Mike Rapport, 1848: Year of Revolution. This is a detailed look into the revolutions that rocked Europe at the beginning of the “treason of the clerisy”–Deirdre McCloskey’s term for the intellectuals’ rebellion against European liberalism and embrace of socialism, nationalism, and nationalism.

James C. Scott, Against the Grain: A Deep History of the Earliest States. Scott argues that the ability to measure and tax helps explain why cereal grains gave rise to the first states. Review for Regulation forthcoming as of this writing.

Marcellus Andrews, The Vision of a Real Free Market Society: Re-Imagining American Freedom. This is a 106 page firestorm of interesting ideas provocatively presented. Andrews proposes a “re-imagining” of capitalism that socializes some of the ownership of the means of production–but not the management. The idea is to capture social dividends through government ownership of shares in mutual funds. Hence, the means of production are socialized in their ownership but not in their management. As Basic Income Guarantee proposals go, this deserves attention. My review for Regulation is forthcoming as of this writing.

Jason and Jodi Womack, Get Momentum: How to Start When You’re Stuck. There are productivity books and systems all over the place. This one is my favorite. I once heard a preacher say that the best translation of the Bible is the one you’ll read. This is a productivity book you’ll read and “system”–I really hesitate to call it that–you’ll use.

William Warren Rogers and Robert David Ward, Convicts, Coal, and the Banner Mine Tragedy. The Banner Mine accident in Alabama was one of the worst industrial accidents in American history—and most of the people who died were convicts that the Pratt Consolidated Coal Company had leased from the state.