LitQueuelitqueue

After

The Unwinding

George Packer2013

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • The Proud Tower: A Portrait of the World Before the War, 1890-1914

    Barbara W. Tuchman1966

    A series of essays depicting the social and political atmosphere of Europe and the US in the decades leading up to 1914.

    Same elegiac register, still history

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Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Either/Or

    Søren Kierkegaard1992

    A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

    elegiac → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • The Annals of Imperial Rome

    Tacitus1956

    A Roman historian chronicles the reigns of emperors from Tiberius to Nero. He focuses on the corruption of power and the decline of political liberty.

    elegiac → sardonic, still history

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  • Orientalism

    Edward W. Said1978

    A scholarly critique of how Western academics and artists represent the Middle East to justify imperial power.

    elegiac → clinical, still history

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To recover

3 more ↓

  • An Offer From a Gentleman

    Julia Quinn2001

    The illegitimate daughter of an earl works as a servant for her stepmother. She sneaks into a masquerade ball and meets Benedict Bridgerton.

    elegiac → playful

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • King of Pride

    Ana Huang2023

    A buttoned-up billionaire heir falls for an impulsive bartender while trying to secure a CEO position. They navigate a forbidden workplace romance.

    elegiac → playful

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • The Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries

    Emily Brightwell1993

    A Victorian housekeeper and her staff secretly solve crimes for their employer, a clueless Scotland Yard inspector.

    elegiac → playful

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Faster

3 more ↓

  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

    Neil deGrasse Tyson2017

    A summary of the origin of the universe, the laws of physics, and the nature of space and time.

    elegiac → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Steal Like an Artist

    Austin Kleon2012

    A series of short, illustrated principles for creative work. It focuses on remixing existing ideas and establishing productive daily habits.

    elegiac → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Bad Blood

    John Carreyrou2018

    A journalist tracks the rise of Elizabeth Holmes and the eventual exposure of her multibillion-dollar blood-testing startup as a fraud.

    elegiac → propulsive, still journalism

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • The Lessons of History

    Will Durant1968

    A concise survey of recurring patterns in human history across biology, religion, and economics. It summarizes themes from a ten-volume series.

    elegiac → tense, still history

    pace-1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Either/Or

    Søren Kierkegaard1992

    A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

    elegiac → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • The Oxford Companion to Food

    Alan Davidson2014

    elegiac → wry, still history

    pace-1·prose0·bleak-2

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

    Dee Alexander Brown

    A chronological history of the displacement and systematic destruction of Native American tribes in the late 19th century.

    Same elegiac register, still history

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+1

  • Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West

    Dee Brown

    A chronological account of the displacement and slaughter of Native Americans by the U.S. government in the late 19th century.

    Same elegiac register, still history

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+1

  • Auschwitz

    Laurence Rees2005

    A chronological history of the camp's evolution from a Polish barracks to a site of mass industrial murder, based on archival research.

    elegiac → clinical, still history

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+1