MACo’s “good government” Book Club met in August – with a book called Who Is Government?: The Untold Story of Public Service. Conference powered this this discussion, with a free advance copy of the book.
At the MACo Summer Conference, county officials and other guests engaged around a book affecting public service and best practices as officials, employees, and colleagues. The selection for August 2025 was Who Is Government?: The Untold Story of Public Service, by editor Michael Lewis and multiple contributors.
From the synopsis on the reader-driven website Good Reads:
Who works for the government and what do they do? A timely and absorbing civics lessons from an all-star team of writers and storytellers.
The government is a vast, complex system that Americans pay for, rebel against, rely upon, dismiss, and celebrate. It’s also our shared resource for addressing the biggest problems of society. And it’s made up of people, mostly unrecognized and uncelebrated, doing work that can be deeply consequential and beneficial to everyone.
Michael Lewis invited his favorite writers to find someone doing an interesting job for the government and write about them. The stories they found are unexpected, riveting, and inspiring, including a former coal miner devoted to making mine roofs less likely to collapse, saving thousands of lives; an IRS agent straight out of a crime thriller; and the manager who made the National Cemetery Administration the best-run organization, public or private, in the entire country. Each essay shines a spotlight on the essential behind-the-scenes work of exemplary federal employees.
Whether they’re digitizing archives, chasing down cybercriminals, or discovering new planets, these workers are committed to their work and universally reluctant to take credit. The vivid profiles in On Duty blow up the stereotype of the irrelevant bureaucrat. They show how the essential business of government makes our lives possible, and how much it matters.
The far-reaching discussion included perspectives from county government, other public agencies, and private companies who work with the public sector. Discussions about “the mission” of public service, and maintaining motivations in an environment that is fundamentally different from the profit-driven private sector.
MACo is grateful for the ongoing support and sponsorship from J.P. Morgan, which has made possible the delivery of free advance copies. Their support for, and contributions to, each renewal of the Book Club has greatly advanced this multi-year conference offering.