s 10 years working in politics.

This is a nonpartisan guide to winning that has resulted in Frost’s clients winning 31 of 33 contests, an unheard of 93% winning rate.

Read this book, or lose to by someone who has.

Format(s) for review: Paper

Review Genre: Nonfiction—How to/Business

Number of Pages: 237

Word Count: 45,149