-
How to Be a Patriot
- Why Love of Country Can End Our Very British Culture War
- Narrated by: Sunder Katwala
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
How to Be a Patriot
Buy for $21.77
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Identity Trap
- A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time
- By: Yascha Mounk
- Narrated by: JD Jackson
- Length: 11 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 165
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 144
For much of history, societies have violently oppressed ethnic, religious, and sexual minorities. It is no surprise that many who passionately believe in social justice came to believe that members of marginalized groups need to take pride in their identity to resist injustice.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
May It Mark A Turning Point
- By Larry on 09-28-23
By: Yascha Mounk
-
The New Right
- A Journey to the Fringe of American Politics
- By: Michael Malice
- Narrated by: Michael Malice
- Length: 9 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 2,612
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,288
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 2,274
From the heterodox right wing of the 1940s to the Buchanan/Rothbard alliance of 1992 and all the way through to what he witnessed personally in Charlottesville, The New Right is a thorough firsthand accounting of the concepts, characters and chronology of this widely misunderstood sociopolitical phenomenon. Today’s fringe is tomorrow’s orthodoxy. As entertaining as it is informative, The New Right is required listening for every American across the spectrum who would like to learn more about the past, present and future of our divided political culture.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great political analysis
- By Turner Houghton on 05-23-19
By: Michael Malice
-
The Fourth Turning Is Here
- What the Seasons of History Tell Us About How and When This Crisis Will End
- By: Neil Howe
- Narrated by: Neil Howe
- Length: 20 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 333
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 280
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 279
Twenty-five years ago, Neil Howe and the late William Strauss dazzled the world with a provocative new theory of American history. Looking back at the last 500 years, they’d uncovered a distinct pattern: modern history moves in cycles, each one lasting roughly 80 to 100 years, the length of a long human life, with each cycle composed of four eras—or “turnings”—that always arrive in the same order and each last about 25 years. The last of these eras—the fourth turning—was always the most perilous, a period of civic upheaval and national mobilization.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A little baffled
- By John Coleman on 07-18-23
By: Neil Howe
-
Why We're Polarized
- By: Ezra Klein
- Narrated by: Ezra Klein
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,489
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,100
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,077
In Why We’re Polarized, Klein reveals the structural and psychological forces behind America’s descent into division and dysfunction. Neither a polemic nor a lament, this book offers a clear framework for understanding everything from Trump’s rise to the Democratic Party’s leftward shift to the politicization of everyday culture. America is polarized, first and foremost, by identity. Everyone engaged in American politics is engaged, at some level, in identity politics.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Good as an intro, skip if you’re a wonk
- By Tony on 01-29-20
By: Ezra Klein
-
Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race
- By: Reni Eddo-Lodge
- Narrated by: Reni Eddo-Lodge
- Length: 5 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,803
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,593
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,580
In February 2014, Reni Eddo-Lodge posted an impassioned argument on her blog about her deep-seated frustration with the way discussions of race and racism in Britain were constantly being shut down by those who weren't affected by it. She gave the post the title 'Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race'. Her sharp, fiercely intelligent words hit a nerve, and the post went viral, spawning a huge number of comments from people desperate to speak up about their own similar experiences.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
In truth, I don't have THAT particular privilege
- By Buretto on 03-08-18
By: Reni Eddo-Lodge
-
Twilight of Democracy
- The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism
- By: Anne Applebaum
- Narrated by: Anne Applebaum
- Length: 5 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,094
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,799
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,781
From the United States and Britain to continental Europe and beyond, liberal democracy is under siege, while authoritarianism is on the rise. In Twilight of Democracy, Anne Applebaum, an award-winning historian of Soviet atrocities who was one of the first American journalists to raise an alarm about antidemocratic trends in the West, explains the lure of nationalism and autocracy. In this captivating essay, she contends that political systems with radically simple beliefs are inherently appealing, especially when they benefit the loyal to the exclusion of everyone else.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Modern Dictators & President who wants to be them
- By AJ on 07-23-20
By: Anne Applebaum
-
The Identity Trap
- A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time
- By: Yascha Mounk
- Narrated by: JD Jackson
- Length: 11 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 165
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 144
For much of history, societies have violently oppressed ethnic, religious, and sexual minorities. It is no surprise that many who passionately believe in social justice came to believe that members of marginalized groups need to take pride in their identity to resist injustice.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
May It Mark A Turning Point
- By Larry on 09-28-23
By: Yascha Mounk
-
The New Right
- A Journey to the Fringe of American Politics
- By: Michael Malice
- Narrated by: Michael Malice
- Length: 9 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 2,612
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,288
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 2,274
From the heterodox right wing of the 1940s to the Buchanan/Rothbard alliance of 1992 and all the way through to what he witnessed personally in Charlottesville, The New Right is a thorough firsthand accounting of the concepts, characters and chronology of this widely misunderstood sociopolitical phenomenon. Today’s fringe is tomorrow’s orthodoxy. As entertaining as it is informative, The New Right is required listening for every American across the spectrum who would like to learn more about the past, present and future of our divided political culture.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great political analysis
- By Turner Houghton on 05-23-19
By: Michael Malice
-
The Fourth Turning Is Here
- What the Seasons of History Tell Us About How and When This Crisis Will End
- By: Neil Howe
- Narrated by: Neil Howe
- Length: 20 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 333
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 280
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 279
Twenty-five years ago, Neil Howe and the late William Strauss dazzled the world with a provocative new theory of American history. Looking back at the last 500 years, they’d uncovered a distinct pattern: modern history moves in cycles, each one lasting roughly 80 to 100 years, the length of a long human life, with each cycle composed of four eras—or “turnings”—that always arrive in the same order and each last about 25 years. The last of these eras—the fourth turning—was always the most perilous, a period of civic upheaval and national mobilization.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A little baffled
- By John Coleman on 07-18-23
By: Neil Howe
-
Why We're Polarized
- By: Ezra Klein
- Narrated by: Ezra Klein
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,489
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,100
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,077
In Why We’re Polarized, Klein reveals the structural and psychological forces behind America’s descent into division and dysfunction. Neither a polemic nor a lament, this book offers a clear framework for understanding everything from Trump’s rise to the Democratic Party’s leftward shift to the politicization of everyday culture. America is polarized, first and foremost, by identity. Everyone engaged in American politics is engaged, at some level, in identity politics.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Good as an intro, skip if you’re a wonk
- By Tony on 01-29-20
By: Ezra Klein
-
Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race
- By: Reni Eddo-Lodge
- Narrated by: Reni Eddo-Lodge
- Length: 5 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,803
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,593
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,580
In February 2014, Reni Eddo-Lodge posted an impassioned argument on her blog about her deep-seated frustration with the way discussions of race and racism in Britain were constantly being shut down by those who weren't affected by it. She gave the post the title 'Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race'. Her sharp, fiercely intelligent words hit a nerve, and the post went viral, spawning a huge number of comments from people desperate to speak up about their own similar experiences.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
In truth, I don't have THAT particular privilege
- By Buretto on 03-08-18
By: Reni Eddo-Lodge
-
Twilight of Democracy
- The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism
- By: Anne Applebaum
- Narrated by: Anne Applebaum
- Length: 5 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,094
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,799
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,781
From the United States and Britain to continental Europe and beyond, liberal democracy is under siege, while authoritarianism is on the rise. In Twilight of Democracy, Anne Applebaum, an award-winning historian of Soviet atrocities who was one of the first American journalists to raise an alarm about antidemocratic trends in the West, explains the lure of nationalism and autocracy. In this captivating essay, she contends that political systems with radically simple beliefs are inherently appealing, especially when they benefit the loyal to the exclusion of everyone else.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Modern Dictators & President who wants to be them
- By AJ on 07-23-20
By: Anne Applebaum
-
What's Our Problem?
- A Self-Help Book for Societies
- By: Tim Urban
- Narrated by: Tim Urban
- Length: 13 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 440
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 388
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 385
From the creator of the wildly popular blog Wait but Why, a fun and fascinating deep dive into what the hell is going on in our strange, unprecedented modern times.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Good for a while but then goes hard off the rails
- By g27c on 04-20-23
By: Tim Urban
-
Dispatches from the Race War
- By: Tim Wise
- Narrated by: Tim Wise
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 48
In this collection of essays, renowned social-justice advocate Tim Wise confronts racism in contemporary America. Seen through the lens of major flashpoints during the Obama and Trump years, Dispatches from the Race War faces the consequences of white supremacy in all its forms. This includes a discussion of the bigoted undertones of the Tea Party’s backlash, the killing of Trayvon Martin, current-day anti-immigrant hysteria, the rise of openly avowed white nationalism, the violent policing of African Americans, and more.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Best book ever!
- By Ethel on 12-07-21
By: Tim Wise
-
The Persuaders
- At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy
- By: Anand Giridharadas
- Narrated by: Anand Giridharadas
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 335
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 286
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 282
The lifeblood of any free society is persuasion: changing other people’s minds in order to change things. But America is suffering a crisis of faith in persuasion that is putting its democracy and the planet itself at risk. Anand Giridharadas takes us inside these movements and battles, seeking out the dissenters who continue to champion persuasion in an age of polarization. As the book’s subjects grapple with how to call out injustices while calling in those who don’t agree with them but just might one day, they point a way to healing, and changing, a fracturing country.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Everyone should read this book
- By bluephoenix515 on 11-24-22
-
The Cruelty Is the Point
- The Past, Present, and Future of Trump's America
- By: Adam Serwer
- Narrated by: Adam Serwer
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 497
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 416
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 414
To many, our most shocking political crises appear unprecedented—un-American, even. But they are not, writes The Atlantic’s Adam Serwer in this prescient essay collection, which dissects the most devastating moments in recent memory to reveal deeply entrenched dynamics, patterns as old as the country itself. The January 6 insurrection, anti-immigrant sentiment, and American authoritarianism all have historic roots that explain their continued power with or without President Donald Trump—a fact borne out by what has happened since his departure from the White House.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
excellent thoughtful writing, rare these days
- By Mike on 06-30-21
By: Adam Serwer
-
Our Own Worst Enemy
- The Assault from Within on Modern Democracy
- By: Tom Nichols
- Narrated by: Tom Nichols
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 390
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 346
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 341
Over the past three decades, citizens of democracies who claim to value freedom, tolerance, and the rule of law have increasingly embraced illiberal politicians and platforms. Democracy is in trouble - but who is really to blame? In Our Own Worst Enemy, Tom Nichols challenges the current depictions of the rise of illiberal and antidemocratic movements in the United States and elsewhere as the result of the deprivations of globalization or the malign decisions of elites. Rather, he places the blame for the rise of illiberalism on the people themselves.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting but shallow
- By Anonymous User on 09-11-21
By: Tom Nichols
-
Democracy in Black
- How Race Still Enslaves the American Soul
- By: Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
- Narrated by: Kevin Free
- Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 561
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 494
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 493
America's great promise of equality has always rung hollow in the ears of African Americans. But today the situation has grown even more dire. From the murders of black youth by the police to the dismantling of the Voting Rights Act to the disaster visited upon poor and middle-class black families by the Great Recession, it is clear that black America faces an emergency - at the very moment the election of the first black president has prompted many to believe we've solved America's race problem.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Dysfunctional Mindset of American
- By Paul T. on 07-09-16
-
Against the Web
- A Cosmopolitan Answer to the New Right
- By: Michael Brooks
- Narrated by: Sam Seder
- Length: 2 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 37
As the host of The Michael Brooks Show and cohost of the Majority Report, Brooks was a progressive fighter whose work brought people together from around the world. In this, his first book, he lets his understanding of the digital media environment direct his analysis of the "conservative rebels" who had taken YouTube by storm in 2018. Brooks provides a theoretically rigorous but accessible critique of the most prominent "renegades," including Sam Harris, Jordan Peterson, and Brett Weinstein while also examining the social, political, and media environment that such rebels thrive in.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
REST IN POWER MICHAEL BROOKS
- By illiterate/left-handed/Aries on 06-13-23
By: Michael Brooks
-
Identity
- The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment
- By: Francis Fukuyama
- Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 750
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 639
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 627
In 2014, Francis Fukuyama wrote that American institutions were in decay, as the state was progressively captured by powerful interest groups. Two years later, his predictions were borne out by the rise to power of a series of political outsiders whose economic nationalism and authoritarian tendencies threatened to destabilize the entire international order. These populist nationalists seek direct charismatic connection to “the people”, who are usually defined in narrow identity terms that offer an irresistible call to an in-group and exclude large parts of the population as a whole.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Robotic narrator
- By Shahin on 09-19-18
By: Francis Fukuyama
-
Democrat to Deplorable
- Why Nine Million Obama Voters Ditched the Democrats and Embraced Donald Trump
- By: Jack Murphy
- Narrated by: Jack Heald
- Length: 6 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 31
Democrat to Deplorable takes a deep look at the nine million Democrats who proudly switched parties to vote for President Donald Trump. These voters feel the cold edge of the culture war more than any other group, and this book captures their experiences and the current zeitgeist. Based on a national survey, in-depth interviews, and a personal narrative, Democrat to Deplorable is the definitive book which explores and explains the current cultural climate leading to President Donald Trump, Trumpism, and the New Right.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
informative perspective
- By big kev on 08-26-21
By: Jack Murphy
-
How to Be a Liberal
- The Story of Liberalism and the Fight for Its Life
- By: Ian Dunt
- Narrated by: Ian Dunt
- Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 22
From Brexit Britain to Trump's America to Orban's Hungary, liberal values are under attack. In a soaring narrative that stretches from the English Civil War to the 2008 financial crash and the rise of populism, the journalist Ian Dunt tells the epic story of liberalism, from its birth in the fight against absolute monarchy to the modern-day resistance against the new populism. This book explains the political ideas which underpin the modern world. But it is also something much more than that - it is a rallying cry for those who still believe in freedom and reason.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Almost Quit Listening, But Glad I Stuck With It
- By Donald Arteaga on 04-19-22
By: Ian Dunt
-
The Purpose of Power
- How We Come Together When We Fall Apart
- By: Alicia Garza
- Narrated by: Alicia Garza
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 318
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 265
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 264
In 2013, Alicia Garza wrote what she called “a love letter to Black people” on Facebook, in the aftermath of the acquittal of the man who murdered seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin. Garza wrote: Black people. I love you. I love us. Our lives matter. With the speed and networking capacities of social media, #BlackLivesMatter became the hashtag heard ’round the world. But Garza knew even then that hashtags don’t start movements - people do.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Black Lives Matter is not about rioting: read this
- By Miracle on 10-21-20
By: Alicia Garza
-
The Groundings with My Brothers
- By: Walter Rodney
- Narrated by: Ron Butler
- Length: 4 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 67
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 57
In his short life, the Guyanese intellectual Walter Rodney emerged as one of the leading thinkers and activists of the anticolonial revolution, leading movements in North America, South America, the African continent, and the Caribbean. In each locale, Rodney found himself a lightning rod for working class Black Power. His deportation catalyzed 20th century Jamaica's most significant rebellion, the 1968 Rodney riots, and his scholarship trained a generation how to think politics at an international scale.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential Reading
- By ben on 03-13-24
By: Walter Rodney
Publisher's summary
How do we define patriotism in a diverse society? What divides us and what brings us together? Why do we feel uncomfortable celebrating our country’s history?
How to be a Patriot offers a new way of understanding our collective identity in a country wracked by division and brimming with markers of selfhood – faith, race, gender, age, sexuality.
Sunder Katwala himself grew up with some questions to work through. As a half-Indian, Irish Catholic child of the NHS, the chequered history of post-imperial Britain seemed very personal to him, but he realised that with that background he could hardly be anything but British, and proud of it too.
His timely and clear-eyed analysis seeks to navigate the many crises of this increasingly disunited kingdom: extremism and integration after 7/7; fear of immigration and the deep divides of Brexit; the resurgence of online racism; and the debate over our cultural heritage. Equipped with a nuanced understanding of the subject and a wealth of supporting data, he sets out to foster a more open and tolerant society: one that welcomes alternative ideas and cultures rather than shutting them out.
Ultimately, How to be a Patriot is a rousing story of lives lived together and shared values. Far from being divisive, it concludes, an inclusive and confident patriotism is a reminder that our differences need not define us.
Critic reviews
‘Excellent. Katwala is an elegant and exuberant writer. This lovely book is both polemic and user’s manual.’ The Spectator
‘Eloquent and engaging.’ TLS
‘A really great read about how we can have an open and inclusive patriotism.’ Baroness Sayeeda Warsi
‘Really, really thought-provoking and nuanced. I suggest that anyone with an interest in the future of this country should read it.’ Nihal Arthanayake
‘Well-written, thought-provoking and insightful in its analysis, How to Be a Patriot is essential reading.’ Nick Thomas-Symonds
‘This important book is predominantly about searching for common ground.’ Eric Kaufmann, Literary Review
‘Fantastic. I’ve been waiting for a Sunder Katwala book.’ Geoff Lloyd, Reasons to be Cheerful
'Calm, sensible, and challenging. Sunder shows that a more united, more tolerant Britain is possible, but that it it needs to be created.' Joel Budd, The Economist
‘Ever my go-to guy when trying to make sense of this ferociously polarised issue.’ Tom Holland
‘Sunder Katwala has helped to lead the public conversation on national identity.' David Lammy MP
‘There are few better judges of the state of the national debate. Landmark.’ Daniel Finkelstein
‘Wide ranging, wise and humane. Fizzing with energy, ideas and passion.’ Rob Ford, author of Brexitland
‘Deeply persuasive. … Katwala deals with reality rather than caricatures.’ Jewish Chronicle
‘Compelling and passionate. Truly insightful.’ Bobby Duffy, author of The Generation Divide
‘Excellent, thought-provoking and wise.’ Colin Yeo, author of Welcome to Britain
Related to this topic
-
A Time to Build
- From Family and Community to Congress and the Campus, How Recommitting to Our Institutions Can Revive the American Dream
- By: Yuval Levin
- Narrated by: Ford Enlow
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 175
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 143
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 142
Americans are living through a social crisis. Our politics is polarized and bitterly divided. Culture wars rage on campus, in the media, social media, and other arenas of our common life. And for too many Americans, alienation can descend into despair, weakening families and communities and even driving an explosion of opioid abuse. Left and right alike have responded with populist anger at our institutions, and use only metaphors of destruction to describe the path forward: cleaning house, draining swamps. But, as Yuval Levin argues, this is a misguided prescription.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Incisive and Illuminating
- By Jakob on 01-26-23
By: Yuval Levin
-
The People vs. Democracy
- Why Our Freedom Is in Danger and How to Save It
- By: Yascha Mounk
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 205
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 172
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 171
The world is in turmoil. From India to Turkey and from Poland to the United States, authoritarian populists have seized power. As a result democracy itself may now be at risk. Two core components of liberal democracy - individual rights and the popular will - are at war with each other. As the role of money in politics soared and important issues were taken out of public contestation, a system of "rights without democracy" took hold. Populists who rail against this say they want to return power to the people. But in practice they create a system of "democracy without rights."
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Not worth it
- By DailyShopper on 06-07-18
By: Yascha Mounk
-
We Stand Divided
- The Rift Between American Jews and Israel
- By: Daniel Gordis
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 88
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 75
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 75
Relations between the American Jewish community and Israel are at an all-time nadir. Since Israel’s founding 70 years ago, particularly as memory of the Holocaust and of Israel’s early vulnerability has receded, the divide has grown only wider. Most explanations pin the blame on Israel’s handling of its conflict with the Palestinians, Israel’s attitude toward non-Orthodox Judaism, and Israel’s dismissive attitude toward American Jews in general. In short, the cause for the rupture is not what Israel is; it’s what Israel does.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Jews Will Argue With Each Other
- By Benzion N. Chinn on 09-12-19
By: Daniel Gordis
-
The Light That Failed
- Why the West Is Losing the Fight for Democracy
- By: Ivan Krastev, Stephen Holmes
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Why did the West, after winning the Cold War, lose its political balance? In the early 1990s, hopes for the eastward spread of liberal democracy were high. And yet the transformation of Eastern European countries gave rise to a bitter repudiation of liberalism itself, not only there but also back in the heartland of the West. In this brilliant work of political history, Ivan Krastev and Stephen Holmes argue that the supposed end of Communism turned out to be only the beginning of the age of the autocrat.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great text
- By Safronov on 05-03-21
By: Ivan Krastev, and others
-
Identity
- The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment
- By: Francis Fukuyama
- Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 750
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 639
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 627
In 2014, Francis Fukuyama wrote that American institutions were in decay, as the state was progressively captured by powerful interest groups. Two years later, his predictions were borne out by the rise to power of a series of political outsiders whose economic nationalism and authoritarian tendencies threatened to destabilize the entire international order. These populist nationalists seek direct charismatic connection to “the people”, who are usually defined in narrow identity terms that offer an irresistible call to an in-group and exclude large parts of the population as a whole.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Robotic narrator
- By Shahin on 09-19-18
By: Francis Fukuyama
-
What Were We Thinking
- A Brief Intellectual History of the Trump Era
- By: Carlos Lozada
- Narrated by: Christian Barillas
- Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 184
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 155
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 155
It is an irony of our age that a man who rarely reads has unleashed an onslaught of books about his tenure and his time. Dissections of the white working class. Manifestos of political resistance. Works on identity, gender, and migration. Memoirs on race and protest. Revelations of White House mayhem. Warnings over the future of conservatism, progressivism, and of American democracy itself.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Useful book
- By Kindle Customer on 11-22-20
By: Carlos Lozada
-
A Time to Build
- From Family and Community to Congress and the Campus, How Recommitting to Our Institutions Can Revive the American Dream
- By: Yuval Levin
- Narrated by: Ford Enlow
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 175
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 143
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 142
Americans are living through a social crisis. Our politics is polarized and bitterly divided. Culture wars rage on campus, in the media, social media, and other arenas of our common life. And for too many Americans, alienation can descend into despair, weakening families and communities and even driving an explosion of opioid abuse. Left and right alike have responded with populist anger at our institutions, and use only metaphors of destruction to describe the path forward: cleaning house, draining swamps. But, as Yuval Levin argues, this is a misguided prescription.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Incisive and Illuminating
- By Jakob on 01-26-23
By: Yuval Levin
-
The People vs. Democracy
- Why Our Freedom Is in Danger and How to Save It
- By: Yascha Mounk
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 205
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 172
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 171
The world is in turmoil. From India to Turkey and from Poland to the United States, authoritarian populists have seized power. As a result democracy itself may now be at risk. Two core components of liberal democracy - individual rights and the popular will - are at war with each other. As the role of money in politics soared and important issues were taken out of public contestation, a system of "rights without democracy" took hold. Populists who rail against this say they want to return power to the people. But in practice they create a system of "democracy without rights."
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Not worth it
- By DailyShopper on 06-07-18
By: Yascha Mounk
-
We Stand Divided
- The Rift Between American Jews and Israel
- By: Daniel Gordis
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 88
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 75
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 75
Relations between the American Jewish community and Israel are at an all-time nadir. Since Israel’s founding 70 years ago, particularly as memory of the Holocaust and of Israel’s early vulnerability has receded, the divide has grown only wider. Most explanations pin the blame on Israel’s handling of its conflict with the Palestinians, Israel’s attitude toward non-Orthodox Judaism, and Israel’s dismissive attitude toward American Jews in general. In short, the cause for the rupture is not what Israel is; it’s what Israel does.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Jews Will Argue With Each Other
- By Benzion N. Chinn on 09-12-19
By: Daniel Gordis
-
The Light That Failed
- Why the West Is Losing the Fight for Democracy
- By: Ivan Krastev, Stephen Holmes
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Why did the West, after winning the Cold War, lose its political balance? In the early 1990s, hopes for the eastward spread of liberal democracy were high. And yet the transformation of Eastern European countries gave rise to a bitter repudiation of liberalism itself, not only there but also back in the heartland of the West. In this brilliant work of political history, Ivan Krastev and Stephen Holmes argue that the supposed end of Communism turned out to be only the beginning of the age of the autocrat.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great text
- By Safronov on 05-03-21
By: Ivan Krastev, and others
-
Identity
- The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment
- By: Francis Fukuyama
- Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 750
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 639
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 627
In 2014, Francis Fukuyama wrote that American institutions were in decay, as the state was progressively captured by powerful interest groups. Two years later, his predictions were borne out by the rise to power of a series of political outsiders whose economic nationalism and authoritarian tendencies threatened to destabilize the entire international order. These populist nationalists seek direct charismatic connection to “the people”, who are usually defined in narrow identity terms that offer an irresistible call to an in-group and exclude large parts of the population as a whole.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Robotic narrator
- By Shahin on 09-19-18
By: Francis Fukuyama
-
What Were We Thinking
- A Brief Intellectual History of the Trump Era
- By: Carlos Lozada
- Narrated by: Christian Barillas
- Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 184
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 155
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 155
It is an irony of our age that a man who rarely reads has unleashed an onslaught of books about his tenure and his time. Dissections of the white working class. Manifestos of political resistance. Works on identity, gender, and migration. Memoirs on race and protest. Revelations of White House mayhem. Warnings over the future of conservatism, progressivism, and of American democracy itself.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Useful book
- By Kindle Customer on 11-22-20
By: Carlos Lozada
-
Democracy in Black
- How Race Still Enslaves the American Soul
- By: Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
- Narrated by: Kevin Free
- Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 561
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 494
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 493
America's great promise of equality has always rung hollow in the ears of African Americans. But today the situation has grown even more dire. From the murders of black youth by the police to the dismantling of the Voting Rights Act to the disaster visited upon poor and middle-class black families by the Great Recession, it is clear that black America faces an emergency - at the very moment the election of the first black president has prompted many to believe we've solved America's race problem.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Dysfunctional Mindset of American
- By Paul T. on 07-09-16
-
Why We're Polarized
- By: Ezra Klein
- Narrated by: Ezra Klein
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,489
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,100
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,077
In Why We’re Polarized, Klein reveals the structural and psychological forces behind America’s descent into division and dysfunction. Neither a polemic nor a lament, this book offers a clear framework for understanding everything from Trump’s rise to the Democratic Party’s leftward shift to the politicization of everyday culture. America is polarized, first and foremost, by identity. Everyone engaged in American politics is engaged, at some level, in identity politics.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Good as an intro, skip if you’re a wonk
- By Tony on 01-29-20
By: Ezra Klein
-
Temptations of Power
- Islamists & Illiberal Democracy in a New Middle East
- By: Shadi Hamid
- Narrated by: Peter Ganim
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 33
In 1989, Francis Fukuyama famously announced the "end of history." The Berlin Wall had fallen; liberal democracy had won out. But what of illiberal democracy - the idea that popular majorities, working through the democratic process, might reject gender equality, religious freedoms, and other norms that Western democracies take for granted? Nowhere have such considerations become more relevant than in the Middle East, where the uprisings of 2011 swept the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups to power.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A new perspective
- By Dave114 on 08-06-18
By: Shadi Hamid
-
When the Facts Change
- Essays, 1995-2010
- By: Tony Judt
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 14 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 42
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
In When the Facts Change, Tony Judt's widow and fellow historian Jennifer Homans has assembled an essential collection of the most important and influential pieces written in the last 15 years of Judt's life, the years in which he found his voice in the public sphere. Included are seminal essays on the full range of Judt's concerns, including Europe as an idea and in reality, before 1989 and thereafter; Israel, the Holocaust and the Jews; American hyperpower and the world after 9/11.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential
- By Herman Utik on 09-19-16
By: Tony Judt
-
Our Divided Political Heart
- The Battle for the American Idea in an Age of Discontent
- By: E. J. Dionne
- Narrated by: Michael Kramer
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 35
Our Divided Political Heart will be the must-listen book of the 2012 election campaign. Offering an incisive analysis of how hyper-individualism is poisoning the nation's political atmosphere, E. J. Dionne Jr., argues that Americans can't agree on who we are because we can't agree on who we've been, or what it is, philosophically and spiritually, that makes us Americans.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Good points and lots of good information
- By Jamie B on 08-15-12
By: E. J. Dionne
-
Rise Up
- Confronting a Country at the Crossroads
- By: Al Sharpton
- Narrated by: Al Sharpton, Leon Nixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 135
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 110
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 108
Beginning with a foreword by Michael Eric Dyson, Rise Up is a rousing call to action for our nation, drawing on lessons learned from Reverend Al Sharpton’s unique experience as a politician, television and radio host, and civil rights leader.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Inspired and inspiring
- By Jessica S on 10-13-20
By: Al Sharpton
-
The Fire Is upon Us
- James Baldwin, William F. Buckley Jr., and the Debate over Race in America
- By: Nicholas Buccola
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 14 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 151
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 132
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 130
On February 18, 1965, an overflowing crowd packed the Cambridge Union in Cambridge, England, to witness a historic televised debate between James Baldwin, the leading literary voice of the civil rights movement, and William F. Buckley Jr., a fierce critic of the movement and America's most influential conservative intellectual. The topic was "the American dream is at the expense of the American Negro", and no one who has seen the debate can soon forget it. Nicholas Buccola's The Fire Is upon Us is the first book to tell the full story of the event.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sadly, the story is timeless.
- By Edward P. Cerne on 01-17-20
By: Nicholas Buccola
-
The Age of Illusions
- How America Squandered Its Cold War Victory
- By: Andrew Bacevich
- Narrated by: Andrew Bacevich, Rob Shapiro
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 124
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 107
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 107
When the Cold War ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Washington establishment felt it had prevailed in a world-historical struggle. Our side had won, a verdict that was both decisive and irreversible. For the world’s “indispensable nation”, its “sole superpower”, the future looked very bright. History, having brought the United States to the very summit of power and prestige, had validated American-style liberal democratic capitalism as universally applicable.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Needs an update
- By Scott Burton on 05-24-20
By: Andrew Bacevich
-
On Palestine
- By: Noam Chomsky, Ilan Pappe
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 5 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 137
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 121
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 122
Operation Protective Edge, Israel's 2014 assault on Gaza, left thousands of Palestinians dead and cleared the way for another Israeli land grab. The need to stand in solidarity with Palestinians has never been greater. Ilan Pappe and Noam Chomsky, two leading voices in the struggle to liberate Palestine, discuss the road ahead for Palestinians and how the international community can pressure Israel to end its human rights abuses against the people of Palestine.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent Introduction/101 Level Book
- By Anonymous User on 10-24-23
By: Noam Chomsky, and others
-
The Inevitability of Tragedy
- Henry Kissinger and His World
- By: Barry Gewen
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 18 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 56
Few public officials have provoked such intense controversy as Henry Kissinger. During his time in the Nixon and Ford administrations, he came to be admired and hated in equal measure. Notoriously, he believed that foreign affairs ought to be based primarily on the power relationships of a situation, not simply on ethics. He went so far as to argue that under certain circumstances America had to protect its national interests even if that meant repressing other countries' attempts at democracy.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting but rambles
- By K on 02-17-21
By: Barry Gewen
-
White Christian Privilege
- The Illusion of Religious Equality in America
- By: Khyati Y. Joshi
- Narrated by: Priya Ayyar
- Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 25
The United States is recognized as the most religiously diverse country in the world, and yet its laws and customs, which many have come to see as normal features of American life, actually keep the constitutional ideal of “religious freedom for all” from becoming a reality. Christian beliefs, norms, and practices infuse our society; they are embedded in our institutions, creating the structures and expectations that define the idea of “Americanness.”
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Audible needs to allow longer headlines
- By Adam Shields on 07-28-20
By: Khyati Y. Joshi
-
How Democracy Ends
- By: David Runciman
- Narrated by: David Runciman
- Length: 7 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 37
Since the end of World War II, democracy's sweep across the globe seemed inexorable. Yet today, it seems radically imperiled, even in some of the world's most stable democracies. How bad could things get? In How Democracy Ends, David Runciman argues that we are trapped in outdated 20th-century ideas of democratic failure. By fixating on coups and violence, we are focusing on the wrong threats. Our societies are too affluent, too elderly, and too networked to fall apart as they did in the past. We need new ways of thinking the unthinkable....
By: David Runciman