

Bookstack
Richard Aldous
Biweekly conversations between Richard Aldous, Bard College professor and distinguished historian, and authors on their newest books. www.persuasion.community
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 30, 2025 • 31min
Episode 176: Shadi Hamid on American Power
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST. Grab a coffee, settle onto the couch, and see your weekend out with a deep dive into the best new book releases…This week, Richard talks to Shadi Hamid, author of The Case for American Power (Simon & Schuster).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network.And, to receive pieces like this in your inbox and support our work, subscribe below. Bookstack listeners can take advantage of a 20% offer for paid Persuasion membership, with access to special columns and bonus Good Fight with Yascha Mounk podcast content. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Nov 23, 2025 • 26min
Episode 175: Sven Beckert on Capitalism
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST. Grab a coffee, settle onto the couch, and see your weekend out with a deep dive into the best new book releases…This week, Richard talks to Sven Beckert, author of Capitalism: A Global History (Penguin Press).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Nov 16, 2025 • 26min
Episode 174: Vanessa Williamson on the Price of Democracy
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST. Grab a coffee, settle onto the couch, and see your weekend out with a deep dive into the best new book releases…This week, Richard talks to Vanessa Williamson, author of The Price of Democracy: The Revolutionary Power of Taxation in American History (Basic Books).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Nov 2, 2025 • 28min
Episode 173: Phillips O'Brien on War and Power
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST. Grab a coffee, settle onto the couch, and see your weekend out with a deep dive into the best new book releases…This week, Richard talks to Phillips O’Brien, author of the new book, War and Power: Who Wins Wars—And Why (Public Affairs).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Oct 5, 2025 • 27min
Episode 172: Phillip and William Taubman on McNamara at War
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST. Grab a coffee, settle onto the couch, and see your weekend out with a deep dive into the best new book releases…This week, Richard Aldous talks to Phillip Taubman and William Taubman, authors of the new book, McNamara at War: A New History (Norton).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Sep 21, 2025 • 30min
Episode 171: Scott Anderson on the Iranian Revolution
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST. Grab a coffee, settle onto the couch, and see your weekend out with a deep dive into the best new book releases…This week Richard talks to Scott Anderson, author of the new book, King of Kings: The Iranian Revolution: A Story of Hubris, Delusion and Catastrophic Miscalculation (Doubleday).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Sep 7, 2025 • 30min
Episode 170: Simon Ball on A Modern History of Assassination
Bookstack returns after the summer with Richard talking to author Simon Ball about his new book, Death to Order: A Modern History of Assassination (Yale University Press).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Aug 3, 2025 • 30min
Episode 169: Ross Benes on Why 1999 Was the Year Low Culture Conquered America
In this week’s episode, Richard talks to Ross Benes, author of 1999: The Year Low Culture Conquered America and Kickstarted Our Bizarre Times (University Press of Kansas).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Jul 20, 2025 • 31min
Episode 168: Karen Elliott House on Mohammed Bin Salman and the Transformation of Saudi Arabia
This week Richard talks to Karen Elliott House, author of the new book, The Man Who Would Be King: Mohammed Bin Salman and the Transformation of Saudi Arabia (Harper).Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.Host: Richard AldousProducer: Bhaasita AthaniFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network.And, to receive pieces like this in your inbox and support our work, subscribe below. Bookstack listeners can take advantage of a 20% offer for paid Persuasion membership, with access to special columns and bonus Good Fight with Yascha Mounk podcast content. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Jul 4, 2025 • 38min
Episode 167: Joan C. Williams on How the Left Lost the Working Class
In today’s episode of Bookstack, host Richard Aldous sits down with Joan C. Williams, award-winning scholar of social inequality and author of Outclassed: How the Left Lost the Working Class and How to Win Them Back (St. Martin's Press). Bookstack is now a production of American Purpose at Persuasion. Host: Richard Aldous Producer (for the last time): Laura SilvermanFollow Persuasion on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube to keep up with our latest articles, podcasts, and events, as well as updates from excellent writers across our network.And, to receive pieces like this in your inbox and support our work, subscribe below. Bookstack listeners can take advantage of a 20% offer for paid Persuasion membership, with access to special columns and bonus Good Fight with Yascha Mounk podcast content. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe


