Bookshelf
May 2026
From time to time, I update this page. Last updated: Thursday 28th May.
This bookshelf collects blogs, podcasts and books that I think are worth your time. Please share what you enjoy and do send over your own recommendations.
Blogs
Full list included further below. If you’re short on time, try these first:
Andrew Bennett on Sovereign Albion.
Ben Southwood, Sam Bowman & Samuel Hughes on fixing the foundations.
Byrne Hobart on LLMs & Darwinian evolution.
Cultural Tutor on beauty.
Matt Clifford’s speech on making Britain rich again.
Matt Levine at Money Stuff.
Scott Alexander’s parable The Prophet And Caesar’s Wife.
Sam Kriss on folk tradition and Silicon Valley (his own suggestions here).
For other collections of recommended reads try: Lindy Library, The Electric Typewriter, and Read Something Wonderful.
Podcasts
Full list further below. Top three recommendations:
Anglofuturism: Tom Ough & Calum Drysdale, produced by Aeron Laffere. Who now has anything to say about the de-industrialisation of this country? More serious than it sounds. Great episodes include Alex Fitzgerald on British Manufacturing, Philip Cunliffe on The End of Globalisation, Tom & Calum on The British Antarctic Territory. I wrote for them about English History, here.
Manifold: Steve Hsu works at the forefront of genetics, physics, and software engineering. His willingness to examine controversial topics cost him academic posts during the early 2020s. Standout episodes include Dan Collins on US-China manufacturing, Greg Clark on Genetics and Social mobility, Dominic Cummings on Vote Leave.
The Stubborn Light of Things: Melissa Harrison takes listeners on audio walks through the Suffolk countryside around her cottage, following the seasons from spring through summer into autumn. Each episode captures birdsong, running streams, and the sounds of the landscape, interwoven with extracts from an 18th-century clergyman’s diary. For the immersive seasonal experience, listen weekly starting in early March.
Books
Classical Texts
The New Testament (novum testamentum): Nestle-Aland Greek-Latin parallel edition.
Histories (Ἱστορίαι): Strassler’s Landmark Edition.
Iliad & Odyssey (Ἰλιάς & Ὀδύσσεια): Samuel Butler for a readable prose version.
On the Shortness of Life (de brevitate vitae) see more in this post, also note 2nd Choral Ode of Thyestes.
Aeneid (Aeneis): Dryden’s heroic couplets are unbeaten. In prose, Robert Fagles is compelling.
The Periplus of Hanno (Άννωνος Περίπλους): Explored at length in this post.
Fiction
The Mill on the Floss, George Eliot.
Buddenbrooks, Thomas Mann.
The Earthsea Quartet, Ursula Le Guin.
Les Aventures de Tintin, Hergé.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle.
Il Nome della Rosa, Umberto Eco.
Non-Fiction
The English & their History, Robert Tombs. My review post here.
Should He Have Spoken? Roger Scruton (here).
First World War diaries: Pairing Storm of Steel (In Stahlgewittern), Ernst Junger, with Memoirs of an Infantry Officer Siegfried Sassoon. In film, pairing 1917 (Sam Mendes), with All Quiet on the Western Front (Im Westen Nichts Neues, Edward Berger).
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World , Peter Frankopan (interviewed by me here).
Sicily: An Island at the Crossroads of History, John Julius Norwich (see also the Christmas Crackers).
Recent Reading
2026
A Certain Idea of France: The Life of Charles de Gaulle, Julian Jackson
Castlereagh, John Bew
Emma, Jane Austen
From Third World to First: The Singapore Story, Lee Kuan Yew
The Great Game, Peter Hopkirk
The Rage of Party, George Owers
Failed State, Sam Freedman
Bleak House, Charles Dickens
2025
Between the Waves, Tom McTague
Brakneck, Dan Wang
Folk Song in England, Steve Roud
George Eliot & Money, Dermot Coleman
The Mill on the Floss, George Eliot
Middlemarch, George Eliot
A Hero of Our Time, Mikhail Lermontov
Against the Tide, Roger Scruton
How to be a Conservative, Roger Scruton
The Beginning of Infinity, David Deutsch
Il Gattopardo, Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa
2024
A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived, Adam Rutherford
A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush, Eric Newby
For the Record, David Cameron
Outlive, Peter Attia
Material World, Ed Conway
The Time of the Gypsies, Michael Stewart
The Price of Time, Edward Chancellor
Trillions, Robin Wigglesworth
Between the Woods & the Water, Patrick Leigh Fermor
All Blog Recommendations
Benedict Evans on artificial intelligence.
Benedict Springbett on coming to the nuisance.
Ben Yeoh on unconferences.
Brian Potter on construction physics.
Byrne Hobart on technological innovation.
Dan Neidle on tax policy (interviewed here).
Danny Kruger on the Christian state.
Dominic Cummings on regime change.
Drupka Kunley on the Yookay.
Duncan McClements on Dogger Bank.
Ed Hezlet on the UK energy system.
Ed West on British constitutional change.
Emma Garland on desire.
Ethan Mollick on generative education.
Felix Stocker variously curious.
Fernando Boretti on managing ADHD.
FT’s Alphaville.
Gwern on everything.
Hannah Ritchie on sustainability data.
Henrik Karlsson on writing without purpose.
Howard Marks’ memos.
Jack Wiseman on inference.
James W Phillips on UK COVID response and inquiry,
Jay Foreman on maps and London infrastructure.
Jim Waterson at London Centric.
Joachim Klement on enclothed cognition.
Joe Hill on Greater London.
John Myers on the housing theory of everything.
Josey PArker on Isotta Nogarola.
Khe Hy on generative productivity.
Lindy Man on winter light.
Louise Perry on feminism.
Matt Clifford’s thoughts in between. Reading lists (2010s, 2020s) were the inspiration for this post. Interview with Patrick O’Shaughnessy.
Matt Levine, the classicist-turned-lawyer-turned-investment banker-turned-Bloomberg columnist. Writes a stunning ~700k words per year at Money Stuff, The Crypto Story, the Money Stuff Podcast, as well as this interview.
Matti Thal on English soup, Hampstead Heath, and Cambridge churches.
Michael Mauboussin at Consilient Observer on foundational financial markets questions. See also his reflections on 30 years.
Monty Evans on sports betting arbitrage.
Neel Nanda on mechanistic interpretability.
Neil O’Brien on UK migration.
Nemets on anthropology.
Noah Smith for economics.
Paramvir Singh Khera’s poetry.
Paul Norris for idiosyncratic sensitivity (formerly here).
Peter Leonard for Central Asian politics.
Phoebe Arslanagic-Little on artificial wombs.
Polemic Paine on bypassing the state.
Razib Khan on human genetics.
Rian Chad Whitton on British industry.
Sam Bowman on consumer surplus.
Sam Currie on economic statecraft.
Sam Dumitriu on British planning reform.
Sam Enright’s roundups of links.
Samuel Hughes on vernacular architecture.
Scott Alexander at Astral Codex Ten on philosophy and culture Beware Isolated Demands for Rigour and Fake Tradition Is Traditional and on scientific themes How Are The Gay Younger Brothers Doing?, Welcome Polygenically Screened Babies, Missing Heritability, Prison & Crime.
Trenton Bricken on optimal bet sizing.
Tom Jones on human quantitative easing.
Visakan Veerasamy on LLM epistemology.
William Buckner on traditions of conflict.
Zvi Mowschowitz on artificial intelligence.
All Podcast Recommendations
More recondite recommendations:
Tides of History: Patrick Wyman brings academic depth to overlooked periods of human prehistory. Especially good on ancient migration patterns for which an entry-point is his exploration of the Yamnaya Culture.
The Abundance Agenda: James O’Malley & Martin Robbins explain their radicalisation towards the abundance movement using case studies from local councils across Britain. Highlights include Build a Tunnel to the Isle of Wight, HS2’s Bridge to Nowhere, Natural England’s War on Sussex.
Folk on Foot: Former BBC broadcaster Matthew Bannister tours the British Isles interviewing traditional folk musicians in their home landscapes including Kris Drever on Orkney, Sam Lee in Sussex, Seth Lakeman on Dartmoor, Johnny Flynn on the Hackney Marshes, and Goblin Band in the City of London.
Works in Progress: The WIP Editors discuss underrated ideas with guests. Standout episodes include Anton Howes on Henry VIII & the Industrial Revolution, Nicholas Boys-Smith on Traffic Modernism, The Editors on Ugly Buildings.
Darknet Diaries: Jack Rhysider accessible exploration of hacking, information security, and cyber-warfare. The 2019 analysis of NotPetya attack by the Russian state on Ukraine proved remarkably prescient.
Looking for Growth: James Newport & Becca Wray from the LFG team explore how to set the UK back on a course of growth. Try interview with Phoebe Arslanagic-Little of Boom.
More conventional recommendations:
The Rest is History: Dominic Sandbrook & Tom Holland are now household names, but for good reason. The historical theme means that almost all episodes are evergreen. All-time highlights for me include episodes on Rudolf Vrba & Alfréd Wetzler, The Rise of the Nazis, Outbreak of the First World War, and The Rise of Putin. For extended treatment of their specialist topics, try Dominic Sandbrook on Britain in 1974 (see also this These Times interview), or Tom Holland on Baghdad (see also this Conversation with Tyler interview and Leading interview.
Invest Like the Best: Patrick O’Shaughnessy’s podcast is an exeptional repository of financial markets expertise. Try: Christian Rudder on dating app data, Scott Goodwin on credit markets, Boyd Varty on the South African Bush, and every episode with Michael Mauboussin, Cliff Asness, or Rory Sutherland. Full access to a transcript library is available on the website.
Secrets of Statecraft: Andrew Roberts interviews political and military public figures exploring how the study of history has influenced them. Memorable episodes: Mike Gallagher on China, David Cameron on Vernon Bogdanor, Michael Gove, Richard Dearlove on MI6, Tom Gross on Israel.
Moral Maze: Michael Buerk chairs BBC Radio 4’s long-running ethical debate programme. Four panelists interrogate witnesses on contemporary moral dilemmas. Often heated, occasionally illuminating. Start with whichever moral question most piques your interest.
In Our Time: After decades of impressive work, Melvyn Bragg retired recently from interviewing academics on important themes. The archive is consistent in quality. Greatest moment ever for me was Melyvn Bragg’s defence of the autochthony of the British Industrial Revolution.
Leading: Rory Stewart (see Rian’s essay Rob Rory) & Alastair Campbell, two centrists who rarely disagree but often misjudge tone. Listen despite them, not for them, given the truly impressive guests they are able to draw in for long-form interviews. See, their heated exchanges with indefatigable David Baddiel and Michael Gove, for espionage try A Tale of Two Spies and Sir Alex Younger.
Odd Lots: Each week, Bloomberg’s Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway interview “the perfect guest” on an esoteric feature of financial markets. Evergreen episodes include What a Bakery Can Tell Us About the Economy, the Trucking Bloodbath, and 5,000 Years of Interest Rates (I discuss Richard Sylla’s book here).
Modern Wisdom: Chris Williamson’s unlikely path from nightclub promoter to interviewer produces surprisingly strong conversations. Try Hannah Ritchie (Our World in Data), Louise Perry (Mother, Maiden, Matriarch), Scott Galloway (Prof G), Peter Attia (Outlive), Morgan Housel (Psychology of Money).
Other notable long-form interviewers include Sean Carrolls’ Mindscape, Dwarkesh Patel, Collison Borther’s Cheeky Pint, and Conversations with Tyler all with freely-accessible transcript libraries on their websites.
Standalone series:
The Coming Storm: Gabriel Gatehouse‘s seven-episode series journeys deep into the depths of QAnon, politics, and conspiracy theory. First aired in 2022, the series left me somewhat metaphysically adrift.
The Prince: Searching for Xi Jinping: Sue-Lin Wong‘s series is exemplary journalism. Despite commanding the largest nation in the world, Xi Jinping’s surprisingly obscure personal history across eight episodes.
Duck: Rabbit: Advertising executive Rory Sutherland and behavioural scientist Paul Dolan take on contentious moral questions. The episode on living longer or better is a highlight (I previously wrote on the subject of Living Well, here).
Discontinued podcasts:
These Times: UnHerd political editor Tom McTague and Cambridge professor Helen Thompson explored the historical context of current affairs. Evergreen pieces include Europe’s Reckoning with Ukraine, The Israel-Hamas War, and the special reports for the 2024 UK General Election including Reform in Clacton, the Labour Left in Chingford, and the SNP in the Outer Hebridies.
The Secret History of the Future: The Economist’s Tom Standage and Seth Stevenson of Slate Technology, identified historical examples of technological innovation and compared them with current technological innovations. Evergreen episodes include food, to transportation, to artificial intelligence, this series is impressively expansive. So far, the analysis has withstood the test of time.
