Spoken Word

The City Year cofounder and 2009 Senate candidate draws inspiration from an old quote by Harry Truman, who upon leaving the presidency mused that the role of the ordinary citizen is truly the highest office in the land. Thus Khazei’s philosophy of “Big Citizenship’’ is based heavily on the idea that ordinary Americans have the power to create major change through volunteering and activism.

“There wouldn’t be an America if it wasn’t for a spirit of service,’’ said Khazei, noting that a volunteer army defeated the British to found the republic itself.

But Khazei also uses the book to advocate for a somewhat radical shift in the way politicians and other leaders think about solving large-scale problems.

“We swing back and forth between FDR and Reagan,’’ said Khazei, referring to the recurring struggle between Democrats and Republicans over the role of government in the economy and other national issues.

In Khazei’s America, Democrats understand that the private sector can often come up with practical and useful ideas, while Republicans concede that government oversight and intervention aren’t tantamount to tyranny and repression — and both sides look to the nonprofit sector for further guidance and manpower.

“Our times are our times; they are in our hands. So why should we look to Reagan or Roosevelt to guide us? We have to step up for ourselves,’’ Khazei writes in the book’s introduction.

And if a good chunk of Khazei’s prose sounds suspiciously like the script to an extended campaign ad — specifically the ruminations on his small-town New Hampshire upbringing and his wise-yet-assimilated immigrant father, grandfather, and great-grandparents — that may be because he hasn’t ruled out another run at higher office in the future.

“Running for office is like having a passport or permission slip to talk to anyone at any time about anything,’’ said Khazei, likening the experience to a stint as a journalist with his finger on the pulse of the public.

“It is very unique in terms of finding out what’s going on,’’ Khazei said.

Khazei, who says he’s concentrating on his book and running his advocacy organization Be the Change for the immediate future, will discuss “Big Citizenship’’ at the Brookline Booksmith, 279 Harvard St., Thursday night at 7.

And for those true fanatics who don’t want to see the story end, take heart: The inevitable movie version of “The Hunger Games,’’ the first book in the trilogy, is already in the works.

Alex Spanko can be reached at alexspanko@gmail.com.