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Political Books to Understand the Past and Present

In today’s world, there is an endless amount of political change and turmoil to keep up with. Books about politics can help you to understand both what is happening at this current moment and the history of how we got to where we are now. 

Politics can be an intimidating subject, and many feel that they do not have a full understanding of current and past political events. We have gathered the best history, journalistic, and political science books to help you to gain a fuller understanding. There’s always a lot for anyone to learn and this is the perfect place to start!

Whether you are looking for books that illuminate American politics, such as books about the political divide in America or books about the American presidents, or books that explore international conflicts and politics, we have the political books for you. 

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Dark Towers
Dark Towers
by David Enrich
The Enemy of the People
The Enemy of the People
by Jim Acosta
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Politics Is for Power
Politics Is for Power
by Eitan Hersh
A Thousand Days
A Thousand Days
by Arthur M. Schlesinger
My Seditious Heart
My Seditious Heart
by Arundhati Roy
Bananas
Bananas
by Peter Chapman
The Original Watergate Stories
The Original Watergate Stories
by Bob Woodward, The Washington Post, Carl Bernstein
Enemies and Neighbors
Enemies and Neighbors
by Ian Black
Tell Me How It Ends
Tell Me How It Ends
by Valeria Luiselli
A Cry from the Far Middle
A Cry from the Far Middle
by P. J. O'Rourke
George Washington's Expense Account
George Washington's Expense Account
by George Washington, Marvin Kitman
From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation
From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation
by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, Angela Y. Davis
Washington
Washington
by James Thomas Flexner
Crown & Sceptre
Crown & Sceptre
by Tracy Borman
A People's Guide to Capitalism
A People's Guide to Capitalism
by Hadas Thier
The Brass Check
The Brass Check
by Upton Sinclair
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Charlie Wilson's War
Charlie Wilson's War
by George Crile
The Spies Who Never Were
The Spies Who Never Were
by Hervie Haufler
Leadership
Leadership
by James MacGregor Burns
Miami
Miami
by Joan Didion
Above Suspicion
Above Suspicion
by Joe Sharkey
Roosevelt: The Lion and the Fox (1882–1940)
Roosevelt: The Lion and the Fox (1882–1940)
by James MacGregor Burns
Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
by Doris Kearns Goodwin
The Harvest Gypsies
The Harvest Gypsies
by John Steinbeck, Charles Wollenberg
The Words We Live By
The Words We Live By
by Linda R. Monk
Neither Liberal nor Conservative
Neither Liberal nor Conservative
by Donald R. Kinder, Nathan P. Kalmoe
The Soul of the First Amendment
The Soul of the First Amendment
by Floyd Abrams
Triple Cross
Triple Cross
by Peter Lance
Pope Francis Among the Wolves
Pope Francis Among the Wolves
by Marco Politi
The Price of Children
The Price of Children
by Maria Laurino
Uncivil Agreement
Uncivil Agreement
by Lilliana Mason
Dr. Seuss Goes to War
Dr. Seuss Goes to War
by Art Spiegelman, Richard H. Minear, Theodor Seuss Geisel
North Korea's Hidden Revolution
North Korea's Hidden Revolution
by Jieun Baek
Remembering America
Remembering America
by Richard N. Goodwin
Imperialism
Imperialism
by Hannah Arendt
A Train of Powder
A Train of Powder
by Rebecca West
Not in Your Lifetime
Not in Your Lifetime
by Anthony Summers
Dallas '63
Dallas '63
by Peter Dale Scott
Conduct Unbecoming
Conduct Unbecoming
by Randy Shilts
1000 Years of Annoying the French
1000 Years of Annoying the French
by Stephen Clarke
At the Highest Levels
At the Highest Levels
by Michael Beschloss, Strobe Talbott
The Kennedy Imprisonment
The Kennedy Imprisonment
by Garry Wills
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The Hidden History of the Korean War, 1950–1951
The Hidden History of the Korean War, 1950–1951
by Mark Crispin Miller, I. F. Stone, Bruce Cumings
Blind Ambition
Blind Ambition
by John W. Dean
I Am Spartacus!
I Am Spartacus!
by Kirk Douglas, George Clooney
Kissing the Sword
Kissing the Sword
by Sara Khalili, Shahrnush Parsipur
Kill Chain
Kill Chain
by Andrew Cockburn
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A Boy from Georgia
A Boy from Georgia
by Kathleen Jordan, Hamilton Jordan, Jimmy Carter
Rust
Rust
by Eliese Colette Goldbach
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If you are just starting on your journey of reading about politics, you might want to start with books that give a more general overview of many topics, such as A Short History of the United States by National Book Award Winner Robert V. Remini or A History of Modern Britain by Andrew Marr.

To gain a deeper understanding of political systems, you should reach for a book of political science or theory. These books include Robert A. Dahl’s A Preface to Democratic Theory, Kevin J. Elliott’s Democracy for Busy People, and David A. Baldwin’s Power and International Relations.