European integration confronts us with the limits of current constitutional and democratic language. The way out of this impasse will only appear through a refinement of what we consider the European Union to be as a political entity and of our concepts of democracy.In this challenging and thoughtful new book Professor Verhoeven recognizes the continuity of this project with social contract theory and the federal ideal --and uncovers the specific aspects of democracy and constitutionalism the EU has already embraced -- while showing how the terms and presuppositions of those persistent conceptual frameworks must be fundamentally revised. At the root of these necessary revisions lies the irreversible onset of multiculturalism and globalisation, twin challenges that force us to reconsider issues of sovereignty and self-governance.rofessor Verhoeven does not neglect the much-debated issues at the centre of her topic. Her analysis extends to such critiques as the view of the European
