This is a fully revised 2nd edition of a popular text on the comparative politics of contemporary Europe, west and east, very accessibly written for an introductory student market.It provides systematic coverage of European politics; east, west, north, south, central, periphery etc. Most competitors are about western Europe only. The chapters organised by key themes, as increasingly are courses, as opposed to the country-by-country approach of most competitors. The range of representative case study countries (Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, UK) are covered systematically in each chapter throughout in context of comparison with the EU as a whole, where appropriate. Other countries are considered in chapters in which they are of particular interest. The new edition includes substantially expanded country profiles of 9 'core' countries plus additional boxed features on 'key points' and 'key debates' to aid learning. A companion website provides links, questions and answers, chapter notes and update material etc.The fully revised 2nd edition of this popular text provides a thematically organized introduction to the governance and politics of Europe. An accessible, up-to-date guide, it covers the institutions and issues that matter, and uses 9 representative countries as case studies throughout.