96 Books Like The New Deal and the Problem of Monopoly

This is the tenth in a charming series of children’s books about Freddy the Pig and the other talking animals on the Bean farm that began in the early 20th century, two decades before Orwell’s Animal Farm.

Freddy has been called a renaissance pig—a detective, poet, pilot, newspaper editor, and much more. 

In this story, the rapacious owner of the local newspaper employs various underhanded tactics to shut down the rival paper edited by Freddy. The scheme is thwarted when Freddy’s lawyer, Old Whibley the owl, convinces a judge that the would-be monopolist engaged in “kidnapping, theft, and conspiracy in restraint of trade.”

As is evident, by the 1940s, when the book was published, antitrust was recognized in popular culture as the legal tool for protecting the victims of unfair competitive tactics—which is still how we see it today. 

This is a wide-ranging, thought-provoking, accessible, informed, lively, and convincing economic history of the “long” 20th century (1870 to 2010). 

Among its many narratives, the book shows how “thirty glorious years of social democracy” ended around 1975 when the U.S. and other economies in the global north took “the neoliberal turn” in favor of relying more on the market to organize society. 

That history is essential context for understanding why the U.S. Supreme Court, beginning in the late 1970s and 1980s, relaxed the “structural era” antitrust rules in place since the 1940s, which had emphasized skepticism about growing concentration and the conduct of large firms in concentrated markets. 

The book also emphasizes the importance of technology-driven economic growth for human well-being. That perspective helps make the case today for economic policies that promote competition among firms, which fosters productivity and growth.

The antitrust rules introduced in the late 1970s and 1980s are largely still in place. 

In important ways, those rules were shaped by the economic analyses and arguments of well-known scholars associated with the University of Chicago.

Since then, microeconomics has been transformed using concepts from game theory, and economic thinking about the competitive consequences of firm practices has changed.  This economic-based guide to business strategy distills key concepts that underlie modern antitrust analysis, which is a close cousin to business strategy.

The book lays out those concepts clearly and accessibly, with instructive case studies and minimal jargon. These ideas from economic theory, combined with new empirical tools and data, are the basis for the recent economic research that finds that today’s antitrust rules are inadequate to prevent the acquisition and exercise of market power. 

Information technology is reshaping the economy and has raised novel competition concerns. 

Many of the highest-profile antitrust cases involve giant firms in the information technology sector, from IBM and Microsoft in the past to Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Meta today.

This business strategy book, written by two leading economists, taught a generation of business leaders how to navigate the competitive challenges that arise in information industries. It explains simply and clearly, with useful examples, concepts like network effects and lock-in that form the essential economic background for understanding both the business strategy problems that are the focus of the book and the antitrust issues that can arise in this sector.  

One of my favorite groundbreaking explorations of the interwoven structures of power in American society. Mills posits that a small, cohesive group of elites—comprising leaders from the military, corporate, and political spheres—wields disproportionate influence over the nation’s decisions and direction. He challenges the notion of a democratic society, arguing that this elite class operates independently of the masses, shaping policies that often serve their interests rather than the common good.

Mills calls for awareness and engagement from the public, urging individuals to recognize the forces that govern their lives. By illuminating the dynamics of power, he inspires a collective consciousness that can lead to a more equitable society. Ultimately, it serves as a clarion call for empowerment and action, reminding us that understanding the structures of power is the first step toward meaningful change.

Bombay-born Indo-American Thrity Umrigar tells the story of Anton, a neglected biracial boy adopted into a white family. Umrigar stretches past boundaries of race, class, and gender to bring us a tale of moral choices made from power, helplessness, or the neighborhood we live in – and the uncomfortable truths that ensue. I am always impressed by Umrigar’s transparent prose that allows her story and characters to shine through, but even more so in this novel where her characters are not brown but black or white. 

You are in the house and the house is in the woods.
You are in the house and the house is in you.

If these words don’t send a tingle down your spine, or don’t make you suddenly aware of the house surrounding you, then we aren’t the same. Thomas’ feverish debut is the perfect example of “dark academia” done right.

Catherine House is not a home. It’s a mysterious school. Every student seems to have something odd hidden in the past. Students are encouraged to cultivate school spirit that goes well beyond the usual measures. They become one with Catherine House, submitting to cryptic experiments, cutting off contact with the outside world. 

I love the way Thomas explores the ways an institution can exploit while pretending to protect.

The author has devoted an entire oeuvre to the notion of Deep Politics.

The concept enlarges the visible, legitimate political structures in Western society by shadow structures that are less or not visible, but often have the decisive say in matters of life and death.

This book focuses on these shadow structures in the United States and documents in great detail how they emerged and which role they continue to play in blocking democratic development whilst enriching capitalist interests.

Drawing on a vast array of primary archival sources and secondary writings, Ussama Makdisi provides an original analytical historical account of the origins of sectarianism in Lebanon. He traces the roots of the atavistic sectarian violence that gripped Ottoman Mount Lebanon in 1860. His narrative refutes widespread arguments making a case for the primordial nature of sectarian identities in Lebanon. Instead, he argues that sectarianism in Lebanon is a byproduct of modernity and modernization. Makdisi shows that sectarianism in Lebanon is a modern nineteenth-century phenomenon linked to the confluence of various historical developments, including the introduction of Ottoman reforms known as Tanzimat, diffusion of European ideas of nationalism, the Ottoman Empire’s integration into the world capitalist market, and colonial meddling in the internal affairs of the Sick Man of Europe.

Leave it to Anand to throw down and tell it like it is!

I found this book SO refreshing, given my work in philanthropy and fundraising, and how much people operating in this world can fall into making excuses for extremely bad (and ridiculous) behavior. 

I read this as part of a book club with several colleagues and friends from work (all of whom worked in or adjacent to philanthropy), and our discussions about each chapter ended up feeling like therapy sessions.

I super appreciated Anand’s singular ability to call things out for what they are, and I feel like the book made a lasting impact on me in terms of emboldening and sharpening my analysis of how we can and should reimagine how we fund.