I am beginning a book club in my town on the subject of influential literature and I am in need of some advice on a good first book. At an organizational meeting, a friend and I decided it should be well-known, but not well read. If you know any books that aren’t in your opinion as well read which have liberty-oriented (my goal throughout this club is to also introduce participants to libertarian ideas) themes or libertarian aspects, I would appreciate your suggestions.
I know of titles, but I am concerned many have already read them. (such as Fahrenheit 451, which many people in my town have read in school) Any other advice on how to promote an environment condusive to deep discussion and thinking beyond established ideas would also be appreciated.
And yes, I would love to introduce them to literature on austrian economics and libertarianism! (I just want the club to become established before I take bigger steps. When I advertise, I want people thinking “I heard about that book, I should read it!”)
That is a good approach I think. The Good Soldier Švejk might be one such book. Scores have heard of it (at least in Europe), but very few have actually read it.
It might also be an esspecially good choice for a book to be discussed at a first meeting of a book club. Since due to its episode-like structure you don’t actually need to have read the whole of it to be able to talk about it.
I found I like the unabridged, full length translation of 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, it has all of Ned Lands, and Nemo’s talks of liberty and anti-colonialism, abiet for different reasons then here, in it- the one most people read is neutered, and missing the science, most of what Ned says(making him seem crazy), and Nemo’s anti-colonial, anti-British stance.
Might be had to get- the copy I was using was 1960ish
Discourses by Machiavelli provides a great insight into the pragmatic issues a republic faces.
I suppose War and Peace is very well known and barely read. Tolstoy writes some very interesting thoughts on history and works to mainly dispel the “great man” theory. The second half of the epilogue is a thing of beauty: an essay on dependence and generally the fact that history is shaped by the many actions of many people, not dictators and leaders. Good way to get them on the route to ancap philosophy (it did me).
Fooled by Randomness and Black Swan should also lead to some very interesting discussions on the nature of events in general.
I’m doing something similiar in my own town at the moment! I too can’t decide on what to pick for my first book, I thought about offering a poll if enough people were just interested in joining, but picking something outright to advertise on my flyers is probably a better idea. Like you said, there are some liberty-themed books that are well heard of but not well read.
If you’re partial to science fiction, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress deals with liberty and anarchy quite well I think, and it’s entertaining to boot. Depends on who you’re aiming to attract though. In my area it’s difficult to imagine who would be interested in a liberty themed book group, but I’ve got my fingers crossed that there are others like me.
What do you think of Economics in One Lesson as a starter? It was one of the first books I picked up after discovering austrian economics and it pretty much blew my mind at the time, I was hoping I could put that into effect for others new to the subject.
Yes, I loved The Moon is a Harsh Mistress! That title did come up in my thoughts, but I’m not sure how many have heard of it… I will definitely try to introduce it later, though, when the club is more established. (As my club isn’t specifically about liberty and the like. Definitely what I intend to promote, though!) Economics in One Lesson sounds like a good starter for your club. It’s a good length and very succinct in explanation.
And I know what you mean! There is maybe one person I know in my town who has some libertarian leanings (It’s a pretty small town). Otherwise I really don’t know anyone. I hope, though, to encounter more people who are generally more open to dissecting established political/economic ideas.