Advance praise: '[A] lucid and well balanced text that brings anthropological insights to bear on development in an engaging way. It equips the reader to appreciate why bringing about the improvement of the world is no simple matter, and why the analysis of processes, powers, practices, and diverse points of view - the subject matter of anthropology - just cannot be avoided. Bravo!' Tania Li, University of Toronto 'Development is a very complex issue, and social anthropology is best suited to describe this complexity on an empirical basis: this book, by Emma Crewe and Richard Axelby, is a particularly successful and erudite attempt to argue and exemplify such a perspective. It is a remarkable work, which shows that addressing the complexity of the field of development in simple terms is possible, and that the frequent dichotomies and stereotypes of the subject can be overcome.' Jean-Pierre Olivier de Sardan, Research Director, CNRS.