Politics Books

The former FBI Chief Negotiator says that negotiators need to come across as non-threatening and non-judgmental. And active listening isn’t just something you use in a hostage situation; it’s important in everyday life, too

Steeped in the pre-Christian traditions of English magic, Richard Heygate, the author of the bestselling The Book of English Magic, warns readers not to dabble unless they are prepared to end up in a padded cell.

U.S. government adviser and Dean of the American University School of Public Affairs leads a book-bound tour that takes us from the Bacardi dynasty in Cuba to American military interventions in Central America

Newspaper journalism is on its way out, regrets the former foreign correspondent and Browser co-founder Robert Cottrell. He chooses four novels that reflect the golden days and a style guide that is an equally fine work of imagination.

Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair’s former communications chief, takes a look at leadership in politics and in sport, recognising that ordinary citizens can show courageous moral leadership

What makes the most successful societies tick? The RSA's Matthew Taylor says we should recognise that relationships and values are more important than scientific or economic advances

The former British foreign secretary, Douglas Hurd, recommends five highly readable political biographies, looking at the lives of some of Britain’s best-known prime ministers of the last 150 years.

International terror expert Jessica Stern takes a close look at the mind of the terrorist. She explores why people are drawn to extreme violence and how, in many cases, terrorists can build their identities around ideologies that they hold in an ultimately shallow way

Is lobbying always a bad thing? Or can it be used to effect social change? Washington insider Mark Bloomfield gives a lobbyist's perspective. He picks the best books on lobbying.

Director of Liberty Shami Chakrabarti says Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is a thinly veiled metaphor for the War on Terror