Book cover of Authority and Freedom

Book description

From one of our most widely admired art critics comes a bold and timely manifesto reaffirming the independence of all the arts—musical, literary, and visual—and their unique and unparalleled power to excite, disturb, and inspire us.

As people look to the arts to promote a particular ideology, whether radical, liberal,…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Authority and Freedom as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This is a book that is really written for our times, when artists are being told (and many believe) that their role is to champion social or political causes or to further certain ideologies. Perl argues that art is much bigger than its moment.

I found this so interesting because he is not claiming that art is for art’s sake, which would make it seem irrelevant. He is arguing for the absolute importance of art and for the artist to be free from the kinds of social obligations we want to put on them. I found this book intellectually liberating,…

From Jeannie's list on understanding why art matters.

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Aggressor by FX Holden,

It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.

The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to run…

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