Just in time for the 2004 election, Yale University professors Donald Green and Alan Gerber have released a new book that takes a hard look at the most effective methods of voter turnout.

“Get Out the Vote! How to Increase Voter Turnout” concludes “that old-fashioned, shoe leather politicking can be surprisingly successful and affordable” when compared to other popular get-out-the-vote tactics, according to a Brookings Institution Press release about the book.

Specifically, the two distinguished political scientists found that personalized outreach with potential voters with more engaging face-to-face conversations produces better results than other contact efforts.

The book — drawn from Green and Gerber’s research based on experiments conducted in dozens of political campaigns since 1998 — examines the costs and effectiveness of other voter-mobilization techniques ranging from phone banks and e-mail to direct mail.

Politics and Prose Presents Toni Morrison

To mark the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision on Brown vs. the Board of Education, Politics and Prose is presenting an evening with Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison on Monday at the Temple Sinai, 3100 Military Road NW.

Morrison will sign copies of her new book “Remember: The Journey to School Integration,” which explores the history of school desegregation in a photographic essay.

Seating is limited to 600 people and tickets can be purchased at Politics and Prose for $10 or, if room is still available, at the door on Monday. One ticket comes free with the purchase of “Remember” at the bookstore. Doors open at 6 p.m. and proceeds from the event will go to For Love of Children, an organization seeking to motivate youth and strengthen families in Washington, D.C.

For more information, call Politics and Prose at 202-364-1919.

— Amy Keller and John McArdle