Social Rights and Human Welfare By Hartley Dean, Abingdon: Routledge, 2015. ISBN: 978–1–138-01312-4; £32.99 (pbk)

Ideas and notions of 'rights' in one form or another underpin most of the debates in social policy, a discipline principally concerned with social justice and human flourishing for all. Navigating the literature is potentially hazardous. The field is not easily landscaped and usually involves crossing deep into the terrain of other academic subject areas. The complex debates in political philosophy, for instance, law, economics, and sociology, to name but a few. Universal human rights are incredibly contested, the fast literature stretches back to the very beginnings of the written record. Bogged down in seemingly complex philosophical debate, attaining any sense of clarity presents a challenge. Where do we even begin?