The Worthy House (Charles Haywood)

This new biography of Alexander not only offers nothing new, despite its breathless title, but tiresomely tries to shoehorn modern concepts into the past. (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

Reviewed Sohrab Ahmari's compelling memoir, "From Fire, by Water," which has less to say about Islam than about the defects of the modern world. Highly recommended. (The written version of this review was first published April 14, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

An exploration of art in society, and just as importantly, of the arc of thought both of Sohrab Ahmari and of post-liberalism. (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

Reviewed David Reich's "Who We Are and How We Got Here," in which the author threads the needle on controversial topics. (The written version of this review was first published April 11, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Reviewed the Gies's "Life in a Medieval City," which shows, roughly, that oppression theories are myths, and life in the thirteenth century wasn't, when boiled down, all that different from now. (The written version of this review was first published April 10, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Reviewed Eric Hoffer's famous "The True Believer." It does not deserve to be famous. (The written version of this review was first published April 8, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Reviewed, with thoughts, Michael Anton's excellent set of "Flight 93" essays. He pulls his punches a bit, I think, but a more concise explanation of our current problems would be hard to find. (The written version of this review was first published April 7, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Read Mark Miodownik's's very good Liquid Rules. Mostly what I have to say is about flight attendants and Islam, which are both obviously connected to the subject matter of this book. (The written version of this review was first published April 5, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Thoughts on “Bronze Age Mindset” by the pseudonymous Bronze Age Pervert. Clever and subversive; more than meets the eye. (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

Reviewed Jonathan Tepper's nicely done entry in the pro-competition genre, (The written version of this review was first published February 27, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

A change of pace, from modern politics to seventeenth-century Japan, and to eternal, rather than transitory, things. (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

We talk about the eerie prescience of, and current application of, this classic jeremiad from Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, prophet of his age. (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

An oral history of the ultra-talented Warren Zevon, warts and all. The written version of this review can be found here. We strongly encourage, in these days of censorship and deplatforming, all readers to bookmark our main site (https://www.theworthyhouse.com). You can also subscribe for email notifications. The Worthy House does not solicit donations or other support, or have ads.

Thoughts on a dense classic. (The written version of this review was first published February 23, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

A turn away from current events, to long-ago events, still relevant today. (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

Reviewed William I. Hitchcock's "The Age of Eisenhower." Short version of the review: Eisenhower OK but defective; 1950s good; Baby Boomers bad. (The written version of this review was first published February 16, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

I wanted to learn about Singapore, where limited democracy works. But I didn't learn much from this book. (The written version of this review was first published February 13, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Some thoughts, mostly grouchy, on the habit of Republicans to betray. Not a new phenomenon, as this book shows. But a fatal one. (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

This book is earnest and valuable, but completely inadequate and gap-filled. (The written version of this review was first published February 12, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Wilhelm Röpke's 1960 "A Humane Economy" offered prescriptions for combining free markets with necessary limits. Valuable thoughts in today's flux. (The written version of this review was first published February 3, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

Why Venice, interesting of itself, has much to say to us today. (The written version of this review was first published January 31, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

For a century, we have been subjected to ugly architecture. How did we get here, and what can be done about it? (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

Steve Bannon loves this book. I don't. (The written version of this review was first published January 22, 2019. Written versions, in web and PDF formats, are available here.)

My generally negative take on the lines of thought that fall under the umbrella of the "Dark Enlightenment." (The written version of this review was first published June 27, 2018. Written versions, in web, PDF and ebook formats, are available here. The web version also contains extensive comments, including responses from me.)

This thirty-year-old book talks of a century of American technological progress that ended twenty years before it was published. What does that century of technological grandeur tell us about today? (The written version of this review, in web, PDF, and ebook formats, can be found here.)

This classic book, by the protean Ernst Jünger, is often taken to be a libertarian manifesto. That is entirely wrong. (The written version of this review was first published January 21, 2019. Written versions, in web, PDF and ebook formats, are available here.)

Today we offer thoughts about a contemporaneous attack on the "harm principle" of that avatar of Enlightenment and progressive thought, John Stuart Mill. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

A complete analysis of the controversy surrounding the computer game Battlefield V. (The written version of this review was first posted January 16, 2019.)

This book, Victor Klemperer's book "The Language of the Third Reich," appears to have been taken as instruction manual by a particular group today. (The written version of this review was first published January 11, 2019.)

A pause from the concerns of today, to discuss a famous polymath of yesterday. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Thoughts on, and comparisons to, a bleak vision of the human future, that is not meant to be bleak. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Discussion of an exhaustive analysis how the Turks exterminated the country's entire Christian population, an unpleasant topic that nonetheless deserves attention. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

A discussion of a Danish journalist's even-handed look at Hungary today, where we focus less on the usual range of views about Viktor Orbán, and more on the questions of Gypsies and Russia. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Here we talk about how our government would really act in an existential crisis. Hint: not well. (The written version of this review was first posted January 10, 2019.)

Discussion of an anarchist's view of a section of the fringe Right—not the fringe worth talking about, unfortunately. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Today we talk about an important book, cutting across political lines in America, though one that falls a bit short in making necessary distinctions. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Everyone talks about conformity; Cass Sunstein tries to break it down and offers useful tools for examining the mechanisms of conformity, when it is good, and when it is bad. He even succeeds, in part. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Something a bit more personal, since I had a relative who rode for the Pony Express, a brief, but (formerly) iconic episode in American history. (The written version of this was originally posted January 9, 2019).

Thoughts on Space—of itself, of false myths, and of it as a pillar of Foundationalism. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Today we talk about Vikings, real Vikings, with an emphasis on history but, as usual, some thoughts on today. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

A more-or-less complete set of thoughts on what should be done with respect to social media, both in regard to nonpartisan problems created by social media platforms, and with regard to the suppression of conservative speech by the Lords of Tech. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Thoughts, for Independence Day no less, on how the government by elitist bureaucracy we have today conflicts with the vision of the Founders and with natural right, and what my political program, Foundationalism, will offer instead. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Today we offer not a book review, but an analysis, of communitarianism—a perennial political idea that has recently received fresh attention. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Stepping away from the hurly-burly of current events, today we talk about a core, yet obscure, Christian doctrine. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

A throwback today, that is not really a throwback. Thoughts from, and thoughts about, Carl Schmitt, reality-based master of the philosophy of enmity, in his book Theory of the Partisan. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Our thoughts on the manifesto offered by Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang, who offers a mix of insane fantasy and moderately interesting ideas. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Structural engineering, and what it produces, is fascinating, though Built, by Roma Agrawal, is marred by ideological distortions. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Too often we forget, or are made to forget, the evils of Communism. Here, we discuss a memoir that acts as a corrective, Escaping the Russian Bear, by Kristina von Rosenvinge. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Today we offer thoughts on the working class, in Britain and America, through the lens of Hired, by James Bloodworth. (The written version of this review can be found here.)

Today's selection is Roman Warfare, by Adrian Goldsworthy. Our focus is straight history, not so much lessons to be learned, but as always, we comment on both the book and its implications. (The written version of this review can be found here.)