A Review of Contending for American Nationhood
A new book examines early debates on American adaptation of the common law and what it meant for national identity.
Book Reviews
A Review of Gettysburg: The Tide Turns
A new “oral history” captures the tragedy of Gettysburg, even as it misses some facts.
A Review of Seven Things You Can't Say About China
Senator Tom Cotton’s book is a tacit admission that more than 50 years of American policies toward China have failed.
A Review of In Covid's Wake
The Covid pandemic showed the tension between our modern commitment to science and our liberal-democratic ideas of toleration.
Past Reviews
A Review of Liberty as Independence
Quentin Skinner’s book is a powerful reminder of the old adage that “no cause is ever lost because no cause is ever really won."
A Review of Liberty as Independence
Quentin Skinner’s notion of liberty has more in common with the liberalism he attacks than he may wish.
A Review of The Enlightenment
A new book persuasively argues against the all-too-common notion that a unitary “Enlightenment” gave birth to the modern world.
A Review of Capitalism: Histories
Modern economic growth began in the West, but now can be seen in a fascinating range of forms across the globe.
A Review of The Political Philosophy of Pierre Manent
France’s finest contemporary political thinker can help us understand the relationship between philosophy, politics, and religion.
A Review of Every Valley
Charles King’s book chronicles the lives of Handel and those who partook in the creation of his formidable magnum opus.
A Review of Shots Heard Round the World
John Ferling’s book shows how uncertain and even unlikely American victory was in its rebellion against Britain.
A Review of Broken Altars
Twentieth-century history shows that ideological secularism is not the solution to political violence.
A Review of The Persistence of the Ideological Lie
Daniel Mahoney’s book is an incisive analysis of ideological thinking and its lasting effects on the West.
A Review of World Builders
Instead of sea power, the next imperialists will depend on microchip power.
A Review of John Quincy Adams: Speeches and Writings
A new Library of America edition of John Quincy Adams’s writings demonstrates the enduring appeal—and real shortcomings—of his revolutionary conservatism.
A Review of Taking Manhattan
New York would never be the Puritans' austere city on a hill, yet it became America’s vibrant heart of capitalism.
A Review of How Do You Do It?
A new collection of the late Gerald Russello’s writing demonstrates the true insight and genuine wit of his conservative mind.
A Review of Waste Land
Robert Kaplan believes we are in a Weimar predicament of weak governance and emergency rule.