political and social reality through the ritualisation of death (Chapter 5). Becoming more available to everybody, media trans- gresses traditional consumer roles and de- velops into more participatory models also in relation to dying: bearing witness and chal- lenging powerlessness through comments on videos of Sniper Alley in Sarajevo (Chapter 6), creating a new cultural reality through the mediatisation of the death of Muammar Gaddafi (Chapter 7) and maintaining continu- ity for Tibetans in diaspora through keeping track of self-immolations (Chapter 9). Fur- thermore, grief in virtual worlds connects the real and the virtual in a shared reality. In all these cases death is influenced by the kind of media that makes the experience possible. Both virtual and real media transform the experience and engagement with death and also the possibilities of individual and collec- tive grief. Media also holds a mirror for those ex- ploring their own death. Illness bloggers make their journey towards death available online, as resource and inspiration for people interested. In this way they remain virtually present even after the demise of their physical body (Chap- ter 10). Ethnographic accounts of suicide in- tentions reinforce that illness and disease are actively created rather than passively experi- enced (Chapter 11). Similarly, Facebook me- morial sites provide an opportunity to communicate not only about, but also with the deceased in an active way. Online forums enhance the possibility to share grief but also to continue bonding among those left behind (Chapter 12). In the same way, material objects placed on graves, especially the graves of chil- dren, are ritual and relational tools of sustain- ing relationships both with the deceased and the mourners (Chapter 13). The various contributions to this engag- ing volume point out that media not only facil- itates but also shapes practices related to death, loss and mourning. We all have a relationship with death, but media allows for different ar- ticulations of time and space in which our rela- tion with that which is perishable changes considerably. Similarly, the way media is ap- propriated and modified to fit the needs of these practices changes the normative and on- tological dimensions of our society. The com- plexity of our social habits in relation to demise are further multiplied through the lenses of media, allowing for illusions of im- mortality and permanence to seep into our collective conscience. Mediations not only connect but also substantially transform the entities involved. The direction and intensity of these changes point out that not only death, but also our existence, metamorphose due to claims of temporal and spatial infinity. CAROLINA IVANESCU Independent Researcher, Amsterdam (The Netherlands) Delamaza, Gonzalo. 2015. Enhancing democracy. Public policies and citizen participation in Chile. New York: Berghahn Books. 296 pp. Hb.: US $92.40. ISBN-13: 978-1-78238-546-2. Imagine a country just coming out of a dicta- torship into democracy by an election. A country that keeps the dictator’s constitution, the dictator himself as head of the army, the main economic principles in place and the old elites in positions of power. How do you con- struct a democratic government in such a set- ting? This was the situation for Chile’s new democratic government in 1990. This book ap- peals to social anthropologists (and social sci- entists in general) interested in comparative political research on new democracies in the global South. Delamaza, a sociologist, argues that the new elected government found an answer for the construction of democracy (a concept he coins) through creating links be- tween civil society and the state. Keeping in mind that there were no changes to the rules of the economic system or laws, and political and economic power remained in the hands of the old elite, there was nevertheless a new do- main to explore: public policies. Delamaza’s central argument is that Chil- ean new democratic government used public policies as the main instrument for political transformation linking the state to society. The following 20 years saw the country lifted from poverty, the rise of employment rates, maintaining political stability and the emer- gence of a new middle class, and in Delamaza’s view, public policies were the pivotal tool driv- ing all these changes. One of the examples Delamaza gives is that of the healthcare re- forms of the year 2000. As could be expected, the health sector was mainly in the hands of private companies, so the public policy imple- mented was to purchase health care from the private sector whenever the state was unable REVIEWS 385 © 2015 European Association of Social Anthropologists.