Grassroots Philanthropy

2008, 130 pages. Published by Heyday Books, P.O. Box 9145, Berkeley, CA, 94709, O(510) 549-3564, www.heydaybooks.co

Based on his four decades of experience as a foundation executive, Bill Somerville's new book is an unorthodox guide to decisive, hands-on grantmaking. Somerville's approach encourages philanthropists to actively engage with the community, meet people who are doing extraordinary things, and quickly fund those in need with a minimum of process and paperwork. His style is straightforward, urgent, emphatic, and persuasive. He encourages foundations to take calculated risks and to fund ideas for actual change, rather than exhaustive fact-finding reports.