| back to freethought main page Amazon for book reviews |
| Islam : A Mosaic, Not a Monolith by Vartan Gregorian. 2004, paperback: $17.05 |
| The Shock Doctrine : The Rise of Disaster Capitalism by Naomi Klein. $10.88. along the lines of Cornered but has its own focus. |
| The New Chinese Empire : And What It Means For The United States by Ross Terrill. 2003, $16.95, 363p. largely historical, leading up to the near-present. ... winner of the LA Times Book Prize. ... seems very relevant to today's geopolitics. |
| Reviving the Left : the need to restore liberal values in America by Dwight Furrow. Prometheus Books, $18.89. "[Furrow's] proposals are fresh--he urges liberals to develop 'a more substantial moral identity' and win a few battles in the values war by building upon their 'inherent culture of caring,' repackaging the conservative movement's successful tactics for the Left." -- Publishers Weekly |
| Dont Be Such a Scientist : Talking Substance in an Age of Style by Randy Olson. |
| Bomb Power by Gary Wills. Some history of the development of secrecy practices and expansion of presidential power as a consequence of the development of the atomic bomb as well as a description of the continuing consequences of these practices. |
| Heart of Dryness : How the Last Bushmen Can Help Us Endure the Coming Age of Permanent Drought by James G Workman. I [AJ] have been utterly amazed as I read it. Workman provides so much depth in all the important issues in the world as water lies deep in everything and Botswana (and the Kalahari) are involved in ways that are truly amazing. Easy to read. Interesting. Very worthwhile. |
| Bailout Nation by Barry Ritholtz. 5/09, 332 pages, $17. A critical view of bailouts. |
| Nudge : Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness by Richard H Thaler, Cass Sunstein. (Paperback; $16.00) Thaler and Sunstein: "One of our goals in writing this book is to show that it is possible to help people make better choices and retain or even expand freedom." Explores how we make decisions of all kinds. |
| Real Enemies : Conspiracy Theories and American Democracy, World War I to 9/11 by Kathryn S Olmsted. 2009, 320 pages, $20. A history of conspiracy theories in 20th century America. Well written and interesting. |
| Five Minds for the Future by Howard Gardner. ... describes five kinds of minds, or ways of thinking and acting. The world we inhabit continues to change; we need to think about the type of "mind" we wish to cultivate. more... |
| Losing My Religion : How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America — and Found Unexpected Peace by William Lobdell. 2009, 283 pages, $10.40 (HC). "... the most intellectually honest and emotionally courageous book I have ever read ..." – Michael Shermer ~ "...does more to advance ... irreligion than the bilious ... tracts by ... Hitchens and others ... [and] far more fun to read ..." – N Y Times |
| Chinese Lessons : Five Classmates and the Story of the New China by John Pomfret. This book is an easy read, informative and full of authentic stories. more... |
| Atheist Manifesto : The Case Against Christianity, Judaism, and Islam by Michel Onfray. A London Times Book of the Year. "A wonderful, invigorating last of sanity delivered against the fog of high-toned mumbo-jumbo we have to endure everywhere today. A passionate and coolly reasoned advocacy of atheism." – William Boy, London Times Literary Supplement. |
| The Subprime Solution : How Today's Global Financial Crisis Happened, and What to Do About It by Robert Schiller. 8/08, 208 pages, $12 - The housing bubble and financial crisis. Proposed solutions. |
| The Grand Inquisitor's Manual : A History of Terror in the Name of God by Jonathan Kirsch. The Spanish Inquisition was the world's first experience with sanctioned terror, and a precursor to episodes like the Salem Witch trials, McCarthyism and even Abu Ghraib |
| Boom! : Voices of the Sixties by Tom Brokaw. |
| The World Without Us by Alan Weisman. |
| Authentic Happiness : Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment by Martin E. P. Seligman. |