Summer Reading List, with Daron Acemoglu, Nina L. Khrushcheva, Ian Buruma, and more

From airplane to beach and everywhere in between, these books – recommended by PS contributors – will entertain, enrich, and enlighten you. [View this message in a web browser]( This week, we present a special summer edition of Read More. From airplane to beach and everywhere in between, the books below – recommended by PS contributors – will keep you entertained, inspired, and enlightened. [Diary of a Mad Old Man]( [Diary of a Mad Old Man]( By Jun’ichirō Tanizaki [Ian Buruma]( says: “I am not good at keeping on top of the latest books to hit the shelves, because there are so many masterpieces from the past that I have not yet read, or want to read again. One that I keep rereading is Tanizaki’s wonderful 1961 novel, which takes the form of the diary of a 77-year-old man who recently had a stroke. With total honesty, Tanizaki explores the fundamental – and often painful – human experiences of sexual desire, aging, waning physical and mental powers, sickness, and dying.” [The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty]( [The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty]( By [Daron Acemoglu]( and [James A. Robinson]( [Daniel Gros]( says: “If you want to understand why some countries became free and prosperous, while others remain mired in poverty and corruption, this is the book to read. As the subtitle indicates, the authors show how the fate of liberty depends on a delicate equilibrium between the strength of the state and society’s ability to control it. Effective social services cannot be taken for granted, and they require a strong state. But ensuring liberty means ‘shackling’ the ‘leviathan.’ And because societal demands continuously change, the state must be continuously renewed – and defended.” [Subscribe to PS today for the latest on economics and more.]( [Combating Inequality: Rethinking Government’s Role]( [Combating Inequality: Rethinking Government’s Role]( Edited by [Olivier Blanchard]( and [Dani Rodrik]( [Angela Huyue Zhang]( says: “There is no doubt that inequality is one of our most pressing global challenges. But, while there is a growing consensus about the urgency of tackling the problem, there is significant disagreement among experts over how to go about it. In 2019, the Peterson Institute for International Economics organized a major conference on the issue – coordinated by Blanchard and Rodrik – which produced a wide range of proposals for targeting inequality at different levels in the economy. This collection of essays by leading economists – including [Daron Acemoglu]( [Danielle Allen]( [Jason Furman]( and [Stefanie Stantcheva]( – is based on that conference. I found it particularly enlightening, because it reveals the complexity and nuance that will have to shape our efforts.” [Klara and the Sun]( [Klara and the Sun]( By Kazuo Ishiguro [Anne-Marie Slaughter]( says: “This is a novel that has gotten a lot of well-deserved attention. I found it absolutely revelatory. I am not a big science fiction fan, so the idea of a story told entirely from an android’s perspective did not appeal. After reading it, however, I would advise anyone who wants to think about a future in which human and artificial intelligence intertwine to forget the countless non-fiction books and articles on the subject and read this book instead. I came away from Klara and the Sun with a far better sense of how artificial entities – beings? – learn. I pondered the deep ethical dilemmas that will confront us. I mused on the interdependence of emotion and reason. If Ishiguro’s great novel The Remains of the Day is about a man who behaves like a robot, Klara and the Sun is about a robot who behaves like a human. Both invite us to consider the essence of our humanity.” [Subscribe to PS today for the latest on politics and more.]( [My Old Home: A Novel of Exile]( [My Old Home: A Novel of Exile]( By [Orville Schell]( [Kevin Rudd]( says: “Orville, my colleague at the Asia Society, has written a truly absorbing tale on the theme of a life suspended 'in between' China and the West. The novel stands out for the depth of its author’s knowledge of, and love for, both countries and their respective cultures. And it is filled with the kind of historical sweep, allusion, and insight that anyone interested in China should find entrancing. The title, My Old Home, is of course derived from a story by Lu Xun, China’s greatest novelist, and Orville proves himself more than up to the task of honoring Lu’s ability to provide a window into modern China." [Cold War Anthropology: The CIA, the Pentagon, and the Growth of Dual Use Anthropology]( [Cold War Anthropology: The CIA, the Pentagon, and the Growth of Dual Use Anthropology]( By David H. Price [Kristen Ghodsee]( says: “I have long been interested in the effects of Cold War politics on the production of knowledge, and back in graduate school I read an essay by Laura Nader about what she called the 'phantom factor' in anthropology: the persistent (if hidden) presence of the US Central Intelligence Agency. Both Nader and Price document the uncomfortable relationship between the scholarly study of foreign cultures and the US military’s needs as it endeavored to prevent the spread of communism globally. As Price shows, after World War II, the CIA funneled research funding through dummy agencies toward unsuspecting scholars and into academic research centers and area studies institutes, in order to shape narratives. The CIA also repurposed ethnographic research without the consent of the scholars who produced it.” [Subscribe to PS today for the latest on sustainability and more.]( [The Churchill Complex: The Curse of Being Special, From Winston and FDR to Trump and Brexit]( [The Churchill Complex: The Curse of Being Special, From Winston and FDR to Trump and Brexit]( By [Ian Buruma]( [Nina L. Khrushcheva]( says: “Published last year, Ian Buruma’s latest book examines the Anglo-American relationship since World War II, and argues that the evocation of Winston Churchill as a model for courageous leadership in the name of freedom and democracy has usually resulted in faulty policies and unnecessary wars. Buruma, a Project Syndicate contributor and professor at Bard College, explains how, after losing its imperial grandeur, the United Kingdom began to cling to the US to avoid becoming irrelevant. The US has put far less stock in the relationship, though it has enjoyed the validation of its status as the new Anglo-Saxon great power. Buruma also explores the perpetual divisions – particularly in foreign policy – between the Anglo-American world and Europe, which has often been frustrated by what it views as a never-ending ‘claim to Anglo-American superiority.’ This is a surprisingly slim volume for such a big topic – a can-read as well as a must-read.” [The Books of Jacob]( [The Books of Jacob]( By Olga Tokarczuk [Eswar Prasad]( says: “Often called the Nobel laureate Tokarczuk’s magnum opus, The Books of Jakob is an expansive and layered novel exploring the complex connections among religions, cultures, nationalities, and more. Despite being a work of fiction, it offers new perspectives on elements of Polish (and European) history, with the characters and events embodying both levity and darkness. The Books of Jakob provides an interesting contrast with the epic historical novels of Henryk Sienkiewicz, another Polish Nobel laureate, whose work tends to cast earlier Polish history in a (mostly) positive light. As with (translations of) Tokarczuk’s other books, this is not an easy page-turner; it requires focused effort, because there is so much to absorb. But the payoff makes it worthwhile.” [Subscribe to PS today for the latest on innovation and more.]( [The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation]( [The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation]( By Andrew Wilson [Mark Leonard]( says: “Despite being published in 2015, the book goes a long way toward explaining the roots of the current crisis. Written by my colleague Andrew Wilson, it tells the little-known but fascinating story of the unlikely creation of a Ukrainian state and identity. Wilson’s account of the process of forging a Cossack identity out of the disparate cultural influences that have shaped Ukraine – a nation at the crossroads of civilizations – is particularly interesting.” [Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right]( [Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right]( By Jane Mayer [Daron Acemoglu]( says: “I had occasion to re-read this book recently. At a time when US democracy is on the brink, Jane Mayer’s careful investigation of billionaires organizing anti-democratic movements has renewed resonance.” Project Syndicate publishes and provides, on a not-for-profit basis, original commentary by the world's leading thinkers to more than 500 media outlets in over 150 countries. 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