On Freedom

By: Timothy Snyder

Narrated by: Timothy Snyder

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A brilliant exploration of freedom—what it is, how it’s been misunderstood, and why it’s our only chance for survival—by the acclaimed Yale historian and author of the #1 New York Times bestseller On Tyranny

“A rigorous and visionary argument . . . Buy or borrow this book, read it, take it to heart.”—The Guardian

Timothy Snyder has been called “the leading interpreter of our dark times.” As a historian, he has given us startling reinterpretations of political collapse and mass killing. As a public intellectual, he has turned that knowledge toward counsel and prediction, working against authoritarianism here and abroad. His book On Tyranny has inspired millions around the world to fight for freedom. Now, in this tour de force of political philosophy, he helps us see exactly what we’re fighting for.

Freedom is the great American commitment, but as Snyder argues, we have lost sight of what it means—and this is leading us into crisis. Too many of us look at freedom as the absence of state power: We think we're free if we can do and say as we please, and protect ourselves from government overreach. But true freedom isn’t so much freedom from as freedom to—the freedom to thrive, to take risks for futures we choose by working together. Freedom is the value that makes all other values possible.

On Freedom takes us on a thrilling intellectual journey. Drawing on the work of philosophers and political dissidents, conversations with contemporary thinkers, and his own experiences coming of age in a time of American exceptionalism, Snyder identifies the practices and attitudes—the habits of mind—that will allow us to design a government in which we and future generations can flourish. We come to appreciate the importance of traditions (championed by the right) but also the role of institutions (the purview of the left). Intimate yet ambitious, this book helps forge a new consensus rooted in a politics of abundance, generosity, and grace.

©2024 Timothy Snyder (P)2024 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Stimulating . . . With all his deep absorption in Eastern Europe, Snyder has no illusions about the dilemma of freedom in his own country. Apart from his work as a professor, he teaches prisoners, which gives him a keener appreciation of the unique horrors of American mass incarceration.”—The New York Times

“[A] timely manifesto for our fearful age . . . Snyder knows how precious and fragile freedom is because he has studied and, in Ukraine, even seen what happens to people when brutes take it away. . . . His knowledge of tyranny is invaluable in analyzing freedom. But Snyder’s book goes well beyond history. . . . [which] makes On Freedom intellectually rich, yet personal.”—Financial Times

“[Snyder’s] deep political and philosophical examination of . . . how to create and sustain freedom provides a hopeful view for the future.”—Los Angeles Times

brilliant, removes the veils of inevitability

loved, painful and shocking but grounding in the process. highly recommend for anyone seeking to understand how we got where we are today and how we can seize our future for a positive freedom for all.

Challenging

Timothy Snyder is an excellent writer. There were many pithy one-liners that will make excellent quotes. I'll have to get the Kindle edition for the second listening. This book should be taken very seriously. Will people beg off saying that this level of freedom is too difficult to attain? The oligarch future is not something people will want, but will they do anything? Actually, they will be forced to do something. The books of the New Message from God will help.

Need to fight for our freedoms and democracy!

Timothy Snyder does it again but let’s us in his personal journey to his thinking on the important and now delicate subject of our freedom and democracy. He highlights the rights the all human beings need to have true freedom. America started as a wonderful idea and it evolved to extend that freedom to African American and women but it still needs to continue to evolve to include all. I also like the way he includes climate change and our responsibility to preserve the planet for future generational freedom. Loved it!

Thank you for your courage and openness.

Our time on this planet is short. This book is a reminder that we should be more than passengers. Thank you for “ringing the bell” for all of us.

A rich and entrancing work of intelect and maturity.

This book required me to really think about the words we bandy about so casually. Words like freedom and liberty are so often misunderstood are defined and made real in this book. I only wish I had the pleasure of having a professor with the entrancing breath and intelligence of Dr. Snyder.

Credible.

Credible. The author coveys the concept of freedom from multiple perspectives and his Fact-based yet subjective stories drive a deeper meaning than one would expect from basic academia. Grazing or skimming won’t sink this in. Listen - read - relisten - etc. Add to your library.

Ties the personal to the collective

No book has ever driven home the idea that ignorance of our past condemns us to learn the lessons anew. The lesson is that you cannot protect yourself by yourself, only for yourself, for you will still wake up in a world where everyone else is sure they are doing just the same, all to their own unique ends. We cannot be 330 million individuals all devoted to only their own interests while still ignoring the hubris of considering the country "united".

Now that the election is over, and we are in the hands of insurrectionist who are bent on both landing our perfection, while insisting everything must be rearranged to some new "more perfect" union, this book reads like an "I tried to warn you, but you were to busy embodying everything I was describing."

the gravity of where we are now after the election

the stories as examples made it so real that I needed to take breaks in-between listening

Weaving the threads

Brilliant combination of historical insights, philosophically attuned, biographical storytelling and deep commitment to the common public good called « Freedom »

Outstanding

I’m grateful for the opportunity to reflect on the world and my place in it.