Political book recommendations

[Paine]

Haven’t seen a specific thread for this yet. Been doing a lot of reading so far in the new year, and I anticipate that will continue. I try to break things up with fiction but always find myself reading much more non-fiction, even if it’s hazardous for my mental health.

I’m currently in the middle of The Hollow Parties by Daniel Schlozman and Sam Rosenfeld. Nothing ground breaking so far, but it’s a pretty useful lens for understanding the modern American “political parties.” Unsurprisingly, their thesis centers around how modern American political parties have become little more than hollow shells of what they could and should be.

The Hollow Parties

A major history from the Founding to our embittered present that “explains the void” (Politico) at the center of America’s political partiesFeatured on The Ezra Klein Show and The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart

press.princeton.edu

Feel free to drop your own political book recommendations here along with a quick description of its content.

 

[finesse]

https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674686366

Amazon.com

Amazon.com

Stories on the road to cynicism

 

[Paine]

https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674686366

Amazon.com

Amazon.com

Stories on the road to cynicism

Legacy of Ashes has been on my list for a while, might be a good time to give it a go. Thanks for the recs.

 

[finesse]

Legacy of Ashes has been on my list for a while, might be a good time to give it a go. Thanks for the recs.

I highly recommend the Stern book as well. Political Murder is excellent but takes a bit of dedication to read.

ETA: An interesting bit of history that I expect few realize, especially the last bit.

The Sicarii<a href="Sicarii - Wikipedia"><span>[</span>a<span>]</span></a> (“Knife-wielder”, “dagger-wielder”, “dagger-bearer”; from Latin sica = dagger) were a group of Jewish Zealots, who, in the final decades of the Second Temple period, conducted a campaign of targeted assassinations and kidnappings of Roman officials in Judea and of Jews who collaborated with the Roman Empire. They later became known for a reported mass suicide at the Siege of Masada. The Sicarii carried sicae, or small daggers (sickles), concealed in their cloaks;<a href="Sicarii - Wikipedia"><span>[</span>1<span>]</span></a> at public gatherings, they pulled out these daggers to attack, blending into the crowd after the deed to escape detection.

The only source for the history of the Sicarii is Josephus. Victims of the Sicarii are said by Josephus to have included the High Priest Jonathan, and 700 Jewish women and children at Ein Gedi.<a href="Sicarii - Wikipedia"><span>[</span>2<span>]</span></a><a href="Sicarii - Wikipedia"><span>[</span>3<span>]</span></a>

A relationship between the Zealots and the Sicarii is often stated, but is unclear from the original sources.<a href="Sicarii - Wikipedia"><span>[</span>4<span>]</span></a>

The Sicarii are one of the earliest known organized assassination units of cloak and daggers, predating the Order of Assassins and the Japanese ninja by centuries.<a href="Sicarii - Wikipedia"><span>[</span>5<span>]</span></a><a href="Sicarii - Wikipedia"><span>[</span>6<span>]</span></a>

 

[donbosco]

As much history as politics, the book begins with the last decades of the 19th century — populism, fusion, Wilmington 1898 and proceeds through the 20th century.
New edition with chapter that “provides updated coverage of recent changes in North Carolina's political landscape, including the scandals surrounding John Edwards and Mike Easley, the defeat of U.S. senator Elizabeth Dole, the election of the state's first woman governor, and voters' approval of an African American candidate for president. The book provides an overview of the run-up to the 2010 elections and explains how North Carolina has become, arguably, the most politically competitive state in the South.”

 

[Paine]

As much history as politics, the book begins with the last decades of the 19th century — populism, fusion, Wilmington 1898 and proceeds through the 20th century.
New edition with chapter that “provides updated coverage of recent changes in North Carolina's political landscape, including the scandals surrounding John Edwards and Mike Easley, the defeat of U.S. senator Elizabeth Dole, the election of the state's first woman governor, and voters' approval of an African American candidate for president. The book provides an overview of the run-up to the 2010 elections and explains how North Carolina has become, arguably, the most politically competitive state in the South.”

An excellent read. Must have for anyone seeking to understand modern politics in NC.

 

[donbosco]

The book is a key reading in my North Carolina History course.

 

[breepf]

My favorite book on the history of political philosophy is Sheldon Wolin's classic Politics and Vision. I only wish I knew enough about political philosophy to better appreciate Wolin's intellectual moves:

 

[breepf]

I'll add that I'm currently listening to John Ganz's When the Clock Broke, which so far is about rightwing populism in the late 80s and early 90s. It's alright, though I tend to prefer political books about ideas over catalogs of facts.

 

[Paine]

I'll add that I'm currently listening to John Ganz's When the Clock Broke, which so far is about rightwing populism in the late 80s and early 90s. It's alright, though I tend to prefer political books about ideas over catalogs of facts.

Fair amount of implications about political ideas in that book though. Think it helps elucidate Trumpism better than any other liberal author I’ve read recently.

 

[breepf]

Fair amount of implications about political ideas in that book though. Think it helps elucidate Trumpism better than any other liberal author I’ve read recently.

Some sure, but Ganz writes more like a journalist than an intellectual historian: the ambience of a good yarn matters more than an argument. For that reason, I prefer writing about contemporary politics and economics by figures like Melinda Cooper, Quinn Slobodian, Henry Farrell, etc.

 

[donbosco]

The book is a key reading in my North Carolina History course.

And it ought to be a mandated reading for any new teaching hire at a UNC System Institution. So many profs throughout the 17 campuses have no earthly idea where they have landed. Many never, ever learn.

 

[an0maly]

It's hard to imagine a more expansive topic for a thread, from the recent (2016 on) books all orbiting around the dreaded "how we got here," to generally recent like the last 50 to 100 years or so, to the absolute highest levels of books ever written on political ideas. Having no time right now, I am going to offer what I think is the greatest.



This is a work of political philosophy, readable by anyone, one I personally don't think can--in principle--ever really be surpassed in terms of putting forward ideas that can improve the human condition. If you don't know it, dive in, take your time with it. Stop and think about a paragraph as needed, and read it again. Read the book again if you did years ago, and its insights come alive anew, and seem ever relevant to current problems. There is a follow-up, Justice as Fairness, in which Rawls expands his ideas.

Currently, we race away with increasing acceleration from the ideals Rawls has put forward.

 

[breepf]

It's hard to imagine a more expansive topic for a thread, from the recent (2016 on) books all orbiting around the dreaded "how we got here," to generally recent like the last 50 to 100 years or so, to the absolute highest levels of books ever written on political ideas. Having no time right now, I am going to offer what I think is the greatest.



This is a work of political philosophy, readable by anyone, one I personally don't think can--in principle--ever really be surpassed in terms of putting forward ideas that can improve the human condition. If you don't know it, dive in, take your time with it. Stop and think about a paragraph as needed, and read it again. Read the book again if you did years ago, and its insights come alive anew, and seem ever relevant to current problems. There is a follow-up, Justice as Fairness, in which Rawls expands his ideas.

Currently, we race away with increasing acceleration from the ideals Rawls has put forward.

If you like Rawls, I highly recommend Eric Nelson's book The Theology of Liberalism. It's been a few years, but I think he reads Rawls's liberalism as an attempt to protect his youthful theological bent for a just (Augustinian) God against the heresy of (meritorious) Pelagianism.

This article by Nelson would probably give you the gist: John Rawls' 'A Theory of Justice' and Jewish Heresy

 

[Paine]

It's hard to imagine a more expansive topic for a thread, from the recent (2016 on) books all orbiting around the dreaded "how we got here," to generally recent like the last 50 to 100 years or so, to the absolute highest levels of books ever written on political ideas. Having no time right now, I am going to offer what I think is the greatest.



This is a work of political philosophy, readable by anyone, one I personally don't think can--in principle--ever really be surpassed in terms of putting forward ideas that can improve the human condition. If you don't know it, dive in, take your time with it. Stop and think about a paragraph as needed, and read it again. Read the book again if you did years ago, and its insights come alive anew, and seem ever relevant to current problems. There is a follow-up, Justice as Fairness, in which Rawls expands his ideas.

Currently, we race away with increasing acceleration from the ideals Rawls has put forward.

I’ve never sat down and read the book in full but perhaps I should. I’ve been interested in Rawlsian liberalism and its intersections with socialism for a bit now, especially regarding the program a left party in the U.S. should put forward.