#24: Avoid the Norm

Written after his travels in the United States, 'Democracy in America' is a comprehensive study of American society and government. Tocqueville examines the democratic revolution and its impact on American life, discussing topics such as the sovereignty of the people, the role of civil society, the dangers of the tyranny of the majority, and the influence of religion and individualism. The book is a philosophical and political analysis that aims to understand why republican representative democracy succeeded in the United States while failing in other places, and it offers insights into the future of democracy both in America and globally.

In 'The Outsider,' Colin Wilson examines the psyche of the Outsider through the lives and works of various literary and cultural figures such as Albert Camus, Jean-Paul Sartre, Ernest Hemingway, Hermann Hesse, and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. The book delves into the Outsider's experience of dislocation and his struggle to find meaning and purpose in a world that seems devoid of it. Wilson argues that the Outsider is a metaphysical man who seeks a transcending meaning and purpose for human existence, often feeling isolated and disconnected from society. The book is both a study of the Outsider's predicament and an impassioned call for a new form of existentialism that could provide a satisfying and objective religious understanding of life.