Collection: Politics

Finalist for the NYPL Helen Bernstein Award for Excellence in Journalism, the Lukas Book Prize, and the Royal Society Science Book Prize

Winner of the 2022 Nautilus Book Award Silver Medal and an Honorable Mention from the American Society of Journalists and Authors for General Nonfiction

Named a Best Book of the Year by World Economic Forum, AARP, Greater Good, and Inc.

The End of Bias is a transformative, groundbreaking exploration into how we can eradicate unintentional bias and discrimination, the great challenge of our age.

Discussions of unconscious bias typically focus on the problem, not on solutions. But how do we eradicate the unintentional prejudices that clash with our values and wreak havoc across medicine, the workplace, education, policing, and beyond?

To find out, award-winning journalist and writer Jessica Nordell undertook a global search for solutions. The culmination of fifteen years' immersion in the subject, The End of Bias: A Beginning explores how bias ends: the police unit in California where new incentives improved police behavior and decreased both arrests and violent crime, the checklist used by doctors that erased gender disparities in treatment, the media intervention that reduced religious intolerance in France. Weaving gripping stories with scientific research and exquisite writing, Nordell paints riveting portraits of those leading change and interrogates her own biases with candor and insight.

Called "powerful" by Bloomberg and "rousing" by the Guardian, The End of Bias: A Beginning offers a hopeful, achievable vision: biased behavior can be remade and we can create a more just world.

Includes illustrated charts

The New York Times Bestseller

"A superb introduction to the world and global issues. Richard Haass has written something that is brief, readable, and yet comprehensive--marked throughout by his trademark intelligence and common sense." --Fareed Zakaria

An invaluable primer from Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, that will help anyone, expert and non-expert alike, navigate a time in which many of our biggest challenges come from the world beyond our borders.

We live in a global era, in which what happens thousands of miles away often affects our lives. Although the United States is bordered by two oceans, those oceans are not moats. And the so-called Vegas rule--what happens there stays there--does not apply. Globalization can be both good and bad, but it is not something that individuals or countries can opt out of. The choice we face is how to respond.

The World focuses on history, what makes each region of the world tick, the many challenges globalization presents, and the most influential countries, events, and ideas, to provide readers with the background they need to make sense of this complicated and interconnected world.

A New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice
Named a best book of the year by The Economist Financial Times New Statesman The Telegraph

"[Putin's People] will surely now become the definitive account of the rise of Putin and Putinism." --Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic

"This riveting, immaculately researched book is arguably the best single volume written about Putin, the people around him and perhaps even about contemporary Russia itself in the past three decades." --Peter Frankopan, Financial Times

Interference in American elections. The sponsorship of extremist politics in Europe. War in Ukraine. In recent years, Vladimir Putin's Russia has waged a concerted campaign to expand its influence and undermine Western institutions. But how and why did all this come about, and who has orchestrated it?

In Putin's People, the investigative journalist and former Moscow correspondent Catherine Belton reveals the untold story of how Vladimir Putin and the small group of KGB men surrounding him rose to power and looted their country. Delving deep into the workings of Putin's Kremlin, Belton accesses key inside players to reveal how Putin replaced the freewheeling tycoons of the Yeltsin era with a new generation of loyal oligarchs, who in turn subverted Russia's economy and legal system and extended the Kremlin's reach into the United States and Europe. The result is a chilling and revelatory exposé of the KGB's revanche--a story that begins in the murk of the Soviet collapse, when networks of operatives were able to siphon billions of dollars out of state enterprises and move their spoils into the West. Putin and his allies subsequently completed the agenda, reasserting Russian power while taking control of the economy for themselves, suppressing independent voices, and launching covert influence operations abroad.

Ranging from Moscow and London to Switzerland and Brooklyn's Brighton Beach--and assembling a colorful cast of characters to match--Putin's People is the definitive account of how hopes for the new Russia went astray, with stark consequences for its inhabitants and, increasingly, the world.

Still Notorious, Radical, and Revolutionary 50 Years Later.
A survival guide from one of the greatest creative organizers of the 20th century--now with a new foreword by co-conspirator, Lisa Fithian.

Throughout the 1960's and 70's, Abbie Hoffman criss-crossed the country, ferreting out alternative ways of getting by in America--some illegal and all radical. Causing scandals with its advice on how to Survive!, Fight!, and Liberate! in the "prison that is Amerika," Steal This Book is a revolutionary's manual to running a guerilla movement, as well as getting free food, housing, transportation, medical care, and more.

This anniversary edition gives a new generation an insider's view into the movements of the sixties and seventies. While many of the holes in the system that Abbie exposed have since been plugged, the spirit of revolution, the dedication to opposing injustice, and the passion of creative activism continue to inspire today.

"A unique, compelling read."--Midwest Book Review

Revolutionary War officer Nathan Hale, one of America's first spies, said, "Any kind of service necessary to the public good becomes honorable by being necessary." A statue of Hale stands outside CIA headquarters, and the agency often cites his statement as one of its guiding principles. But who decides what is necessary for the public good, and is it really true that any kind of service is permissible for the public good? These questions are at the heart of James M. Olson's book, Fair Play: The Moral Dilemmas of Spying.

Olson, a veteran of the CIA's clandestine service, takes readers inside the real world of intelligence to describe the difficult dilemmas that field officers face on an almost daily basis. Far from being a dry theoretical treatise, this fascinating book uses actual intelligence operations to illustrate how murky their moral choices can be. Readers will be surprised to learn that the CIA provides very little guidance on what is, or is not, permissible. Rather than empowering field officers, the author has found that this lack of guidelines actually hampers operations. Olson believes that U.S. intelligence officers need clearer moral guidelines to make correct, quick decisions. Significantly, he believes these guidelines should come from the American public, not from closed-door meetings inside the intelligence community. Fair Play will encourage a broad public debate about the proper moral limits on U.S. intelligence activities.

Joining the ranks of Evicted and The New Jim Crow, a former caseworker's searing, clear-eyed investigation of the child welfare system--from foster care to incarceration--that exposes the deep-rooted biases shaping the system, witnessed through the lives of several Black families.

Dr. Jessica Pryce knows the child welfare system firsthand and, in this long overdue book, breaks it down from the inside out, sharing her professional journey and offering the crucial perspectives of caseworkers and Black women impacted by the system. It is a groundbreaking and eye-opening confrontation of the inherent and systemic racism deeply entrenched within the child welfare system.

Pryce started her social work career with an internship where she was committed to helping keep children safe. In the book, she walks alongside her close friends and even her family as they navigate the system, while sharing her own reckoning with the requirements of her job and her role in the systemic harm. Through poignant narratives and introspection, readers witness the harrowing effects of a well-intentioned workforce that has lost its way, demonstrating how separations are often not in a child's best interests.

With a renewed commitment to strengthening families in her role as activist, Pryce invites the child welfare workforce to embark on a journey of self-reflection and radical growth. At once a framework for transforming child protective services and an intimate, stunning first-hand account of the system as it currently operates, Broken takes everyday scenarios as its focus rather than extreme child welfare cases, challenging readers to critically examine their own mindsets and biases in order to reimagine how we help families in need.

The latest addition to the WHO HQ program: a biography of Shirley Chisholm, created specifically for the preschool audience!

The #1 New York Times Bestselling Who Was? series expands into the board book space, bringing age-appropriate biographies of influential figures to readers ages 2-4.

Shirley Chisholm was an outspoken and brave political figure and activist whose work has inspired generations to dare to fight for what's right. The chronology and themes of her life are presented in masterfully succinct text, with just a few sentences per page. The fresh, stylized illustrations are sure to captivate young readers and adults alike. With a read-aloud biographical summary in the back, this age-appropriate introduction honors the life and work of one of the most influential and impassioned leaders of our time.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER - A riveting, adrenaline-fueled tour of a vast, lawless, and rampantly criminal world that few have ever seen: the high seas.

There are few remaining frontiers on our planet. But perhaps the wildest, and least understood, are the world's oceans: too big to police, and under no clear international authority, these immense regions of treacherous water play host to rampant criminality and exploitation.

Traffickers and smugglers, pirates and mercenaries, wreck thieves and repo men, vigilante conservationists and elusive poachers, seabound abortion providers, clandestine oil-dumpers, shackled slaves and cast-adrift stowaways--drawing on five years of perilous and intrepid reporting, often hundreds of miles from shore, Ian Urbina introduces us to the inhabitants of this hidden world. Through their stories of astonishing courage and brutality, survival and tragedy, he uncovers a globe-spanning network of crime and exploitation that emanates from the fishing, oil, and shipping industries, and on which the world's economies rely.

Both a gripping adventure story and a stunning exposé, this unique work of reportage brings fully into view for the first time the disturbing reality of a floating world that connects us all, a place where anyone can do anything because no one is watching.

Discover insider secrets of how America's transportation system is designed, funded, and built - and how to make it work for your community

In Confessions of a Recovering Engineer: Transportation for a Strong Town, renowned speaker and author of Strong Towns Charles L. Marohn Jr. delivers an accessible and engaging exploration of America's transportation system, laying bare the reasons why it no longer works as it once did, and how to modernize transportation to better serve local communities.

You'll discover real-world examples of poor design choices and how those choices have dramatic and tragic effects on the lives of the people who use them. You'll also find case studies and examples of design improvements that have revitalized communities and improved safety.

This important book shows you:

• The values of the transportation professions, how they are applied in the design process, and how those priorities differ from those of the public.
• How the standard approach to transportation ensures the maximum amount of traffic congestion possible is created each day, and how to fight that congestion on a budget.
• Bottom-up techniques for spending less and getting higher returns on transportation projects, all while improving quality of life for residents.

Perfect for anyone interested in why transportation systems work - and fail to work - the way they do, Confessions of a Recovering Engineer is a fascinating insider's peek behind the scenes of America's transportation systems.

Before Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Mae Jemison, Frida Kahlo, and others were change-making feminists, they were . . . babies!

What do Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Mae Jemison, Frida Kahlo, Barack and Michelle Obama, Gloria Steinem, Dorothy Pitman Hughes, Billie Jean King, Yoko Ono, and Malala Yousafzai have in common? They're all feminists-- and they were all once babies! This irresistible and timely 7" x 7" board book invites you to lift the flap and discover what your favorite feminist icons might have looked like as babies and toddlers. With an inspiring message that any baby can grow up to make the world a better place for all genders, Baby Feminists makes the perfect gift for baby showers, baby-naming ceremonies, birthdays, holidays, and more.

A 2023 Pura Belpré Honor Book (Illustrations)

An inspiring biography of Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez from Pura Belpré Honor-winning creators Anika Aldamuy Denise and Loris Lora!

In 2019, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest congresswoman in America. How did this young Puertorriqueña become an unstoppable force in politics? Find out in this accessible and engaging book for young readers.

AOC's remarkable story begins in her childhood Bronx home and comes full circle the moment AOC became America's youngest congresswoman. Ocasio-Cortez's empowering journey reminds us that everyone, regardless of their age, race, creed, wealth, or zip code, is capable of being a voice for change.

A glossary and resources for changemakers are included at the end of the book.

"Sublime . . . Kalman's elegantly witty and at times melancholy narrative runs arm in arm with her unmistakable paintings on a serendipitous romp through the history of the world." --Vanity Fair

"Wildly original . . . there's nothing else even remotely like it . . . This hilarious, wise, and deeply moving volume [is] the ultimate picture book for grown-ups." --O Magazine

Maira Kalman paints her highly personal worldview in this inimitable combination of image and text

An irresistible invitation to experience life through a beloved artist's psyche, The Principles of Uncertainty is a compilation of Maira Kalman's New York Times columns. Part personal narrative, part documentary, part travelogue, part chapbook, and all Kalman, these brilliant, whimsical paintings, ideas, and images - which initially appear random - ultimately form an intricately interconnected worldview, an idiosyncratic inner monologue.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

To get ahead today, you have to be a jerk, right?

Divisive politicians. Screaming heads on television. Angry campus activists. Twitter trolls. Today in America, there is an "outrage industrial complex" that prospers by setting American against American, creating a "culture of contempt"--the habit of seeing people who disagree with us not as merely incorrect, but as worthless and defective. Maybe, like more than nine out of ten Americans, you dislike it. But hey, either you play along, or you'll be left behind, right?

Wrong.

In Love Your Enemies, social scientist and author of the #1 New York Times bestseller From Strength to Strength Arthur C. Brooks shows that abuse and outrage are not the right formula for lasting success. Brooks blends cutting-edge behavioral research, ancient wisdom, and a decade of experience leading one of America's top policy think tanks in a work that offers a better way to lead based on bridging divides and mending relationships.

Brooks' prescriptions are unconventional. To bring America together, we shouldn't try to agree more. There is no need for mushy moderation, because disagreement is the secret to excellence. Civility and tolerance shouldn't be our goals, because they are hopelessly low standards. And our feelings toward our foes are irrelevant; what matters is how we choose to act.

Love Your Enemies offers a clear strategy for victory for a new generation of leaders. It is a rallying cry for people hoping for a new era of American progress. Most of all, it is a roadmap to arrive at the happiness that comes when we choose to love one another, despite our differences.

A lively, accessible, and timely guide to Capitalism for those who want to understand and dismantle the world of the 1%

A revelatory history of how postcolonial African Independence movements were systematically undermined by one nation above all: the US.

In 1958 in Accra, Ghana, the Hands Off Africa conference brought together the leading figures of African independence in a public show of political strength and purpose. Led by the charismatic Kwame Nkrumah, who had just won Ghana's independence, his determined call for Pan-Africanism was heeded by young, idealistic leaders across the continent and by African Americans seeking civil rights at home. Yet, a moment that signified a new era of African freedom simultaneously marked a new era of foreign intervention and control.

In White Malice, Susan Williams unearths the covert operations pursued by the CIA from Ghana to the Congo to the UN in an effort to frustrate and deny Africa's new generation of nationalist leaders. This dramatically upends the conventional belief that the African nations failed to establish effective, democratic states on their own accord. As the old European powers moved out, the US moved in.

Drawing on original research, recently declassified documents, and told through an engaging narrative, Williams introduces readers to idealistic African leaders and to the secret agents, ambassadors, and even presidents who deliberately worked against them, forever altering the future of a continent.

The youngest ever Nobel Prize laureate, Pakistani women's rights activist Malala Yousafzai, is the 26th hero in the New York Times bestselling picture book biography series for ages 5 to 8. (Cover may vary)

Malala Yousafzai won the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 17 for speaking out against injustice even when it was terrifying to do so. She was an ordinary Muslim girl who wanted to attend school, and she refused to stop protesting for her rights even after being attacked by a powerful group in Pakistan who wanted women to remain in the shadows. She continues to fight for women's rights and free education for children all over the world.

This friendly, fun biography series inspired the PBS Kids TV show Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum. One great role model at a time, these books encourage kids to dream big. Included in each book are:

- A timeline of key events in the hero's history
- Photos that bring the story more fully to life
- Comic-book-style illustrations that are irresistibly adorable
- Childhood moments that influenced the hero
- Facts that make great conversation-starters
- A virtue this person embodies: Malala Yousafzai's tenacity against incredible odds is celebrated in this

You'll want to collect each book in this dynamic, informative series!