We have a wide range of interviews recommending books on politics and society. Some cover international affairs, US foreign policy, US imperialism, US interventionism, global power and the EU; others take a more theoretical view of the world, looking at justice and the law, feminism, gender politics, the sociology of inequality, effective altruism, anarchism, and transitional justice to name a few. All recommend the very best political books.
We also have interviews dedicated to sex and society, climate change, women’s suffrage, constitutional arrangements on both sides of the Atlantic, espionage and covert action, millennials, free speech, and the psychology of war.
Nested within our politics and society sections are subcategories recommending books on US politics, international development, conflict and war, gender, human rights, journalism, migration, and terrorism among others.
-
1
Twilight of Democracy
by Anne Applebaum -
2
The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty
by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson -
3
The Great Demographic Illusion: Majority, Minority, and the Expanding American Mainstream
by Richard Alba -
4
Self-Portrait in Black and White: Family, Fatherhood and Rethinking Race
by Thomas Chatterton Williams -
5
A Promised Land
by Barack Obama
The Best Politics Books of 2020, recommended by Yascha Mounk
The Best Politics Books of 2020, recommended by Yascha Mounk
Despite the challenge of authoritarian populism and a new divisiveness in political debate in many countries around the world there are reasons for optimism, argues political scientist Yascha Mounk, author of The People vs. Democracy. He talks us through his selection of the best politics books of 2020.
The best books on Joe Biden, recommended by Ronald A. Klain
On January 20th, 2021, Joe Biden became the 46th President of the United States. Here Ronald A. Klain, the veteran lawyer who is once again serving as Biden's chief of staff, recommends books that show the man behind the public persona including his love of Irish poetry, the string of terrible personal tragedies that have affected his life and career, and his leading role in blocking a Supreme Court appointment that would've decimated abortion rights.
The best books on Margaret Thatcher, recommended by Simon Heffer
Simon Heffer, journalist, historian and friend of Margaret Thatcher, recommends the best books to read to gain an understanding of the United Kingdom’s first female prime minister—and explains why she was the most influential British leader of the modern era.
The best books on Veterans, recommended by Phil Klay
While many of us in the West commemorate the contribution of war veterans and the soldiers who lost their lives on our behalf, there’s also a tendency to see war as something distant and unconnected with our daily lives. Here Phil Klay, veteran of the US Marine Corps and award-winning novelist, recommends books that help bridge that gap—and capture the complicated relationship between soldiers and the societies on whose behalf they fight.
-
1
My Own Words
by Mary Hartnett, Ruth Bader Ginsburg & Wendy W. Williams -
2
Conversations with RBG: Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Life, Love, Liberty, and Law
by Jeffrey Rosen -
3
I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark
by Debbie Levy & Elizabeth Baddeley (illustrator) -
4
The RBG Workout: How She Stays Strong . . . and You Can Too!
by Bryant Johnson -
5
Justice, Justice Thou Shalt Pursue
by Amanda Tyler & Ruth Bader Ginsburg
The best books on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, recommended by Amanda Tyler
The best books on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, recommended by Amanda Tyler
Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1933—2020) spent her life working tirelessly for a more just society, says Amanda Tyler, Shannon C. Turner Professor of Law at Berkeley and former law clerk to the Supreme Court Justice. She recommends the best books to read about RBG: her life, her work, and even her personal training regime.
-
1
Violence and the Word
by Robert Cover -
2
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
by Michelle Alexander -
3
Black against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party
by Joshua Bloom & Waldo E. Martin Jr. -
4
Critique of Violence
by Walter Benjamin -
5
The Birth of Biopolitics: Lectures at the Collège de France, 1978–1979
by Michel Foucault
The best books on State, Power and Violence, recommended by Geoffroy de Lagasnerie
The best books on State, Power and Violence, recommended by Geoffroy de Lagasnerie
French philosopher and sociologist Geoffroy de Lagasnerie argues for a more realist political theory, one that fully acknowledges that state violence is the one thing in your life that you can never escape. His selection includes works by Michel Foucault and Walter Benjamin, as well as a history of the Black Panther Party.
-
1
Imperial Intimacies: A Tale of Two Islands
by Hazel Carby -
2
Insurgent Empire: Anticolonial Resistance and British Dissent
by Priyamavada Gopal -
3
Lakota America: A New History of Indigenous Power
by Pekka Hämäläinen -
4
Gods of the Upper Air: How a Circle of Renegade Anthropologists Reinvented Race, Sex, and Gender in the Twentieth Century
by Charles King -
5
All Our Relations: Indigenous Trauma in the Shadow of Colonialism
by Tanya Talaga
The best books on Global Cultural Understanding: the 2020 Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize, recommended by Patrick Wright
The best books on Global Cultural Understanding: the 2020 Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize, recommended by Patrick Wright
Every year the British Academy's Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize is awarded to the best nonfiction book that has contributed to 'global cultural understanding.' This year, the legacies of colonization and empire loom large. Patrick Wright, Emeritus Professor at King's College London and chair of this year's panel of judges, talks us through the books shortlisted for the £25,000 prize.
-
1
Dignity: Seeking Respect in Back Row America
by Chris Arnade -
2
The Economists' Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society
by Binyamin Appelbaum -
3
Transaction Man: The Rise of the Deal and the Decline of the American Dream
by Nicholas Lemann -
4
American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump
by Tim Alberta -
5
The War on Normal People: The Truth About America's Disappearing Jobs and Why Universal Basic Income Is Our Future
by Andrew Yang
The Best Political Books of 2019, recommended by John Harwood
The Best Political Books of 2019, recommended by John Harwood
With the 2020 presidential race underway and a possible impeachment of President Trump on the horizon, 2019 has been an action-packed year so far in American politics. Here to discuss five new political books that break down how we got to where we are is CNBC editor-at-large John Harwood, whose razor-sharp analysis has put him at the forefront of our television screens and the nation’s political discourse.
The best books on Popular Uprisings, recommended by Robert Poole
Under what conditions do popular uprisings end in massacres? What's the best way for someone protesting against a government to get what they want? Robert Poole, Professor of History at the University of Central Lancashire and author of Peterloo: The English Uprising, recommends the best books on uprisings.
-
1
The Soul of the First Amendment
by Floyd Abrams -
2
The Free Speech Century
by Geoffrey R. Stone (Editor) & Lee C. Bollinger (Editor) -
3
Words That Wound: Critical Race Theory, Assaultive Speech, And The First Amendment
by Charles R. Lawrence III, Kimberlè Williams Crenshaw, Mari J. Matsuda & Richard Delgado -
4
Speech Police: The Global Struggle to Govern the Internet
by David Kaye -
5
Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All
by Suzanne Nossel
The best books on The First Amendment, recommended by Suzanne Nossel
The best books on The First Amendment, recommended by Suzanne Nossel
Frequently appealed to, less frequently understood, and by no means a free pass to say or write whatever you feel like: Suzanne Nossel, chief executive of PEN America, the nonprofit dedicated to free expression, talks us through the best books to better understand America's venerated First Amendment.
-
1
Radical Right-Wing Populism in Western Europe
by Hans-Georg Betz -
2
Revolt on the Right: Explaining Support for the Radical Right in Britain
by Matthew Goodwin & Robert Ford -
3
The Politics of Fear: What Right-Wing Populist Discourses Mean
by Ruth Wodak -
4
The Extreme Gone Mainstream: Commercialization and Far Right Youth Culture in Germany
by Cynthia Miller-Idriss -
5
Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort
by Chip Berlet & Matthew N. Lyons
The best books on The Far Right, recommended by Cas Mudde
The best books on The Far Right, recommended by Cas Mudde
There’s nothing new about the far right and the unpleasant views that its supporters espouse. What’s changed is that some of those views have been embraced by the political mainstream and are now viewed as normal. Political scientist Cas Mudde, Stanley Wade Shelton UGAF Professor at the University of Georgia, talks us through the best books on the far right.
-
1
Red Plenty
by Francis Spufford -
2
The Market System: What It Is, How It Works, and What To Make of It
by Charles Lindblom -
3
The Sciences of the Artificial
by Herbert A. Simon -
4
Radical Markets: Uprooting Capitalism and Democracy for a Just Society
by E. Glen Weyl & Eric A. Posner -
5
Uncanny Valley: A Memoir
by Anna Wiener
The Best Books on the Politics of Information, recommended by Henry Farrell
The Best Books on the Politics of Information, recommended by Henry Farrell
Our political systems evolved in an era when information was much harder to come by. What challenges does our current reality of information overload pose for democracy? How do we even start thinking about these questions? Political scientist Henry Farrell proposes key books for building a curriculum on ‘the politics of information,’ starting with a beautifully written novel.
-
1
A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam
by Neil Sheehan -
2
Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster
by Jon Krakauer -
3
Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital
by Sheri Fink -
4
The Hot Zone: The Chilling True Story of an Ebola Outbreak
by Richard Preston -
5
The Submission
by Amy Waldman
The best books on National Security, recommended by Juliette Kayyem
The best books on National Security, recommended by Juliette Kayyem
National security isn’t just about foreign policy and counterterrorism, but has a broad set of concerns—including climate change, national disasters and pandemics. Juliette Kayyem, Senior Lecturer in International Security at Harvard and author of Security Mom, recommends books to get us all thinking about national security and the challenges we face.
-
1
No Man's Land: Jamaican Guestworkers in America and the Global History of Deportable Labor
by Cindy Hahamovitch -
2
Defiant Braceros: How Migrant Workers Fought for Racial, Sexual, and Political Freedom
by Mireya Loza -
3
Managed Migrations: Growers, Farmworkers, and Border Enforcement in the Twentieth Century
by Cristina Salinas -
4
Migrant Citizenship: Race, Rights, and Reform in the U.S. Farm Labor Camp Program
by Verónica Martínez-Matsuda -
5
The Nature of California: Race, Citizenship, and Farming since the Dust Bowl
by Sarah Wald
The best books on Migrant Workers, recommended by Mireya Loza
The best books on Migrant Workers, recommended by Mireya Loza
American society and American history marginalized migrant workers for too long. New scholarship shows that migrant workers were central to America’s cultural and economic development. Mireya Loza, a historian at Georgetown University and author of Defiant Braceros, talks us through the best books about migrant workers—and why their stories are integral to understanding the past and present of United States.
The Best Books for Long-Term Thinking, recommended by Roman Krznaric
We would all love our economic and political systems to be less short-termist in approach, but how do we set about encouraging a more long-term ethos? Cultural thinker Roman Krznaric, author of The Good Ancestor, recommends five books to get us thinking about the long term, up to ten millennia in the future.
The best books on Interracial Relationships, recommended by Tineka Smith and Alex Court
You might think that books about interracial couples aren’t relevant unless you’re part of one or are close to someone who is, but nothing could be further from the truth. In Mixed Up: Confessions of an Interracial Couple, a fascinating audiobook narrated by Tineka Smith and Alex Court, the husband and wife duo tell the story of their own relationship and, in doing so, give the listener unique insights into racism and racial identity. Here, they recommend their top books on interracial relationships.
-
1
The Interesting Narrative
by Olaudah Equiano -
2
Capitalism and Slavery
by Eric Williams -
3
The Rise of African Slavery in the Americas
by David Eltis -
4
Ouidah: The Social History of a West African Slaving Port 1727-1892
by Robin Law -
5
American Slavery, American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia
by Edmund S Morgan
The best books on The Slave Trade, recommended by William A. Pettigrew
The best books on The Slave Trade, recommended by William A. Pettigrew
In the 17th and 18th century millions of Africans were shipped across the Atlantic to the Americas as slaves. This trade took place at the same time as ‘liberal’ ideas about the importance of human freedom took root in Great Britain and North America. Here, historian William A. Pettigrew recommends five books to help understand the slave trade, how it was established, why it flourished and why it was eventually abolished.
-
1
The Great Demarcation: The French Revolution and the Invention of Modern Property
by Rafe Blaufarb -
2
Gold and Freedom: The Political Economy of Reconstruction
by Nicolas Barreyre -
3
Citizenship between Empire and Nation: Remaking France and French Africa, 1945-1960
by Frederick Cooper -
4
Castes of Mind: Colonialism and the Making of Modern India
by Nicholas B. Dirks -
5
The Emergence of Globalism: Visions of World Order in Britain and the United States, 1939–1950
by Or Rosenboim
The best books on Historical Change and Economic Ideology, recommended by Thomas Piketty
The best books on Historical Change and Economic Ideology, recommended by Thomas Piketty
Throughout history, social and economic inequalities have been fueled and justified by different ideologies. French economist Thomas Piketty’s latest book, Capital and Ideology, looks at the advent and fall of these ideologies, and how they could evolve in the future. He recommends five great books to better understand these complex and always-evolving ideas, and their consequences for the world.
-
1
Strangers in Their Own Land
by Arlie Russell Hochschild -
2
American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump
by Tim Alberta -
3
Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House
by Michael Wolff -
4
Gaslighting America: Why We Love It When Trump Lies to Us
by Amanda Carpenter -
5
The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump
by Bandy Lee
The Best Donald Trump Books, recommended by Tony Schwartz
The Best Donald Trump Books, recommended by Tony Schwartz
Around the world, people were taken aback when the populist candidate, a real estate developer and reality TV show star called Donald Trump, was elected as the 45th President of the United States. Here Tony Schwartz, Trump’s co-author on his bestselling book, The Art of the Deal, talks us through how that happened and why Trump is so mesmerising, even to those who oppose him.
Best Books by Black Queer Writers, recommended by Robert Jones Jr.
The novels of James Baldwin, Alice Walker, Wallace Thurman and James Early Hardy bring the America of the last two centuries vividly to life. Marlon James brings us a fantasy trilogy set in ancient Africa. Robert Jones Jr., author of The Prophets—a love story set on a plantation in the American South—talks us through his choices of the best books by Black queer writers.
-
1
The Cold War: A World History
by Odd Arne Westad -
2
For the Soul of Mankind: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Cold War
by Melvyn P Leffler -
3
Russia and the Idea of the West
by Robert English -
4
The Enigma of 1989: The USSR and the Liberation of Eastern Europe
Jacques Lévesque (trans. Keith Martin) -
5
Reagan and Gorbachev
by Jack Matlock
The best books on The Cold War, recommended by Archie Brown
The best books on The Cold War, recommended by Archie Brown
American military and economic superiority cannot explain why the Cold War came to an end in the late 1980s and early 1990s. According to the historian Archie Brown, you need to accept the primacy of politics and human agency both in the USSR and the West. He chooses five books to understand the Cold War and offers some broader reflections on the qualities of good political leadership—then and now.
The Best Movies about Race, recommended by Greg Garrett
Movies are a big part of American cultural life and also one of the country’s biggest cultural exports. As a result, movies play an important role in how Americans see themselves, including in attitudes to race. Here Professor Greg Garrett of Baylor University—film historian, cultural theologian and author of A Long, Long Way: Hollywood’s Unfinished Journey from Racism to Reconciliation—talks us through five movies that best illustrate how Hollywood has evolved in terms of race over the past century, from Gone with the Wind to Get Out.
-
1
The Myth of Seneca Falls
by Lisa Tetrault -
2
The Concise History of Woman Suffrage
by Mari Jo Buhle & Paul Buhle -
3
All Bound Up Together: The Woman Question in African American Public Culture, 1830-1900
by Martha S. Jones -
4
The Woman's Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote
by Elaine Weiss -
5
The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States
by Alexander Keyssar
The best books on Women’s Suffrage, recommended by Susan Ware
The best books on Women’s Suffrage, recommended by Susan Ware
How many suffragists can you name? Feminist historian Susan Ware, author of a new history of the American women’s suffrage movement, urges us to remember how important suffrage was in the fight for women’s rights, on the cusp of its US centennial—and reveals the story of women getting the right to vote didn’t just begin at Seneca Falls.
-
1
The Killer of Little Shepherds: A True Crime Story and the Birth of Forensic Science
by Douglas Starr -
2
Murder and the Making of English CSI
by Ian Burney & Neil Pemberton -
3
The Red Parts: Autobiography of a Trial
by Maggie Nelson -
4
Killer in the Shadows: The Monstrous Crimes of Robert Napper
by Laurence Alison & Marie Eyre -
5
Suspect Identities: A History of Fingerprinting and Criminal Identification
by Simon A. Cole
The best books on Forensic Science, recommended by Jim Fraser
The best books on Forensic Science, recommended by Jim Fraser
Jim Fraser, veteran forensic investigator and author of Murder Under the Microscope, selects five of the best books about forensic science. Forget what you think you know about the subject from crime fiction and television dramas, and bring a healthy scepticism: this line of work can be as much a craft as a science.
-
1
The Two Mafias: A Transatlantic History, 1888-2008
by Salvatore Lupo -
2
Men of Honour: the Truth about the Mafia
by Judge Giovanni Falcone -
3
La Sicilia e gli Alleati: Tra Occupazione e Liberazione
by Manoela Patti -
4
Mafia Life: Love, Death and Money at the Heart of Organised Crime
by Federico Varese -
5
Mafia Women
by Clare Longrigg
The Best Books on the Mafia, recommended by John Dickie
The Best Books on the Mafia, recommended by John Dickie
The three biggest Italian mafias remain a powerful presence, with tentacles reaching deep inside Italian business and politics, but our understanding of them is marred by myths and misconceptions. Professor John Dickie of University College London, author of three books on the mafia, recommends what to read to get a better understanding of what the mafia really is.
-
1
Auschwitz and After
by Charlotte Delbo -
2
Man's Search for Meaning
by Viktor Frankl -
3
The Search: The Birkenau Boys
by Gerhard Durlacher -
4
The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, 1963-1965: Genocide, History and the Limits of the Law
by Devin O Pendas -
5
Underground in Berlin: A Young Woman's Extraordinary Tale of Survival in the Heart of Nazi Germany
by Marie Jalowicz-Simon
The best books on Auschwitz, recommended by Mary Fulbrook
The best books on Auschwitz, recommended by Mary Fulbrook
Why were so few of the Nazis involved in running Auschwitz brought to justice? Why did some Germans during the Holocaust risk death to hide Jewish people from Nazi persecution, while others were passive bystanders? Historian Mary Fulbrook—author of Reckonings, which won the 2019 Wolfson History Prize—recommends essential reading for understanding Auschwitz and its aftermath.
-
1
In Your Hands
by Brian Pinkney (Illustrator) & Carole Boston Weatherford -
2
The Day You Begin
by Jacqueline Woodson & Rafael López (Illustrator) -
3
I Am Enough
by Grace Byers & Keturah Bobo (Illustrator) -
4
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale
by John Steptoe -
5
Milo's Museum
by Purple Wong (Illustrator) & Zetta Elliott
The Best Antiracist Books for Kids, recommended by Paula Young Shelton
The Best Antiracist Books for Kids, recommended by Paula Young Shelton
Understanding the African American experience is not just about learning about suffering, it’s also about celebrating a vibrant culture and its roots across the millennia. Paula Young Shelton, author of Child of the Civil Rights Movement, recommends the best antiracist books for kids.
-
1
High Crimes and Misdemeanors: A History of Impeachment for the Age of Trump
by Frank O. Bowman III -
2
Impeachment in America
by N. E. H. Hull & Peter Charles Hoffer -
3
Constitutional Grounds for Presidential Impeachment
by United States Congress -
4
Impeachment: The Constitutional Problems
by Raoul Berger -
5
Impeachment: A Handbook
by Charles L. Jr. Black
The best books on Impeachment, recommended by Michael J. Gerhardt
The best books on Impeachment, recommended by Michael J. Gerhardt
In the 1998 Clinton impeachment proceedings, only one legal scholar was called as a joint witness: Michael J. Gerhardt, now a Professor of Law at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a prolific expert on subjects of constitutional history, the legislative process, and impeachment. With the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump well underway, he recommends five books crucial to understanding the subject.
-
1
My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Family's Past
by Ariel Sabar -
2
A Modern History of the Kurds
by David McDowall -
3
Blood and Belief: The PKK and the Kurdish Fight for Independence
by Aliza Marcus -
4
A Problem from Hell
by Samantha Power -
5
Invisible Nation: How the Kurds' Quest for Statehood Is Shaping Iraq and the Middle East
by Quil Lawrence
The best books on The Kurds, recommended by Peter W. Galbraith
The best books on The Kurds, recommended by Peter W. Galbraith
The Kurds lost 11,000 lives fighting Islamic State and hoped the West would support them in their quest for nationhood. But as the Kurdish saying goes, ‘The Kurds have no friends but the mountains.’ Author and diplomat Peter W. Galbraith, a longtime advocate of the Kurdish people, recommends the best books on the Kurds—and predicts that one day there will be an independent Kurdistan.
-
1
The Lies That Bind: Rethinking Identity
by Kwame Anthony Appiah -
2
How the World Thinks: A Global History of Philosophy
by Julian Baggini -
3
A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution
by Toby Green -
4
Maoism: A Global History
by Julia Lovell -
5
Remnants of Partition: 21 Objects from a Continent Divided
by Aanchal Malhotra -
6
Latinx: The New Force in American Politics and Culture
by Ed Morales
Best Books of 2019 on Global Cultural Understanding, recommended by Ash Amin
Best Books of 2019 on Global Cultural Understanding, recommended by Ash Amin
Every year the British Academy’s Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize is awarded to a nonfiction book that has contributed to ‘global cultural understanding.’ Cambridge professor Ash Amin, chair of this year’s panel of judges, talks us through the fabulous books that made the 2019 shortlist and explains why they’re so important.
-
1
What Comes Naturally: Miscegenation Law and the Making of Race in America
by Peggy Pascoe -
2
Whiteness of a Different Color: European Immigrants and the Alchemy of Race
by Matthew Frye Jacobson -
3
Eugenic Nation: Faults and Frontiers of Better Breeding in Modern America
by Alexandra Minna Stern -
4
From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime: The Making of Mass Incarceration in America
by Elizabeth Hinton -
5
The Injustice Never Leaves You: Anti-Mexican Violence in Texas
by Monica Muñoz Martinez
The best books on White Supremacy, recommended by Kathleen Belew
The best books on White Supremacy, recommended by Kathleen Belew
Defined by University of Chicago historian Kathleen Belew, white supremacy is a “broad system of laws, norms and customs that create a society with unequal opportunities for people based on race”. It persists to this day, and has surprising intersections with issues of labor and women’s reproduction. Here, she recommends books for coming to grips with the history of this complex topic.
-
1
Mao’s Last Revolution
by Michael Schoenhals & Roderick MacFarquhar -
2
Maoism at the Grassroots
edited by Jeremy Brown and Matthew D. Johnson -
3
Red Star over China
by Edgar Snow -
4
The Bullet and the Ballot Box: The Story of Nepal's Maoist Revolution
by Aditya Adhikari -
5
A Critical Introduction to Mao
by Timothy Creek
The best books on Maoism, recommended by Julia Lovell
The best books on Maoism, recommended by Julia Lovell
While researching Maoism, China expert Julia Lovell battled against two incorrect assumptions: “firstly that Maoism is a story of China; and secondly that Maoism is a story of the past.” Here she recommends five books for coming to grips with the global, still-relevant impact of Maoism.
The best books on True Crime, recommended by Cara Robertson
Why do women kill? What does violence tell us about human nature? How do the methods of the criminal justice system speak to an era? Cara Robertson—a lawyer, author and expert on the famous Lizzie Borden case—picks five true crime books that deal in murder, individual psychology, public trials and justice.
The best books on Justice and the Law, recommended by The Secret Barrister
The English legal system is struggling to ensure justice. Drastic government cuts and disastrous reforms have led to innocent people being let down by the system again and again. Reporting anonymously from the front line, The Secret Barrister sees it as their duty to keep the public informed. Here they discuss the books that have shaped the way they think about justice and its relation to the law.
The best books on Fascism, recommended by Ruth Ben-Ghiat
In an era of Trumpism and fake news, the word ‘fascist’ is thrown around with increasing ease and little attention paid to its origins and history. Ruth Ben-Ghiat, political commentator and historian at New York University, recommends the best books for understanding fascism’s history and recognizing it today.
-
1
Black Reconstruction in America
by WEB Du Bois -
2
Exodus: Religion, Race and Nation in Early Nineteenth-Century Black America
by Eddie S Glaude Jr -
3
Hammer and Hoe: Alabama Communists During the Great Depression
by Robin D G Kelley -
4
Hands on the Freedom of the Plow: Personal Accounts by Women in SNCC
Faith S. Holsaert, Martha Prescod, and others (eds.) -
5
Creating Black Americans: African-American History and Its Meanings, 1619 to the Present
by Nell Irvin Painter
African American History Books, recommended by Imani Perry
African American History Books, recommended by Imani Perry
Princeton Professor Imani Perry—a prolific scholar of African American Studies whose biography of Lorraine Hansberry, Looking For Lorraine, won the 2019 PEN Biography Prize—recommends five books she considers essential to an understanding of the history of black life in America.
-
1
The Victorians: Twelve Titans who Forged Britain
by Jacob Rees-Mogg -
2
The Churchill Factor: How One Man Made History
by Boris Johnson -
3
Edmund Burke: The Visionary Who Invented Modern Politics
by Jesse Norman -
4
Ghosts of Empire: Britain's Legacies in the Modern World
by Kwasai Kwarteng -
5
Richard III: Brother, Protector, King
by Chris Skidmore
History Books by Tory Politicians, recommended by Benedict King
History Books by Tory Politicians, recommended by Benedict King
From Edward Gibbon to Winston Churchill—who was awarded the Nobel prize in literature “for his mastery of historical and biographical description”—the genre of history books written by Tory politicians has some impressive forebears. But what to make of the history books written by the current crop of Tory MPs? Five Books contributing editor Benedict King gives a quick overview of what’s out there.
-
1
America's Congress: Actions in the Public Sphere, James Madison Through Newt Gingrich
by David R Mayhew -
2
Disjointed Pluralism: Institutional Innovation and the Development of the U.S. Congress
by Eric Schickler -
3
The Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to Civil War
by Joanne B Freeman -
4
Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol III
by Robert Caro -
5
It’s Even Worse Than You Think: How the American Constitutional System Collided with the New Politics of Extremism
Thomas E. Mann & Norman J. Ornstein
The best books on Congress, recommended by Julian E. Zelizer
The best books on Congress, recommended by Julian E. Zelizer
Is Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell just as important as President Trump? Julian E. Zelizer, Princeton historian and CNN Political Analyst, thinks so—and he argues that to understand American politics, you have to understand Congress. He recommends the best books for getting to grips with the nuts and bolts of the Senate and House of Representatives.
The Best African American Literature, recommended by Farah Jasmine Griffin
An ever-growing body of authors are writing about the reality of what it means to be black in America, says Farah Jasmine Griffin, director of the Institute for Research in African American Studies at Columbia University. Here she recommends five works of African American literature, from greats like Zora Neale Hurston and Toni Morrison to lesser-known gems by Ann Petry.
The best books on Spies, recommended by Ben Macintyre
The British public-school system, with its hidden homosexuality and feelings of loneliness, encouraged subterfuge and led to a generation of great spy writers and spies, suggests author and journalist Ben Macintyre. He picks the best books on spies.
-
1
No Turning Back: The History of Feminism and the Future of Women
by Estelle Freedman -
2
The Solitude of Self: Thinking about Elizabeth Cady Stanton
by Vivian Gornick -
3
The Grounding of Modern Feminism
by Nancy Cott -
4
Welfare Warriors: The Welfare Rights Movement in the United States
by Premilla Nadasen -
5
Dear Sisters: Dispatches from the Women's Liberation Movement
by Linda Gordon & Rosalyn Baxandall
The best books on Feminism, recommended by Kirsten Swinth
The best books on Feminism, recommended by Kirsten Swinth
The fight for women’s liberation and equality under patriarchy spans centuries of history, and is still being waged today—but what lessons can feminist movements like #MeToo learn from suffragettes and black feminist activists? Fordham historian Kirsten Swinth explores the best books on feminism, and makes a powerful case for modern feminists listening to early foremothers.
The best books on Gender Politics, recommended by Bidisha
The 21st century has seen an explosion of feminist activism, with movements like #MeToo and the Women’s March. Accompanying this heightened attention to the lived experience of women, several extraordinary books have been published. Writer, feminist, critic and broadcaster Bidisha selects the best ones.
Michèle Lamont on The Sociology of Inequality
“If we come to understand the human value and dignity of people from different backgrounds, we can do a bit to deflect inequality in our everyday interactions,” says Harvard Professor and winner of the 2017 Erasmus Prize Michèle Lamont. Here, she recommends five books that illuminate the sociology of inequality.
The best books on Effective Altruism, recommended by Will MacAskill
Should you feel responsible for helping the world become better? And if so, how should you use your time, money, and career to have the biggest possible impact? These are the questions addressed by the effective altruism movement. One of its leading figures, Will MacAskill, recommends the best books to answer them.
-
1
Confessions of the Fox
by Jordy Rosenberg -
2
I've Got a Time Bomb
by Sybil Lamb -
3
Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity
by C Riley Snorton -
4
Histories of the Transgender Child
by Julian Gill-Peterson -
5
Trap Door: Trans Cultural Production and the Politics of Visibility
edited by Reina Gossett, Eric A Stanley and Johanna Burton
The Best of Trans Literature, recommended by Susan Stryker
The Best of Trans Literature, recommended by Susan Stryker
Many of the current controversies over trans rights and identities derive from false beliefs, explains the author and academic Susan Stryker. Here she selects five excellent contemporary trans titles with depth, complexity and heart, to help us reframe what has all too often become a toxic debate
-
1
A Lab of One’s Own: Science and Suffrage in the First World War
by Patricia Fara -
2
Eve to Evolution: Darwin, Science, and Women's Rights in Gilded Age America
by Kimberly Hamlin -
3
Wally Funk's Race for Space: The Extraordinary Story of a Female Aviation Pioneer
by Sue Nelson -
4
The Woman That Never Evolved
by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy -
5
The Naked Ape: A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal
by Desmond Morris
The best books on Scientific Differences between Women and Men, recommended by Angela Saini
The best books on Scientific Differences between Women and Men, recommended by Angela Saini
Consideration of differences between men and women has been obscured by centuries of biological essentialism, argues Angela Saini – author of Inferior: How Science Got Women Wrong. Here she discusses five books that examine or demonstrate the misogynistic lens through which female capability has been viewed.
-
1
The Administrative Process
by Jason M. Landis -
2
The End of Liberalism: The Second Republic of the United States
by Theodore J. Lowi -
3
Dilemmas of European Integration: The Ambiguities and Pitfalls of Integration by Stealth
by Giandomenico Majone -
4
Law and Disagreement
by Jeremy Waldron -
5
On the People's Terms
by Philip Pettit
The best books on The Administrative State, recommended by Paul Tucker
The best books on The Administrative State, recommended by Paul Tucker
Experts versus populists, bureaucracy versus democracy: Paul Tucker, former deputy governor of the Bank of England and a fellow at Harvard’s John F Kennedy School of Government, chooses books that wrestle with central dilemmas of today’s liberal political order