In the thirteen years since the end of the genocide within Rwanda, there have been a plethora of books on the subject attempting to explain why it occurred and why so little was done to stop it, as intervention was easy and information on the possibility of large-scale massacres was abundant. Scott Straus focuses on the internal dynamics. He is part of a growing consensus that dismisses explanations that refer to economic deprivation, psychopathic disorders, age-old ethnic hatreds (Hutu and Tutsi are neither ethnic nor tribal categories), deep-seated prejudices, greed, blind obedience, deeply held ideological fomenting hatred. Further, he joins the emerging consensus that points to several key factors: the construction of the Other as a threat, one that must be extermin- ated; the importance of the state in providing power and legitimation; and the use of war to foster the genocide.