Black Wave, by Kim Ghattas
Examines how the Saudi-Iranian rivalry after the Iranian Revolution shaped the region and the wider world. It treats the peoples and actors of the region as agents rather than pawns in a geopolitical chess game.
The Concept of the Political, by Carl Schmitt
Written by the chief legal theorist of the Nazi regime and frequently cited in Silicon Valley, it operationalises the friend-enemy distinction as the fundamental axis of politics.
Why Liberalism Failed, by Patrick J. Deneen
A conservative critique of liberalism’s failures that argues for a return to older values of community, religion, and tradition.
The Digital Republic, by Jamie Susskind
Attempts to apply institutional reform to existing liberal institutions and offers one possible path forward.
The Long Game, by Rush Doshi
Presents the perspective of a China hawk who sees China as a direct threat to the American order.
The China Model, by Daniel A. Bell
The strongest good-faith case for Chinese political meritocracy on its own terms.
World Order, by Henry Kissinger
The order-builder’s own account of how the postwar equilibrium is coming apart and the grammar of the multipolar order in which any partnership of equals would have to operate.
Wealth and Power, by Orville Schell & John Delury
Moves through some of China’s most important figures after the Opium Wars and examines what they considered the path for China to return to wealth and power.
The Jakarta Method, by Vincent Bevins
Shows the catastrophic cost of a security spiral run amok and how fear of communism led the United States to support mass murder.
Is the American Century Over? by Joseph S. Nye, Jr.
An assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the United States in an era of returning great-power politics. Crucially, the assessment was made before the election of Donald Trump.
Mao’s Great Famine, by Frank Dikötter
The ultimate optimisation catastrophe: a society reengineered toward a projected future at the cost of tens of millions of lives.
The Technological Republic, by Alexander Karp & Nicholas Zamiska
A frontal attack on Western culture as complacent, intellectually frail, and lacking decisive leadership. The book underlines the messianic argument made by technology elites in propagating their own vision of the future.