LitQueuelitqueue

After

Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq

Stephen Kinzer

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same earnest register, still history

1 more ↓

  • Last Hope Island

    Lynne Olson2017

    This history tracks the exiled leaders of occupied European nations who ran resistance movements from London during WWII.

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Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison

    Michel Foucault

    A philosophical history examines the shift from public torture to modern prison surveillance. It analyzes how power controls the body.

    earnest → clinical, still history

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

  • Either/Or

    Søren Kierkegaard1992

    A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

    earnest → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Orientalism

    Edward W. Said1978

    A scholarly critique of how Western academics and artists represent the Middle East to justify imperial power.

    earnest → clinical, still history

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Neon Gods

    Katee Robert2021

    In a modern city-state, Persephone flees an arranged marriage to Zeus by entering the underworld. She strikes a deal with Hades to stay there.

    earnest → tense

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Starter Villain

    John Scalzi2023

    A substitute teacher inherits his uncle's secret supervillain business, including a volcano lair and talking cats.

    earnest → wry

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  • The Sentinel

    Lee Child2020

    A drifter helps an IT manager targeted by criminals after a cyberattack. He uses physical force to protect the man and uncover a conspiracy.

    earnest → propulsive

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

    Neil deGrasse Tyson2017

    A summary of the origin of the universe, the laws of physics, and the nature of space and time.

    earnest → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Steal Like an Artist

    Austin Kleon2012

    A series of short, illustrated principles for creative work. It focuses on remixing existing ideas and establishing productive daily habits.

    earnest → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Poke the Box

    Seth Godin2011

    A short manifesto encouraging readers to start projects and take initiative. It argues that the greatest risk is staying in place.

    Same earnest register

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

Slower

3 more ↓

  • U.S. Constitution (Saddlewire) (Books of American Wisdom)

    Founding Fathers

    The 1787 document establishing the three branches of the United States government and the subsequent twenty-seven amendments.

    earnest → clinical, still history

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-2

  • Confessions

    Augustine of Hippo

    A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

    earnest → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-2

  • How to Read a Book

    Mortimer J. Adler1940

    This is a guide to active reading techniques for different genres. It outlines levels of reading from basic literacy to syntopical analysis.

    earnest → mysterious

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

Heavier

earnest → elegiac, still history

3 more ↓

  • Auschwitz

    Laurence Rees2005

    A chronological history of the camp's evolution from a Polish barracks to a site of mass industrial murder, based on archival research.

    earnest → clinical, still history

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+1

  • By Hands Now Known

    Margaret A. Burnham2022

    An investigation into racial violence and legal failures in the Jim Crow South using previously unexamined archives.

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

  • The Great Hunger: Ireland 1845 - 1849

    Cecil Woodham-Smith

    A detailed record of the Irish Potato Famine, focusing on the failure of British government policy and the resulting mass starvation.

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1