Book a Week Club

Happy New Year, and get ready for one full of interesting twists, turns, and returns to the theories and discourses driving international relations. Although I gave up making New Year resolutions, I am going to venture into an ambitious reading plan. Join me this year as we enjoy a book a week. This year’s book-a-week club will set out on a structured reading plan that adds context to today’s global challenges. This reading plan is not set in stone, so it will likely evolve as things of interest pop up or as a particular subject stands out amidst the goings on of relations in 2016. My goal each week is to offer a short…very short, summary of key points or at least points that I find interesting and relevant. Here is a preview of the books we might explore. I welcome any suggestions or other recommendations that would broaden the year’s understanding of what is going on in the world.

January – Past, Present, Future

·         - World Order by Henry Kissinger

·         - History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire: Abridge Edition by Edward Gibbon (ambitious start to the year I know; this will only be a good academic skim)

·         - Muqaddimah by Ibn Khaldun

·         - ?

February – Biographies

·         - Grant’s Memoirs

·         - Kamal Atatürk

·         - George F. Kennan by John Lewis Gaddis

·         - ?

March – Theories

·         - The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt

·         - ?

·         - ?

·         - ?

 

April – Political Philosophies

·         - On Politics: A History of Political Thought: From Herodotus to the Present Vol. 1 by Alan Ryan

·         - Immanuel Kant

·         - Politics among Nations by Hans Morgenthau

·         - Politics and Vision by Sheldon Wolin

May – World War I

·         - The Sleepwalkers by Christopher Clark?

·         - ?

·         - All Quiet on the Western Front by  Erich Maria Remarque

·         - ?

June – In Practice

·         - Strategy by Lawrence Freedman

·         - The Campaigns of Napoleon by David Chandler

·         - Diplomacy by Henry Kissinger

·         - ?

July – Contemporary Thought

·         - ?

·         - ?

·         - ?

·         - ?

August – Re-reads

·         - History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides

·         - ?

·         - ?

·         - ?

September – More Biographies

·         - Bismarck

·         - Eisenhower

·         - ?

·         - ?

October – More Philosophies

·         - On Politics: A History of Political Thought: From Herodotus to the Present Vol. 2 by Alan Ryan

·         - Augustine

·         - Nietzsche

·         - ?

November – War

·         - A Bright Shining Lie by Neil Sheehan

·         - ?

·         - ?

·         - ?

December – Peace

·         - Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo?

·         - ?

·         - ?

·         - ?

As you can see, there are many open possibilities. This list will change. I do not even know yet what will pique my interest, or yours. So let me know if there is something worth reading. Let’s get started.