May and June Reading List 2022
As promised, here’s my reading list for the months of May and July. As I forgot to send May’s list out before my hiatus, it’s a little longer than useful. But that just means there are more books to add to your list.
One benefit of travelling is that I always read more books and this trip was no exception. I got through four and bought one book while I was in Italy that I’ve nearly finished.
Anyway, here’s the list, which covers a wide range of genres and topics!
The Great Crash 1929 - This might seem like a boring book detailing an economic event but it’s actually a really entertaining read. You can tell the author, John Kenneth Galbraith, enjoyed writing this. If you want to understand what financial mania can lead to, then this is an important book to read. With the collapse in crypto occurring now, it’s a timely book.
The End of The End of History - I read this on the plane over to Italy and really enjoyed it. It’s a look at Francis Fukuyama’s famous thesis on the End of History, which he wrote after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Although he was more pessimistic than people gave him credit for, it’s evident the fall of the wall led to a sort of false economy among many politicians during the 90s that we’re now paying the price for.
The Social Contract - This is a classic text from the French thinker Jean-Jacques Rousseau that predates the French Revolution. It’s an interesting read even if it’s over 200 years old. You get the feeling reading Rousseau’s words that more politicians today should read his work and contemplate the ideas he puts across. While we’ve come a long way from autocratic governance, many of the problems he mentions are still relevant today.
Hiroshima - The dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima was an event that changed the world. These weapons have only ever been used twice and yet despite the nature of this event, it doesn’t come into the public consciousness that much. Reading this book, which looks at the aftermath of the event from the perspective of numerous people, the destruction these weapons can unleash is terrifying. Of course, today’s weapons are much more powerful than those in 1945. Debates about whether it was right or wrong to drop the bombs will continue for years, but there’s no doubt the destruction they brought to the ordinary citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was horrific.
Free - This is an account of the End of History by the Albanian historian Lea Ypi. It details life in Albania as Communism collapsed and the promise of democracy and integration into the west was introduced to the country. It’s a fascinating account of growing up at one of the most pivotal moments in modern history and how what you believe can be torn away in an instant.
One Hundred Years of Solitude - This is one of the best novels I’ve ever read. I understand why this book gets so much love after reading it. It’s a surreal look at the lives of one family and the village they live in over several generations. Despite the timeframe of the book, you never lose interest, are always gripped by what’s going on and struggle to put the book down. Just a brilliant read.
The Cold War: A Very Short Introduction - With the war in Ukraine raging, I’ve been trying to read more about the history of the European continent and, in particular, that of Russia and Eastern Europe. This short guide to the Cold War is an illuminating book and a useful primer on what happened after the Second World War up to the collapse of Communism in the east of the continent.
I hope you get around to reading a few of these selections. Whether you read them in the next month or year, I’m not bothered. The idea of my reading lists is to encourage you, the reader, to read more.
If more of us read, and read books outside of our comfort zone, the world would be a better place. You don’t know what you don’t know. Reading is one of the best ways to fill in those gaps in your knowledge.
If you have any comments about the books, maybe you’ve read one before. Or if you have some recommendations for me, I’m all ears. I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Until next time,
Tom