I've interviewed writers for years, many of them have been political historians/biographers, so I'm not a total stranger to the field. I just feel sometimes that I'm not much more than a political hobbyist, in terms of historical context.
I've read a biography of most 20th century presidents (all of Robert Caro), and several on each 21st century president, and I'm really fascinated by the executive branch overall.
One of those cases here of Unknown Unknowns. If you consider yourself a political junkie, I'd love to know which titles really expanded your thinking.
House of Representatives is a huge blindspot for me but, even as a fan of senate and presidency books, i kinda dread that those books will be tedious…
by thousandmoviepod
4 Comments
The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. Not just pieces of history, but actually essential reading for the foundational ideas behind the US constitution and the structure of the government.
American Political Thought: A Norton Anthology edited by Isaac Kramnick and Theodore J. Lowi. Collection of writings that have shaped American political ideas and institutions.
*Open Veins of Latinamerica*, lol.
Books that discuss how political discourse is framed, written by linguistics professor George Lakoff-
_The ALL NEW Don’t Think of an Elephant!: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate_
_The Political Mind_
The Years of Lyndon Johnson series by Robert Caro and the works of Rick Pearlstein