Naomi Wolf
Naomi Wolf, the author of The Beauty Myth, chooses six recent reads that have had a strong impact on her. Her next book, The End of America, will be published later this year.
Marie Antoinette by Antonia Fraser (Anchor, $17). I had to rush out and buy this book after I saw the movie with Kirsten Dunst. Fraser has a gift for making history narratively juicy. A gossipfest from another era, with plenty of lessons about hubris and repression that are timely today.
Buy Marie Antoinette at Amazon
Touched With Fire by Kay Redfield Jamison (Free Press, $15). Jamison is a wonderful writer and a leading expert on the workings of the brain. This book is about the many creative people who have suffered from manic depression. It is fascinating to see how a medical condition can give rise to the kind of creativity that Byron and van Gogh experienced and expressed.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Reds by Ted Morgan (Random House, $17). This is a stunning and very balanced account of the Red Scare in the U.S. in the 1950s. It is amazing to see how little it takes to close down an open society once people feel they are personally threatened for having engaged in dissent.
All Governments Lie! by Myra MacPherson (Scribner, $35). This biography of the great muckraking journalist I.F. Stone is another riveting reminder of how the U.S. periodically engages in efforts to close down dissent.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Guantánamo by Michael Ratner with Ellen Ray (Chelsea Green, $15). I can’t say this book makes pleasant reading, but it is definitely one of the most important books on my list. Written by a leading human-rights lawyer who represents Guantánamo detainees, Guantánamo will trouble your conscience. What we are doing there to innocent people as well as to people who are guilty—both of whom should face a fair trial—is far beyond what even educated people are likely to have read about.
To Begin the World Anew
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
'The patient, our home planet Earth, is in critical condition'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
The Week contest: Beauty betterment
Puzzles and Quizzes A woman shops for beauty products
By The Week US Published
-
Jack Smith filing details Jan. 6 case against Trump
Speed Read The special counsel's newly unsealed brief argues Trump is not immune from prosecution and gives new details on his efforts to overturn the election
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Rivers Solomon's 6 chilling books about the dark side of motherhood
Feature Rivers Solomon is the author of "Model home," and "Sorrowland"
By The Week US Published
-
Abbott Kahler's 6 favorite mystery books set on isolated islands
Feature Abbott Kahler is the author of "Eden Undone," "The Ghosts of Eden Park," and "Sin in the Second City"
By The Week US Published
-
H.W. Brands' 6 favorite books that reflect on American history
H.W. Brands is the author of "America First"
By The Week US Published
-
Peter Godfrey-Smith's 6 favorite books for expanding your mind
Feature The philosopher recommends works by Annie Proulx, Douglas Hofstadter, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Chelsea Bieker's 6 favorite books dramatizing domestic violence's impact
Feature The novelist recommends works by Anna Quindlen, Anita Shreve, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Helen Phillips' 6 favorite books about robotic companions
Feature The novelist recommends works by Kazuo Ishiguro, Jessamine Chan, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Todd May's 6 favorite books that offer philosophical insight
Feature The philosopher recommends works by Virginia Woolf, William Shakespeare, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Lev Grossman's 6 favorite books that explore the Middle Ages
Feature The author recommends works by Dan Jones, T.H. White, and more
By The Week US Published