Conservative Book Club
CDN Staff share their recommendations on the best Conservative books.
CDN Staff Recommendations
Recommendation by Rich Mitchell
Underdogma : How America’s Enemies Use Our Love for the Underdog to Trash American Power
Underdogma is the principle where people will typically root for the underdog and despise the “overdog” in a head-to-head match. The author defines it as, “the belief that those who have less power are virtuous and noble – because they have less power, and that those who have more power are to be scorned – because they have more power”. Prell applies the David and Goliath-like ideology to Israel, America and capitalism… [Read More]
Recommendations by Daniel (@Mirac777 on twitter)
Book Review: The Overton Window, by Glenn Beck
I would have to put The Overton Window in the category of a Political Suspence Thriller. As with anything Glenn Beck does, it is well researched with many factual references to certain factions of our government today, and how they operate. It gives us a hard-hitting look into extremist groups, Patriot/Teaparty ideology, domestic terrorism, and an inside look at what our Founding Fathers have written, and their thoughts when laying down the foundation for a new, free Republic based on a Government Of the People, For the people, and By the People.
I found myself immersed in a story-line that included an intense love story, a father-son love-hate relationship, corporate thuggery, and a race to save America from a nucleur bomb, all wrapped up in a heavy dose of American Patriotism… [Read More]
Recommendations by Michelle Ray (@galtsgirl on twitter)
Don’t take My Lemonade Stand – Janie Johnson
My whole perspective is that I am not an expert. I am just an informed American citizen (who has done her homework) who is not satisfied with the direction of our country or the way in which it is currently being governed. I am not a political activist or even a “Tea Party” participant. I have never been to a political rally, and I do not march, carry signs (or even place them in my yard), or put together events. I am not a pundit, a political scientist, a historian, a constitutional lawyer, or a politician.
I am a mother of four who was not particularly politically motivated (other than to cast an informed vote) until I saw the current level of out-of-control government spending, excessive regulation, unimaginable debt, private company bailouts by the government, attempt to take over healthcare by the federal government, and weakness on defense and terrorism. I represent all of those who have not been particularly involved in the political process until recent events. I am a registered Republican, but I am displeased with nearly all politicians, including most Republicans. My values are common sense conservative; and consistent with the Constitution and the notions of our founding fathers.
My book is written for everyday Americans by an everyday American.
One Nation Under God – A Book for Little Patriots – Amelia Hamilton
Before a commentary by the little patriots in my house, I want to note that the book is the perfect length for a bedtime story, beautifully illustrated, and entertainingly educational. The suggested age range, six to eight, may be a little young for actual reading and discussing the finer points of history and fact presented, but the rhyme, illustrations, length and adorable factor make it attention grabbing for even younger readers.
Eight year old Ella is an excellent reader all on her own, and was more than a little annoyed that she was being read to, but in just two pages managed to forget that fact and really get into her job as critic. The most interesting thing for Ella was the things she learned about our country. She can already count ( of course!), but was excited to discuss the history in great detail on every page and in every picture. She clearly plans a more in depth study of the historical accuracy.[Read More]
Reading Now
Reappraising the Right: The Past & Future of American Conservatism
“Conservatism’s friends and foes alike should read George Nash’s tour de force, Reappraising the Right: The Past and Future of American Conservatism. Friends will find it edifying and encouraging while foes will deem it challenging and stimulating. Exhaustively researched and brilliantly written, Nash’s magnum opus further solidifies his sterling reputation as America’s premier intellectual historian of conservatism. No student of American political philosophy and politics should be without this sequel to Nash’s landmark work, The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America. The two constitute the book ends, the alpha and omega, to understanding conservatism in America.”—Charles W. Dunn, Regent University
Recently Read
Ideas Have Consequences, Richard M. Weaver
There is no book more relevant for Conservatives. Weaver discusses those things a Conservative believes but may not fully understand. He helps us understand how things got this way and how we get them back to where they belong.
It’s been a long time since I took this long to read 56 pages. The whole book is under 200 pages, but so full of truth, understanding and knowledge that I have been highlighting, annotating, thinking as much as reading. I’ll often read a sentence and put the book down for ten minutes to ponder the absurdity or relevance of whatever statement is being made. I’m just over a quarter through the book and his thoughts on truth are amazing. His understanding of the fable that is modernism (progressivism) is .. gigantic. -Rich
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin:
Known today as “The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin,” this classic piece of Americana was originally written for Franklin’s son William, then the Governor of New Jersey.
The work portrays a fascinating picture of life in Philadelphia, as well as Franklin’s shrewd observations on the literature, philosophy and religion of America’s Colonial and Revolutionary periods. Franklin wrote the first five chapters of his autobiography in England in 1771, resumed again thirteen years later (1784-85) in Paris and later in 1788 when he returned to the United States. Franklin ends the account of his life in 1757 when he was 51 years old.
Rules for Radicals, Saul Alinsky
From: Squidoo
Why is this book important? The tactics in this book have been studied and put into motion by thousands of people all over the world. Including the President of the United States, Barack Obama.
Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville (3rd time to read this one):
..lauded in all quarters as the finest and most definitive edition of Tocqueville’s classic thus far. Mansfield and Winthrop have restored the nuances of Tocqueville’s language, with the expressed goal “to convey Tocqueville’s thought as he held it rather than to restate it in comparable terms of today.” The result is a translation with minimal interpretation, but with impeccable annotations of unfamiliar references and a masterful introduction placing the work and its author in the broader contexts of political philosophy and statesmanship.
The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations, Brafman, Beckstrom
Considered to be the “Tea Party Bible” as it describes a method by which the Conservative movement has chosen to organize itself.
From Business Week:
the early months of the war in Iraq, the U.S. military was overwhelmed by the need to get knowledge into the hands of the troops on the ground. Army lieutenants and captains were dropped into hostile territory for close-quarters combat and had to quickly master everything from a new language to understanding the web of warring clans to coping with lethal improvised explosive devices. So the first generation of platoon leaders to assume command in a full-scale war since the dawn of the Internet age created their own online community and started helping each other…
The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx
Critically and textually up-to-date, this new edition of the classic translation (Samuel Moore, 1888) features an introduction and notes by the eminent Marx scholar David McLellan, prefaces written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels subsequent to the original 1848 publication, and corrections of errors made in earlier versions. Regarded as one of the most influential political tracts ever written, The Communist Manifesto serves as the foundation document of the Marxist movement. This summary of the Marxist vision is an incisive account of the world-view Marx and Engels had evolved during their hectic intellectual and political collaboration of the previous few years.
Relevant Books I’ve Enjoyed Through the Years
Animal Farm, George Orwell
1984, George Orwell
Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand
The Art of War, Sun Tzu
The Heritage Guide to the Constitution, Edwin Meese
The Reagan I knew, William F. Buckley, Jr.
The Road to Serfdom, F.A. Hayek
The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945, George Nash
Books I have on my nightstand and hope to read soon:
American Political Thought: A Norton Anthology
The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Eliot
In Defense Of Tradition
