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If you loved
Books like The pursuit of power
A sweeping, sobering journey through a millennium of human conflict, tracing how markets and technology forged the modern military-industrial complex. These 12 books are the closest matches in mood, pace and themes, with what each one shares with The pursuit of power.
- intellectual
- contemplative
- apprehensive
- 01
Energy in world history
Vaclav Smil · 1994
A sweeping, deeply pragmatic lens on human history that reveals the hidden physical forces shaping our world.
- 02
War! What is it good for?
Ian Morris
A sweeping, provocative exploration of how humanity's most destructive impulse paradoxically paved the way for modern peace and prosperity.
- 03
Why the West Rules - For Now
Ian Morris
A sweeping, God's-eye view of human history that turns millennia of data into a gripping puzzle about geography, power, and our collective future.
- 04
The wealth and poverty of nations
David S. Landes
A sweeping, opinionated masterclass in economic history that challenges the reader to grapple with the cultural and technological roots of global inequality.
- 05
Science and technology in world history
Harold Dorn · 1999
A sweeping, panoramic view of human progress that untangles the complex, often surprising relationship between the thinkers and the makers.
- 06
The march of folly
Barbara Wertheim Tuchman
A sweeping, sharply written autopsy of human hubris that leaves you marveling at the cyclical blindness of power.
- 07
Plagues and Peoples
William Hardy McNeill
A sweeping, sobering exploration of how microscopic biological forces have repeatedly rewritten the story of human civilization.
- 08
Carnage and culture
Victor Davis Hanson
A sweeping, accessible synthesis of 2,500 years of military history that examines the cultural roots of Western lethality.
- 09
The Day the Universe Changed
Burke, James · 1985
A dizzying, exhilarating ride through the hidden connections and paradigm shifts that built the modern mind.
- 10
War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning
Chris Hedges
A haunting, erudite dismantling of the myths we tell ourselves about the glory of combat and the intoxicating poison of nationalism.
- 11
Supplying War
Martin van Creveld · 1977
A lively, pragmatic deep-dive into the unglamorous but vital mechanics of movement and supply that truly decide the fate of empires.
- 12
The causes of war
Geoffrey Blainey · 1973
A methodical, big-picture exploration of the historical patterns that drive humanity to armed conflict.
