In an ideal world, summer would mean endless days of leisurely reading on the beach. But even if all you have is a long weekend, there are some books that are just too good to miss.
Here are The Atlantic’s Business editors top picks for business and economics books you should definitely make time for this summer.
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White Trash | Nancy Isenberg
What’s it about? A social history of white poverty in America over the past 400 years.
Why should I read it? Isenberg traces the treatment (and mistreatment) of poor, white Americans back to the time of British colonization, discussing how ideas of class and economic inferiority have manifested. The book argues that poor white Americans have always played a large political role, and that class injustices of this particular group challenge fundamental American beliefs of meritocracy and social mobility.
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Evicted | Matthew Desmond
What’s it about? The role that evictions play in the continuation of cycles of poverty.
Why should I read it? It’s a staggeringly in-depth account of just how common and devastating evictions are in the lives of poor Americans. Desmond’s work shows the stark inequalities that come into play when it comes to who gets displaced and how that displacement can prevent a family from ever making a better life for themselves. For more than a year, Desmond shadowed two landlords (and lived in properties they owned) in order to tell both sides of the eviction story. What he uncovers about the role of housing in American life, and how access to it is denied, is unnerving. (Read our interview with Desmond here.)
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Disrupted: My Misadventure in the Start-Up Bubble | Dan Lyons
What’s it about? An aging journalist gets laid off and goes to work in the industry he has long written about.
Why should I read it? Lyons—one of the writers behind the HBO series Silicon Valley—heads to HubSpot after being laid off and finds himself immersed in a world of flowing venture capital, playground-like offices, and internet idealism. His artful reporting from the inside makes for a funny and thoughtful account of the current culture surrounding technology startups. But in addition to entertainment, Lyons’s book is also flush with analysis of those the entrepreneurs that founded these companies and the myriad firms that fund them.
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Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right | Jane Mayer
What’s it about? A writer for The New Yorker traces the secretive political donations of the Koch brothers and the rise of the “radical right.”
Why should I read it? For anyone fascinated by the political influence of the billionaire Koch brothers, Jane Mayer gets closest to uncovering their web of financial contributions to a variety of political causes. As the 2016 presidential race moves forward, and conversations about economic inequality remain prominent, this book touches on subjects that are both timely and critical to understanding this important point in history.
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Chaos Monkeys: Obscene Fortune and Random Failure in Silicon Valley | Antonio García Martínez
What’s it about? A former Facebook and Twitter employee gives readers an inside look into the drama inside two of Silicon Valley’s biggest tech companies.
Why should I read it? García Martínez has quite the resume, having worked at major firms in both tech and banking. He’s also developed quite a reputation for being a bit of a wild card. In his insider-tells-all book, García Martínez discusses everything from goofy stories to cultural secrets about some of the country’s most powerful and influential businesses.
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