What are your summer reading recommendations?
I’m spending much of the summer trying to write a book. A whole book solo this time. Eek. And not about politics. Double eek.
More of that in the future.
But for now with summer holiday season around, what are your recommendations for holiday reading for politically-interested fellow readers?
Two books about the conduct of politics: One old and one new:
“War from the Ground Up” Combat as Politics: Emile Simson.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/War-Ground-Up-Twenty-First-Century-Politics/dp/1849049483/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1531153336&sr=8-1&keywords=war+from+the+ground+up
And the once very popular “Gamesmanship” by Stephen Potter which inside the comic envelope presents a comprehensive manual on “Spin”.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Theory-Practice-Gamesmanship-Actually-Cheating-ebook/dp/B00IXNB95G/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1531153505&sr=1-1&keywords=Gamesmanship
I would highly recommend any Liberal to read “The Lure of Greatness” by Anthony Barnett.
“The best book about Brexit so far” according to the Irish Times, and I would wholeheartedly agree. It goes beyond the superfician narrative and explains how we got where we are.
Review for “The Lure of Greatness” here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1467-923X.12468
I’ve just finished the book in my current Twitter header: “Arlott, Swanton and the Soul of English Cricket” by David Kynaston and Stephen Fay.
As well as a portrait of the two cricket writers, it’s a social history of English cricket since the war.
And indeed, Arlott’s Liberalism.
Edmund Fawcett’s Liberalism, the life of an idea (Princeton UP) has gone to a second edition to meet the challenges of Populism. 1st edition reviews interLib 2016-07
Wyntersol, the sequel to Andrew Caldecott’s Rotherweird (Jo Fletcher Books) revolves around arcane electoral processes
Something small to slip in the pocket if travelling light, Ai Weiwei’s Humanity – needless to say, heavy-weight in ideas about freedom & resonsibility (Princeton UP)
I’m currently reading “The good society” by J K Galbraith. Only on chapter 3 so can’t comment in depth but it’s very well written and full of wisdom, as you would expect from the author. It was written 20 years ago but so far the themes are still very relevant for today. It also has the advantage of being short and succinct so ideal summer reading!
A classic, if you haven’t yet read it, that undergirds all political decisionmaking at all scales based on psychological studies is ‘The Political Brain: The Role Of Emotion In Deciding The Fate Of The Nation’ by Drew Westen. Extremely enlightening.
For women aiming beyond the glass ceiling, “Women Leading the Way in Brussels” By Claudia de Castro Caldeirinha and Corinna Horst tells the stories of 14 women leaders in Brussels politics and provides inspiration, facts and figures, advice to other women leaders-to-be and contacts details (alas, only in Brussels). It is a good read on top of it all, with lots of personal insights from the 14 successful women about big and small challenges they faced on the way up.
As it is kickback and relax time, treat yourself and read Hilary Mantel’s memoir “Giving Up the Ghost” for the sheer joy of beautiful prose. If you need to stay in a serious political mode, you can analyse her experience of class, the education system, religion, the NHS and mental health provision …,
“Total Rethink – why entrepreneurs should act like revolutionaries” by David McCourt, looks at the ground up approach to displacement in business and how it affects society. I’ve already devised a breakthrough approach. Stop the garden parties and pub and chats and replace them with business meetings, set about fundraising visits to the businesses appalled by the Conservatives heel dragging on new technology, abandonment of services sector and how we will build local parties to get 150 people together to leaflet drop a constituency in two hours each, gain email addresses and social media friendships one to one with 150 people each and start working towards winning every constituency. If only the local team would hold a meeting wuthcsb agenda including doing something, appointing a candidate for a general election. Thus book will wake us up. It is not the summer for a holiday. We are at war. Democracy is under threat from the Panama Hatters. Rest when we’ve won. Read this book!
Hey Mark. Rather than try and write the book, write a sample of the book for the publisher would be my advice….
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:linkedInArticle:6422440297564901376/
That link doesn’t seem to work Simon? Am intrigued what it will say!