Empire
Niall Ferguson
A compelling exploration of the rise and fall of the British Empire, revealing its profound impact on the modern world and offering valuable lessons for understanding global power dynamics today. From its origins in piracy and commerce to its legacy of language, law, and governance, this book examines the complex and often contradictory forces that shaped the largest empire in history.
Fifth Sun
Camilla Townsend
A compelling new history of the Aztecs, told through their own voices. Drawing on rarely-consulted indigenous accounts, Camilla Townsend paints a vivid portrait of the Nahua people, from their mythical origins to their complex society and their struggle for survival after the Spanish conquest. Discover the real Aztecs, far more nuanced and resilient than the bloodthirsty stereotypes.
Foragers, Farmers, and Fossil Fuels
Ian Morris
An ambitious account of how certain "brute material forces" limit and help determine the "culture, values, and beliefs," including the moral codes, that humans have adopted over the last 20,000 years. It explores how modes of energy capture shape human values via multilevel selection.
Hagakure
Yamamoto Jōchō
Explore the profound wisdom and controversial legacy of Hagakure, a treatise on bushido, the way of the samurai. Delve into the complex world of Tokugawa-era warriors, their code of honor, and the delicate balance between life and death, loyalty and duty. Discover the essence of Hagakure and its enduring impact on Japanese culture and beyond.
Hood Feminism
Mikki Kendall
A powerful collection of essays that critiques mainstream feminism for its focus on the concerns of privileged women, while ignoring the needs and experiences of marginalized women, particularly women of color. Kendall challenges readers to consider how issues like food insecurity, gun violence, and access to education are feminist issues, and calls for a more inclusive and intersectional approach to feminism that centers the most vulnerable members of society.
How Innovation Works
Matt Ridley
A sweeping exploration of evolution in the universe, morality, life, genes, culture, economy, technology, mind, personality, education, population, leadership, government, religion, money, and the internet, arguing that evolution is a pervasive force shaping the human world and that change is incremental, inevitable, and driven by natural selection among competing ideas.
How to Be an Antiracist
Ibram X. Kendi
In this book, the author shares his own journey of being raised in a dueling racial consciousness and veering off onto the unlit dirt road of antiracism. He provides definitions and concepts to understand racism and antiracism, and argues that the struggle to be fully human requires focusing on power instead of people, and changing policy instead of groups of people.
I Am Malala
Malala Yousafzai
The remarkable true story of Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl who stood up for education and was shot by the Taliban. This is her inspiring journey from a young girl in the Swat Valley to a global advocate for girls' education, fighting for the right of every child to go to school.