Book description
'The best single-volume study of the Enlightenment that we have' Literary Review
The Enlightenment is one of the formative periods of Western history, yet more than 300 years after it began, it remains controversial. It is often seen as the fountainhead of modern values such as human rights, religious toleration,…
Why read it?
1 author picked The Enlightenment as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
I found this work to be a complex and nuanced introduction to the much-debated and poorly understood intellectual revolution that was the Enlightenment.
Although the book lies outside my own area of academic expertise, I could easily follow its sweeping narrative as it moved through both familiar and obscure writers and thinkers. Few subjects escape its attention, and the volume is particularly strong in exploring the complex relationship between Enlightenment rationalism and Christianity.
If you love The Enlightenment...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
Want books like The Enlightenment?
Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The Enlightenment.
Share your top 3 reads of 2026!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
165
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like The Enlightenment, you might also like...
The Tao of Poison
A poisonous maiden, a Daoist sex cult, and a violent insurgency.
The polyandrous Yan family in China's rural Shaanxi Province takes in two carpenter brothers. When one brother is convicted of murder after killing their neighbor in a dispute, a constable threatens to expose the family's rumored polyandry and extorts…
Big Ideas... For Small Businesses
Big Ideas… for Small Businesses is a straight-talking, no-nonsense guide to growing a small business without sacrificing your lifestyle. Written by a former civil servant turned entrepreneur, the book challenges hustle culture and instead champions the idea of an "ambitious lifestyle business" - one that provides freedom and financial stability,…
