The Avoidable War
Kevin Rudd
Mentioned 1 week ago
What Xi Jinping Wants
Book Recommendations
The Ezra Klein Show
Ezra Klein invites you into a conversation on something that matters. How do we address climate change if the political system fails to act? Has the logic of markets infiltrated too many aspects of our lives? What is the future of the Republican Party? What do psychedelics teach us about consciousne...
Episodes
560
Books
1,807
Recently mentioned
Latest Recommendations
The Party's Interests Come First
Joseph Torigian
Mentioned 1 week ago
What Xi Jinping Wants
The Souls of China
Ian Johnson
Mentioned 1 week ago
What Xi Jinping Wants
The Beginning Comes After the End
Rebecca Solnit
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
The Very Good and Very Bad News on Climate
Here Comes the Sun
Bill McKibben
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
The Very Good and Very Bad News on Climate
The Glorians
Terry Tempest Williams
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
The Very Good and Very Bad News on Climate
The Carbon Wave
Leah C. Stokes
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
The Very Good and Very Bad News on Climate
Brought to You By
Amy Westervelt
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
The Very Good and Very Bad News on Climate
The Holocaust and the Nakba
Bashir Bashir
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
A Radical Vision for Israelis and Palestinians
States of Denial
Stanley Cohen
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
A Radical Vision for Israelis and Palestinians
Tomorrow Is Yesterday
Hussein Agha
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
A Radical Vision for Israelis and Palestinians
A Psalm for the Wild-Built
Becky Chambers
Mentioned 2 weeks ago
A Radical Vision for Israelis and Palestinians
Most Recommended
Left Adrift
What Happened to Liberal Politics
Matt described the book as a helpful intervention into the current debate about Democrats, covering historical figures like Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Tony Blair and Ehud Barak.
"
Tim Schenck's book, Left Adrift, is a great sort of intervention into the, like, what's up with Democrats kind of debate, looking historically at Bill Clinton and, to an extent, Barac...
— Episode: Let’s Get to the Marrow of What Trump Ju...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Let’s Get to the Marrow of What Trump Just Did
Matt described the book as a helpful intervention into the current debate about Democrats, covering historical figures like Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Tony Blair and Ehud Barak.
"
Tim Schenck's book, Left Adrift, is a great sort of intervention into the, like, what's up with Democrats kind of debate, looking historically at Bill Clinton and, to an extent, Barack Obama, but also a lot of Tony Blair, Ehud Barak, sort of center-left figures.
Trump
The Art of the Deal
Ezra referred to reading a passage from the book that described Trump's tendency to make exaggerated threats and bluff in negotiations.
"
I can like read to you the passage from The Art of the Deal where you talk about how you like to bullshit a lot in negotiations and make dumb threats.
— Episode: Let’s Get to the Marrow of What Trump Ju...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Let’s Get to the Marrow of What Trump Just Did
Ezra referred to reading a passage from the book that described Trump's tendency to make exaggerated threats and bluff in negotiations.
"
I can like read to you the passage from The Art of the Deal where you talk about how you like to bullshit a lot in negotiations and make dumb threats.
The Sirens' Call
How Attention Became the World's Most Endangered Resource
It was highlighted as the best and most insightful book on the value of attention, with the host praising its depth and relevance.
"
My friend Chris Hayes ... wrote a great book called The Siren's Call, How Attention Became the World's Most Endangered Resource. I've read most of the books on attention out there. This one is, I thin...
— Episode: Democrats are Losing the War for Attenti...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Democrats are Losing the War for Attention. Badly.
It was highlighted as the best and most insightful book on the value of attention, with the host praising its depth and relevance.
"
My friend Chris Hayes ... wrote a great book called The Siren's Call, How Attention Became the World's Most Endangered Resource. I've read most of the books on attention out there. This one is, I think, the best one at understanding the value of attention today.
Chris Hayes, your book is great. I recommend it to everybody.
Science, the Endless Frontier
Jake Sullivan highlighted the 1945 report turned book as a blueprint for U.S. science and technology policy for decades, emphasizing its relevance to current challenges in semiconductors, AI, clean energy, biotech and quantum.
"
The first is actually a report from 1945 by Vannevar Bush to FDR called Science, the Endless Frontier that has been turned into a book. ... And it's basically the blueprint for Americ...
— Episode: Biden Promised to ‘Turn the Page’ on Tru...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Biden Promised to ‘Turn the Page’ on Trump. What W...
Jake Sullivan highlighted the 1945 report turned book as a blueprint for U.S. science and technology policy for decades, emphasizing its relevance to current challenges in semiconductors, AI, clean energy, biotech and quantum.
"
The first is actually a report from 1945 by Vannevar Bush to FDR called Science, the Endless Frontier that has been turned into a book. ... And it's basically the blueprint for America's national science and technology policy for the next several decades.
Nexus
A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI
He recommended Nexus, noting it examines the profound implications of artificial intelligence, especially the shift from tools to autonomous agents.
"
The second is a book that I'm just partly through, but I actually I'll read the whole thing, but I skipped to the end because I really wanted to focus on the AI part of it, which is Nexus
— Episode: Biden Promised to ‘Turn the Page’ on Tru...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Biden Promised to ‘Turn the Page’ on Trump. What W...
He recommended Nexus, noting it examines the profound implications of artificial intelligence, especially the shift from tools to autonomous agents.
"
The second is a book that I'm just partly through, but I actually I'll read the whole thing, but I skipped to the end because I really wanted to focus on the AI part of it, which is Nexus by Yuval Hariri. And I think everyone should read this book because, to me, I don't agree with every word of it, but it paints a picture of what we are going to be contending with artificial intelligence that, frankly, is a little bit worrisome, but is also so deeply thoughtful.
ORIGINS OF ELECTED STRONGMEN CLOTH
Erica Frantz said the book was coauthored by her and explained that it examined how personalist parties destroy democracy from within.
"
Erica Franz ... is a political scientist at Michigan State University and a coauthor of The Origins of Elected Strongmen, How Personalist Parties Destroy Democracy from Within.
— Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Polit...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Politics’
Erica Frantz said the book was coauthored by her and explained that it examined how personalist parties destroy democracy from within.
"
Erica Franz ... is a political scientist at Michigan State University and a coauthor of The Origins of Elected Strongmen, How Personalist Parties Destroy Democracy from Within.
Dictators at War and Peace (Cornell Studies in Security Affairs)
She recommended the book as a goto read for explaining why personalist dictatorship is harmful for foreign policy.
"
I would recommend Jessica Weeks, who has a book called Dictators at War and Peace.
— Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Polit...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Politics’
She recommended the book as a goto read for explaining why personalist dictatorship is harmful for foreign policy.
"
I would recommend Jessica Weeks, who has a book called Dictators at War and Peace.
And this is our goto book for explaining why personalist dictatorship is bad for foreign policy.
So it's a very good read.
Autocracy Rising
How Venezuela Transitioned to Authoritarianism
He suggested the book as a detailed exploration of how Venezuela's democracy fell apart and as a model for other authoritarian takeovers.
"
I would also recommend Javier Corrales, who has a book called Autocracy Rising.
— Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Polit...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Politics’
He suggested the book as a detailed exploration of how Venezuela's democracy fell apart and as a model for other authoritarian takeovers.
"
I would also recommend Javier Corrales, who has a book called Autocracy Rising.
And this is this really detailed exploration of how Venezuela's democracy fell apart.
It has a lot of really interesting information in it.
The Trumpiad
She recommended the poetry book for its humorous poems that could provide optimism amid pessimistic times.
"
I would recommend Cody Walker's poetry book called The Trumpiad from I think 2016 or 2017.
— Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Polit...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Trump 2.0 and the Return of ‘Court Politics’
She recommended the poetry book for its humorous poems that could provide optimism amid pessimistic times.
"
I would recommend Cody Walker's poetry book called The Trumpiad from I think 2016 or 2017.
And it has a collection of poems that are very humorous that I think could provide some optimism, I guess, in some pessimistic more times.
Meditations for Mortals
Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts
Ezra Klein said he picked up the book during a period of burnout and felt that it connected with him, indicating it helped frame his thinking about limits.
"
but that was the frame of mind I was in when I picked up Oliver Berkman's Meditations for Mortals.
— Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
Ezra Klein said he picked up the book during a period of burnout and felt that it connected with him, indicating it helped frame his thinking about limits.
"
but that was the frame of mind I was in when I picked up Oliver Berkman's Meditations for Mortals.
the book connected for me.
The Uncontrollability of the World
Burkeman recommended it as an easily finishable small book that offers a lovely overview of the idea that the world escapes our complete control.
"
he has um a small book called The Uncontrollability of the World
— Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
Burkeman recommended it as an easily finishable small book that offers a lovely overview of the idea that the world escapes our complete control.
"
he has um a small book called The Uncontrollability of the World
if we're going for easily finishable things let's go with that that's a really lovely overview of this idea that there is something important in the idea that the world escapes our complete control
Fully Alive
Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times
Burkeman suggested it as an important book that tends to the soul in turbulent times, noting it was a key influence for him.
"
I'd also recommend a book by a friend of mine Elizabeth Oldfield called Fully Alive
— Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
Burkeman suggested it as an important book that tends to the soul in turbulent times, noting it was a key influence for him.
"
I'd also recommend a book by a friend of mine Elizabeth Oldfield called Fully Alive
the subtitle is tending to the soul in turbulent times which is written from a sort of a christian perspective but I actually think really gets at this idea of aliveness that we've been circling around
Rest
Why You Get More Done When You Work Less
The host mentioned the work of Alex Pang as a book that explores the concept of rest and its importance in modern life.
"
the work of a writer Alex Pang
— Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Burned Out? Start Here.
The host mentioned the work of Alex Pang as a book that explores the concept of rest and its importance in modern life.
"
the work of a writer Alex Pang
Adam Bede
The host recommended the novel as a historic work featuring a preindustrial Sabbath, noting its feminist plot and setting in an English village.
"
So that's the Nome de Plume of Marianne Evans. And her most famous novel, you've probably heard of it, is Middlemarch. But her first novel was called Adam B. And it's an incredible novel with what we...
— Episode: Best Of: Sabbath and the Art of Rest
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Best Of: Sabbath and the Art of Rest
The host recommended the novel as a historic work featuring a preindustrial Sabbath, noting its feminist plot and setting in an English village.
"
So that's the Nome de Plume of Marianne Evans. And her most famous novel, you've probably heard of it, is Middlemarch. But her first novel was called Adam B. And it's an incredible novel with what we would now call a feminist plot. And it's also set in an English village in the turn of the 19th century, you know, which is important because it's preindustrial.
The SEVEN DAY CIRCLE
The host described it as a definitive history of the week that explains how temporal structures affect us, noting the author's background in sociology of time.
"
The SEVEN DAY CIRCLE is the definitive history of the week. He talks about experiencing these pauses for Jewish holidays and for the Sabbath. It's the definitive history of the week.
— Episode: Best Of: Sabbath and the Art of Rest
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Best Of: Sabbath and the Art of Rest
The host described it as a definitive history of the week that explains how temporal structures affect us, noting the author's background in sociology of time.
"
The SEVEN DAY CIRCLE is the definitive history of the week. He talks about experiencing these pauses for Jewish holidays and for the Sabbath. It's the definitive history of the week.
On the Clock
The host highlighted it as a portrait of lowwage work in America, detailing the author's experiences in an Amazon warehouse, call center, and McDonald's.
"
On the Clock, What LowWage Work Did to Me and How It Drives America Insane. She took jobs at an Amazon warehouse, a call center, and a McDonald's, and discovered what these jobs take...
— Episode: Best Of: Sabbath and the Art of Rest
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Best Of: Sabbath and the Art of Rest
The host highlighted it as a portrait of lowwage work in America, detailing the author's experiences in an Amazon warehouse, call center, and McDonald's.
"
On the Clock, What LowWage Work Did to Me and How It Drives America Insane. She took jobs at an Amazon warehouse, a call center, and a McDonald's, and discovered what these jobs take out of you.
Creating the Administrative Constitution
The Lost One Hundred Years of American Administrative Law (Yale Law Library Series in Legal History and Reference)
The book surveys the first century of the U.S. administrative state, showing how a robust bureaucracy developed after the Constitution. It was praised as a great, classic read that contextualizes modern administrative law.
"
The first book I'd recommend is one by Jerry Mashaw called Creating the Administrative Constitution. It was one of the first in this line of cases looking historically and traces out...
— Episode: ‘A Sword and a Shield’: How the Supreme...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: ‘A Sword and a Shield’: How the Supreme Court Supe...
The book surveys the first century of the U.S. administrative state, showing how a robust bureaucracy developed after the Constitution. It was praised as a great, classic read that contextualizes modern administrative law.
"
The first book I'd recommend is one by Jerry Mashaw called Creating the Administrative Constitution. It was one of the first in this line of cases looking historically and traces out all of the ways we had a robust and developing administrative state in the first 100 years after the Constitution was adopted. And it's a great read. It's a classic.
The Forging of Bureaucratic Autonomy
Reputations, Networks, and Policy Innovation in Executive Agencies, 1862-1928.
Carpenter examines the Progressive Era origins of modern agencies, detailing how their independence and expertise were deliberately built. The discussion highlighted its worth as a detailed account of the historical push for bureaucratic autonomy.
"
The second is another book, it's by Dan Carpenter and it's called The Forging of Bureaucratic Autonomy. It looks at the Progressive Era when many of the agencies we now take for grant...
— Episode: ‘A Sword and a Shield’: How the Supreme...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: ‘A Sword and a Shield’: How the Supreme Court Supe...
Carpenter examines the Progressive Era origins of modern agencies, detailing how their independence and expertise were deliberately built. The discussion highlighted its worth as a detailed account of the historical push for bureaucratic autonomy.
"
The second is another book, it's by Dan Carpenter and it's called The Forging of Bureaucratic Autonomy. It looks at the Progressive Era when many of the agencies we now take for granted were developed and their independence and expertise were forged. And it's really worth reading that account of the efforts that were undertaken to forge a sense of autonomy for administrative government and what the reasons were and why people thought that was so important and valuable.
Spin Dictators
The Changing Face of Tyranny in the 21st Century
Pippa Norris highlighted Spin Dictators as a study of how modern authoritarian regimes use propaganda and controlled elections to maintain support.
"
And the book is called Spin Dictators.
— Episode: Best Of: Why the Far Right Is Thriving A...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: Best Of: Why the Far Right Is Thriving Across the...
Pippa Norris highlighted Spin Dictators as a study of how modern authoritarian regimes use propaganda and controlled elections to maintain support.
"
And the book is called Spin Dictators.
Lincoln at Gettysburg
The Words that Remade America (Simon & Schuster Lincoln Library)
The host recommended the book as a key reading, noting its relevance to the discussion.
"
Garry Wills' Gettysburg.
— Episode: It's the Corruption, Stupid
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: It's the Corruption, Stupid
The host recommended the book as a key reading, noting its relevance to the discussion.
"
Garry Wills' Gettysburg.
Note: The book recommendations on this page are discovered automatically from podcast transcripts, and may be incorrect or incomplete.