Amid all the partisan bickering and inflammatory rhetoric, there are important discussions to be had about where we are headed as a country. These new and forthcoming books, all reviewed by PW, go beyond the noise to look at the political process and the concerns of both right and left.
Man Enough?: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the Politics of Presidential Masculinity
Katz's "provocative thesis," per our review: presidential elections "can be seen as 'competitions not only between divergent political ideologies but also between two (or three) distinct versions of masculinity.' " He analyzes "Trump's appeal and Clinton's challenges in the current election as well as the influence of Rush Limbaugh and other conservative talk radio hosts. Thoroughly researched and documented, this book illuminates the intersection of gender, race, and politics."
Future Right: Forging a New Republican Majority
Our review suggested that Critchlow’s book “may be just what Republican loyalists need to realize that a different approach is needed,” noting that “Donald Trump’s name goes conspicuously unmentioned.
Predicting the Next President: The Keys to the White House 2016
Political analyst Lichtman uses election result specifics, from 1860 to the present day, to illustrate his diagnostic prediction system for U.S. presidential races. Our review promised that “committed political enthusiasts will be rewarded with juicy inside election tales.”
The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech
Wall Street Journal columnist and editorial board member Stassel details how "The Democratic Party and liberals are increasingly focused on silencing political opposition," according to our review. The author "collects disturbing stories of right-of-center nonprofits, donors, and trade associations targeted for political reasons."
The Great Suppression: Voting Rights, Corporate Cash, and the Conservative Assault on Democracy
Roth, an MSNBC reporter, makes the case that when the Supreme Court struck down Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act in 2013, it bolstered ongoing right-wing attempts to limit democracy and voting rights. Our review said "his book should be required reading for understanding the ultimate goals of American conservatism."
Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right
Hochschild looks at today’s conservative movement and the ever-widening gap between right and left by focusing on a single group (the Tea Party), state (Louisiana), and issue (environmental pollution). Our review says she "skillfully invites liberal readers into the lives of Americans whose views they may have never seriously considered."
Enough Said: What’s Gone Wrong with the Language of Politics
“Liberals and conservatives agree that the quality of political rhetoric has declined in recent years,” our starred review says, and Thompson, president and CEO of the New York Times Company and former editor-in-chief of the BBC, “wants to understand exactly what has gone wrong.” Thompson’s writing, our review continues, “packs a high percentage of insights per page and his book manages to be an exemplary investigation, a history, an autopsy, a practical manual, and a cautionary tale all at once.
Democracy for Hire: A History of American Political Consulting
The average voter may not realize, our review says, “how relatively new professional political consulting is to the American electoral process.” Johnson documents the explosion of the political-consulting business, offering an “extensive account” of “a vital part of the modern political system,” one that “makes for an accessible read, fit for academics and the general voter alike.
