Policy Circle book picks for your Holiday List

By The Policy Circle Team

Thinking of giving or getting something off your reading list this holiday season.  Consider a recommended book from The Policy Circle reading list.  We have 3 new titles to share!

Fierce Convictions: The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More – Poet, Reformer, Abolitionist | Karen Swallow Prior

At the 2018 Policy Circle Leadership summit, speaker Kim Borchers from The Foundation for Government Accountability highlighted Hannah More, who was a playwright and social critic in 18th century England and worked to end the slave trade in England with William Wilberforce.

Karen Swallow Prior’s engaging account of More’s life and trailblazing influence in Fierce Convictions will inspire you and other women in your life to move beyond comfort zone and defy cultural norms to achieve good.

The Point of It All, A Lifetime of Great Loves and Endeavors | Charles Krauthammer

This year the world lost an intelligent, analytical and wise commentary voice when Charles Krauthammer passed away.  Rabbi Abraham Cooper wrote of Krauthammer, “Krauthammer knew the difference between teaching and preaching. He taught us through the words of his Washington Post columns and other writings – and through his brilliant insights when appearing on Fox News – the difference between criticism and animus, between debate and debasement.”

You can read a gathering of Krauthammer’s essays and work published posthumously in The Point of It All, A Lifetime of Great Loves and Endeavors edited by his son, Daniel Krauthammer.  Spending time with Krauthammer’s profound insights and perspectives on the world has never been more needed.

The Coddling of the American Mind | Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff

The past few years on college campuses have revealed concerning trends in the environment for for free speech and open discourse.  Once educational bastions of ideas and debate, campuses are increasingly adopting speech codes, free speech zones and a callout culture resonant more of totalitarian institutions than places of higher learning.

Enter Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff, who offer an antidote and explanation to the concerning trends in theri 2018 book The Coddling of the American Mind, an update to their seminal article that appeared in The Atlantic in 2015. Whether you have a college students  in your life or not, you will want to better understand the problems and potential solutions for creating better learning environments and habits for the next generation of leaders and citizens.