This week, Richard talks to Michael Mandelbaum, author of The American Way of Foreign Policy: Ideology, Economics, Democracy (Oxford University Press).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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This week, Richard talks to Frank Dikötter, author of Red Dawn Over China: How Communism Conquered a Quarter of Humanity (Bloomsbury).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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This week, Richard Aldous talks to Steve Israel, author of The Einstein Conspiracy (Compass Rose Publishing).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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This week, Richard Aldous talks to Christopher Clark, author of A Scandal in Königsberg (Penguin).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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This week, Richard Aldous talks to Hélène Landemore, author of Politics Without Politicians: The Case for Citizen Rule (Thesis).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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This week, Richard talks to Nicolas Stavros Niarchos, author of The Elements of Power: A Story of War, Technology, and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth (Penguin Press).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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This week, Richard Aldous talks to Georgios Varouxakis, author of The West: The History of an Idea (Princeton University Press).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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For our first episode of 2026, Richard talks to Geoffrey Ward, author of The American Revolution: An Intimate History (Knopf).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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This week, Richard talks to Kori Schake, author of The State and the Soldier: A History of Civil-Military Relations in the United States (Polity).

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

Follow 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.

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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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 Aldous

Producer: Bhaasita Athani

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It’s been such an incredible honor to work with Richard Aldous over the last three years. I’ve produced close to 100 episodes in a close-knit partnership with our beloved host, and I will miss him, the work, and the Persuasion team dearly. I’m happy to say I’m currently working on my own book proposal, so hopefully one day I’ll be back…as a guest on Bookstack!

You can read Laura’s writing and follow along with her on Substack:

Zero Proof Nation™️ by Laura

Zero Proof Nation™️ is a worldwide non-alcoholic resource hub boasting a global map of AF establishments, from bottle shops to bars on 6 of 7 continents. Founder Laura Silverman has been sober over 17 years so she's seen this industry grow in real time.

By Laura Silverman

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 a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer (for the last time): Laura Silverman

Follow 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.

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In today’s episode of Bookstack, host Richard Aldous sits down with Bryan Burrough, acclaimed journalist, podcaster, and author of The Gunfighters: How Texas Made the West Wild (Penguin Random House).

Bookstack is a production of American Purpose at Persuasion.

Host: Richard Aldous

Producer: Laura Silverman

Follow 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.

20% off for Bookstack listeners!