Wireheads: An Unnatural History of Technology in the Brain Book Mike Jay
loved
An excellent book, substantive on every page, and it will make you want to read some of the works he cites.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-08-08 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
From the Front Line, Stalingrad-Treblinka-Berlin 1941-1945 Book Vasily Grossman
loved
Self-recommending, the best third of this volume is just stunningly good.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-08-08 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Servus: How Slavery Made the Roman Empire Book Emma Southon
loved
A very good and aggressively readable book about how terrible slavery was in the Roman Empire.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-08-08 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
James Joyce: A Political Life Book Frank Callanan
loved
An excellent book, and it truly induces us to revalue Joyce and understand him in a new light.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-06-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Cherokees in War & at Peace 1670-1840 Book David Narrett
loved
An excellent book, one of the two best books on a single Native American tribe I have read.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-05-06 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Where the Music Had To Go: How Bob Dylan and the Beatles Changed Each Other — and the World Book Jim Windolf
loved
An excellent and engaging book, which even serious fans can learn from.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-05-06 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Where the Music Had To Go Book Jim Windolf
loved
An excellent and engaging book, which even serious fans can learn from.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-05-06 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Four Heavens: A New History of the Ancient Maya Book David Stuart
loved
We keep on learning lots about the Maya, and this is the best book to follow what has been going on.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-04-03 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Villa and Zapata: A History of the Mexican Revolution Book Frank McLynn
loved
The best book on its topic, and one of the best books on Mexican history flat out.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-03-09 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The New Byzantines: The Rise of Greece and Return of the Near East Book Sean Mathews
loved
Anexcellent and original book, somewhere between a history and travel book.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-03-09 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The King and I: The Uncensored Tale of Luciano Pavarotti's Rise to Fame by his Manager, Friend, and Sometime Adversary Book Herbert Breslin and Anne Midgette
loved
This one actually is fantastically fun.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-01-04 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Everything We Do is Music: How 20th-Century Classical Music Shaped Pop Book Elizabeth Alker
loved
A very good and readable book on this interaction, with excellent discussions of Donna Summer, Stevie Wonder, La Monte Young, and Penderecki, among many others.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2025-12-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
So You Want to Own Greenland? Book Elizabeth Buchanan
liked
A useful and dispassionate overview of the relevant history and issues.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-07-01 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Traveler: One Man's Epic Quest for Discover Our Shared Humanity Book Andrea Wulf
liked
This book meets her usual high standards.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-07-01 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Monumental: Great Buildings of the World Through the Hands and Eyes of a Stonemason Book Simon Warrack
liked
An engaging book about the beauties of stonemasonry, with case studies of Venice, Angkor Wat, Lalibela, Zimbabwe and other locales.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-07-01 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Worth the Risk: The Seven Myths that Keep Us from Taking the Chances We Need to Take Book Allison Schrager
liked
Allison Schrager is very good, including her new book Worth the Risk: The Seven Myths that Keep Us from Taking the Chances We Need to Take
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-06-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
What Should My Children Do?: How to Flourish in the Age of AI Book Daniel Susskind
liked
Daniel Susskind, What Should My Children Do?: How to Flourish in the Age of AI is a book that needed to be written.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-06-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Demographic Headwinds: The Economic Consequences of Lower Birth Rates and Longer Lives Book Melissa S. Kearney and Luke Pardue (eds.)
liked
A short volume, to the point, worry is in order.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-06-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Preparing for War: The Making of the Geneva Conventions Book Boyd van Dijk
liked
A very good look at the negotiations behind the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and just how driven by national self-interest they were, including colonial motives from the major colonial powers, who wished to retain stronger rights to put down uprisings.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-05-06 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Bomb: South Africa's Nuclear Weapons Programme Book Nic von Wielligh and Lydia von Wielligh-Steyn
liked
I had been looking for a book on this topic for a long time, and finally I found the right one in a South African bookshop.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-04-03 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Exit Stalin: The Soviet Union as a Civilization 1953-1991 Book Mark B. Smith
liked
This one is well written, broad in scope, and yet rich in detail, treating the covered era as a living, breathing time in human history.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-04-03 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Proof is in the Code: How a Truth Machine is Transforming Math and AI Book Kevin Hartnett
liked
A very useful book about the history of proving math theorems by computer.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-04-03 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better Book David Epstein
liked
A good popular look at what the subtitle promises.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-03-09 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces that Shape Your Life Book Alex Mayyasi
liked
Alex Mayyasi, Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces that Shape Your Life is a useful introduction to economic concepts.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-01-04 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Elements of Power: A Story of War, Technology, and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth Book Nicolas Niarchos
liked
Nicolas Niarchos, The Elements of Power: A Story of War, Technology, and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth is a good treatment of minerals issues as they relate to the Congo today.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-01-04 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Wage Standard: What's Wrong in the Labor Market and How to Fix It Book Arindrajit Dube
liked
A good overview of his work in labor economics.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2025-12-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Religions of Early India: A Cultural History Book Richard H. Davis
liked
A very useful background read for understanding later Indian history and religions, as well as the more general spread of religion throughout the southern regions of Asia.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2025-12-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Let Us Believe in the Beginning of the Cold Season Book Forough Farrokhzad
recommended
I usually do not enjoy poetry in translation, but this is so fiery and full of passion that I am happy to recommend it.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-08-08 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Mind of South Africa: The Story of the Rise and Fall of Apartheid Book Allister Sparks
recommended
Definitely recommended, written at the very end of the apartheid era which gives it yet another angle of interest.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-04-03 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Driver's Seat Book Muriel Spark
recommended
If you like her at all, you will be entranced by this one.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-03-09 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Why Immigration Policy is Hard and How to Make it Better Book Alan Manning
recommended
Alan Manning, Why Immigration Policy is Hard and How to Make it Better is a thoughtful and balanced look at its topic, recommended.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-01-04 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Abundance Book Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson
recommended
Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, Abundance
Cowen's year-end list of the best non-fiction books of 2025.
2025-11-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future Book Dan Wang
recommended
Dan Wang, Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future
Cowen's year-end list of the best non-fiction books of 2025.
2025-11-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Open Socrates: The Case for a Philosophical Life Book Agnes Callard
recommended
Agnes Callard, Open Socrates: The Case for a Philosophical Life
Cowen's year-end list of the best non-fiction books of 2025.
2025-11-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Scaling Era: An Oral History of AI, 2019-2025 Book Dwarkesh Patel and others
recommended
Dwarkesh Patel, and others, The Scaling Era: An Oral History of AI, 2019-2025
Cowen's year-end list of the best non-fiction books of 2025.
2025-11-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI, and the Race to Invent the Future Book Keach Hagey
recommended
Keach Hagey, The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI, and the Race to Invent the Future
Cowen's year-end list of the best non-fiction books of 2025.
2025-11-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs Book Ian Leslie
recommended
Ian Leslie, John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs
Cowen's year-end list of the best non-fiction books of 2025.
2025-11-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Nadja Book André Breton
mixed
It is short, and fun enough to read.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-08-08 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
The Shortest History of Ireland Book James Hawes
mixed
From a useful series, even if some of the claims are wrong and the judgments intemperate.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-07-01 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Democratic Drain: Global Migration and the Struggle for Democracy Book Justin Gest
read
Justin Gest, Democratic Drain: Global Migration and the Struggle for Democracy is a political economy argument that widespread immigration can drain home countries of their democracy supporters to some extent.
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-06-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Sea of Treasures: A Cultural History of Ancient Indian Ocean Trade Book Jeremy A. Simmons
read
And there is Jeremy A. Simmons, Sea of Treasures: A Cultural History of Ancient Indian Ocean Trade
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-06-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Beyond Beauty: A Portrait of John Singer Sargent Book Devon Cox
read
There is also Devon Cox, Beyond Beauty: A Portrait of John Singer Sargent
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2026-05-06 · marginalrevolution.com ↗
Colors of Asia: A Visual Journey, Photos and Design Book Kevin Kelly
read
There is Kevin Kelly, Colors of Asia: A Visual Journey, Photos and Design
Cowen's monthly 'What I've been reading' round-up on Marginal Revolution.
2025-12-22 · marginalrevolution.com ↗