Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion

This thread is for dropping ideas, questions, resources, comments, and discussion about Task 21: Read a Book About Politics in Your Country or Another (Fiction or Nonfiction).

A few resources to get you started:

http://bookriot.com/2015/12/04/guns-p...

http://bookriot.com/2012/09/20/genre-...

http://bookriot.com/2015/10/16/genre-...

http://bookriot.com/2015/08/18/book-r...

For this one I am doing a classic The Prince by Machiavelli - completed.

I also plan to read Between the World and Me

I am going to read .

I'm going to read A Woman in Arabia: The Writings of the Queen of the Desert by Gertrude Bell. I read Howell's fascinating biography of Gertrude Bell and now am eager to read Bell's letters. Nicole Kidman made a movie about Gertrude Bell but it hasn't been released in the US yet. I hope it will be this year!

I want to read The Second Amendment: A Biography, in light of all the mass shootings there have been in the U.S. over the last few years.

I will probably read something from this list: http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/the...

Would The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism count? I own it but haven't read it.

2016 seems like a good time to read What It Takes: the Way to the White House.

I'm going to read "Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist." it's a novel about the 1999 WTO protests in Seattle.

I am leaning toward Me the People: One Man's Selfless Quest to Rewrite the Constitution of the United States of America which has been sitting on my shelf for ages. It is definitely about a political system, so hopefully that qualifies.

My inclination is toward fiction and something dealing with a country other than the US. The Kite Runner turns up on some shelves as political fiction, but I know little enough about it that I'm undecided. Any thoughts?

I think a book on current UK politics would just depress me, so I'm going to go for something on the suffragettes, but keep a beady eye on this thread and see if something from another country pops up. Not the US, though, my reading has been super US heavy this year.

Leftmost wrote: "My inclination is toward fiction and something dealing with a country other than the US. The Kite Runner turns up on some shelves as political fiction, but I know little enough about i..."

In addition to this, I have noticed A Brief History of Seven Killings on some political fiction lists. I understand it is somewhat politically fueled, but not having read it I was not sure if it was enough to qualify.

I find this section tricky as my reading does not tend in this direction but I was wondering about Orwell maybe Homage to Catalonia, or The Road to Wigan Pier

Leslie Ann wrote: "2016 seems like a good time to read What It Takes: the Way to the White House."

I thought about tackling this one (and kind of still want to) even though I got intimidated by how long it is!

This is a great book about the Sri Lankan civil war that would qualify.
The Seasons of Trouble: Life Amid the Ruins of Sri Lanka's Civil War
Also I liked this book about Puerto Rico.
War Against All Puerto Ricans: Revolution and Terror in America’s Colony

I was going to read The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism. I have read some Naomi Klein in the past and I like her.

Kathryn wrote: "Would The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism count? I own it but haven't read it."

Yes, and it's supposed to be excellent with parallels to today.

Allie wrote: "Leslie Ann wrote: "2016 seems like a good time to read What It Takes: the Way to the White House."

I thought about tackling this one (and kind of still want to) even though I got in..."

I know what you mean. I figure I'll read a chapter or two a night, and the book will eventually be done!

In another group I participate in, we have the option of doing a buddy read. You post the book you want to read that looks difficult to you, and people who want to read the same book get with you to agree on a reading schedule - usually so many pages or chapters a week. At the end of the week, everyone posts their thoughts.

I used a buddy read to read Sons and Lovers and John Adams.

Maegan wrote: "I will probably attempt to read Between the World and Me for this challenge."

I just finished Between the World and Me. I would recommend it to anyone in need of a suggestion.

Tatiana wrote: "Maegan wrote: "I will probably attempt to read Between the World and Me for this challenge."

I just finished Between the World and Me. I would recommend it to anyon..."

This is my pick too :)

I asked my husband (who is much more politically bent than I) for recommendations. I should also say that he is of a conservative libertarian bent. His recommendations: by Bill O'Reilly, by David Limbaugh and by Pat Robertson.

I think I will choose the Bill O'Reilly book as I have watched him on TV and feel that he tries to give a more balanced view than some of the other Fox commentators. Plus it is short, which is a good thing for a book I might not agree with.

I'm reading Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town for this category.

Martha wrote: "I will probably read something from this list: http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/the..."

Thank you for this link as politics are just not my cup of tea! I will go with... Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS by Joby Warrick.

I'm planning to read "Without You There is No Us: My Time with the Sons of North Korea's Elite."

I'm going to read An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States. Politics usually aren't my thing, but I do love history.

Laura wrote: "Martha wrote: "I will probably read something from this list: http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/the..."

Thank you for this link as politics ..."

Ah yes thanks for that suggestion I do feel like the rise of ISIS is a topic I need to read in depth on

Bryony wrote: "I'm reading Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town for this category."

Great book, but not about politics or political systems.

Two of the choices are my bookgroup's future choices: Between the World and Me and The Book of Unknown Americans. The Book of Unknown Americans is also the Everybody Reads choice for the Multnomah County Library in Portland, Oregon. I'll be reading those but I'm not sure if I'll choose them for this topic. I'm leaning toward Household Workers Unite or one of the two Jonathan Kozol books mentioned in the Penguin list.

Bonnie wrote: "Bryony wrote: "I'm reading Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town for this category."

Great book, but not about politics or political systems."

I would disagree because college rape has been a political issue talked about all year. My understanding of this topic is that political issues are included (see list under Book Riot resources about guns).

Martha wrote: "Bonnie wrote: "Bryony wrote: "I'm reading Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town for this category."

Great book, but not about politics or political systems."

I w..."

Okay, I guess its subjective.

I'm interested in reading An Ember in the Ashes , which is of course fiction, but seems to have some essence of politics within its fictional world - any thoughts?

Could I read "Yes, Prime Minister" for this one?

I'm going to read Anne-Marie Slaughter's newest book, Unfinished Business.

Martha wrote: "Bonnie wrote: "Bryony wrote: "I'm reading Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town for this category."

Great book, but not about politics or political systems."

I w..."

I'm thinking about reading this one too, it's in the politics section on Amazon, so should be fine? :)

Martha wrote: "Bonnie wrote: "Bryony wrote: "I'm reading Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town for this category."

Great book, but not about politics or political systems."

I w..."

Great point! I think I'll be adding this one to that bullet point in my list as well.

I've been meaning to read Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954-63 and the other two books in the series for awhile now.

Kimberly wrote: "I've been meaning to read Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954-63 and the other two books in the series for awhile now."

Me too! I bought all three this year. They're huge though and this might be a half-year long project for me.

Currently considering these:

A People's Tragedy: The Russian Revolution: 1891-1924
Citizen: An American Lyric

Lucia wrote: "Could I read "Yes, Prime Minister" for this one?"

Can't see why not.

I'm taking this challenge as a sign for me to finish reading The Federalist Papers.

Robin wrote: "Kathryn wrote: "Would The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism count? I own it but haven't read it."

Yes, and it's supposed to be..."

I read it. It took me forever, but it was really interesting and informative.

Could I consider I Am Malala for this? The description mentions it covers political themes but I haven't looked into it to see to what extent.

I am going to read A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches for this topic.

Gonna take it easy on this one and read The Communist Manifesto. At just 31 pages it's easily the shortest book on my list.

Maybe easy is the wrong word...

I hope this one counts: War's Unwomanly Face by Svetlana Alexiévich. The English translation is apparently out of print, but I'll be reading it in Spanish: La guerra no tiene rostro de mujer

I am currently in the middle of a ginormous book (on Audible). I won't be done until the middle of January so it will qualify for this challenge. If you have the time Nixonland: America's Second Civil War and the Divisive Legacy of Richard Nixon 1965-72 is a fascinating book. Not so much about Nixon, but about the politics/cultural environment/social unrest of what was going on during that time. (view spoiler)[ It's all there: issues with morality, abortion, terrorism, police brutality, racial tensions, immigration, religious right, unpopular war etc. (hide spoiler)] Eye opening how little has changed in 50 years.

This one came up on the list, so I'm going with it. We Should All Be Feminists

Would The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism work/count? I'm trying to focus my list on books I already own and haven't read yet. ^.^ Thanks!