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The Jakarta Method is a must-read on the horrors of the red scare at the height of the cold war. This book was often recommended to me as a work that should be high on my reading list. While the book covers the events of the massacres in Jakarta and around Indonesia, to the best of the author’s ability with the knowledge available, it also takes a comprehensive look around the world at the time to see how US-Sponsored anti-communist movements took hold in other nations. From Brazil and Central America to China, the book’s coverage of American meddling, violent and corrupt movements to destabilize progressive leaders can give a lot of color for the new revolutionary reader on subject matter that is not as often discussed. If you are familiar with US operations in the Cold War, there are many familiar characters and tricks. Highly recommended, especially if you are unfamiliar with the events covered in the book.

This book came highly recommended to me online, though I was initially concerned about its scope—it covers a wide span of history. Still, I was drawn in by the subject matter: Islamic and Arab history. At the time, I had been reading books on Palestine and Iran, and despite their more modern focus, I felt a book like this could help fill in the serious gaps in my understanding and provide essential context for studying those conflicts. I was right. I came away with a much deeper understanding of Islam, the Arab world, and their historical development. The book is highly accessible and easy to grasp, even though this was a topic I was never formally taught in my U.S. education. I strongly recommend it to anyone—especially Americans—looking to close the (likely large) gaps in their knowledge of this part of the world.

Part of what sparked my interest in studying topics like colonialism, the Cold War, and the Third World was my initial deep dive into Iran. The country dominated American political discourse, yet I realized how little I actually knew about it—its people, its history, or the events that shaped the world we live in today. I had already explored Iran’s predicament through several lectures, but this was my first time reading a full book on the subject. It does an excellent job of telling the story of Mohammad Mossadegh and the forces that shaped modern Iran. It’s essential reading for anyone seeking to better understand Iran and the international context surrounding it.   

I had tried reading this book once before, back when I was first exploring Chomsky’s work in general. I’ll say this: it’s best suited for readers who already have a solid understanding of the history and conflict surrounding Israel/Palestine. It’s not ideal as a background primer, but it does serve as a solid introduction to the discourse and concerns of the anti-colonialist movement. From the beginning, it dives into the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement—particularly as it has gained traction on university campuses worldwide, a topic I had only recently encountered during the latest wave of protests. The book directly challenges the “Two-State Solution” and analyzes various protest strategies. If you’re interested in examining the movement itself—not just the historical conflict—this is a great resource. It’s more of a dialogue than a traditional book, and I believe the discussion is also available online in audio format if you’d prefer to listen instead.       

This book gained a lot of traction during the most recent flare-up in the Israel/Palestine conflict as an essential—or starter—text on the topic. I would agree: it’s highly accessible, comprehensive, and easy to read for anyone seeking a solid overview of the situation. It draws heavily from the author's personal experience, which is extensive, and it engages with the work of Edward Said, whose writings are widely respected in this field. I found the book’s framing of the conflict as a series of distinct “wars” on the Palestinian people to be a very digestible way of breaking down and streamlining a complex and often overwhelming subject. It doesn’t pull any punches and leaves you with a deeper understanding of how the West, the UN, the Arab states, and propaganda have shaped, enabled, and perpetuated decades of colonialism and suffering.       

Sapiens gave me the top-to-bottom exploration of the human condition that I had hoped to find when I first picked up Bryson’s A Short History of Nearly Everything. It does a fantastic job of re-framing human history and examining how societal structures developed—systems like rule of law, gender roles, and shared myths—and how they continue to shape our world today. I found myself deeply engaged with the content throughout. The book is also highly accessible, making it a great entry point for anyone interested in thinking more broadly about what defines humanity. I imagine many readers would benefit from reconsidering concepts like currency, gender, law, corporations, and evolution through the lens Harari provides. It was a fantastic read—one I can easily see myself returning to in the future. 

When I first picked up this book, I was looking for a broad, all-encompassing read on human history. What I got was something much bigger—it stretches all the way back to the Big Bang and takes a deeply science-oriented approach. At times, it felt like being transported back to my high school Earth Science classes. What makes this book special, though, is how it tells the story of scientific discovery through the people behind it, often focusing as much on their lives as on the science itself. In that way, it becomes a very human history. That said, the book can be a lot to take in—it jumps rapidly from one scientist or inventor to another, condensing centuries of development into just a few pages. It was definitely engaging, but it’s not something I think I’ll be revisiting anytime soon.