"Radical
centrists acknowledge that good ideas come from both the left and the right. . .
. Radical centrist policy ideas are hatched by thinkers like authors
Michael Lind and Ted Halstead, journalist Mark Satin, and philosopher Ken
Wilber."
-- Bill Shireman, The Huffington Post, April 5, 2009
50
Best “Radical Middle”
Political Books of the 2000s
I. INTRODUCTORY
NOTE FROM EDITOR MARK SATIN
In our opinion, these are the 50 best radical-middle
political books published in the U.S. from 2000 through 2009.
All BLUE links
below will take you to that book’s page on Amazon.com.
All MAROON links will
take you to the most substantial review or discussion of that book on this
website. By reading our
reviews and discussions, you’ll see why we think these books are superior .
. . not to mention radical middle.
Books preceded by a plus (+) are general introductions to
radical middle politics. Books
preceded by a star (*) have won one of our annual Radical Middle Political
Book Awards; see HERE
for a list of all winners from 1980 through 2009.
II. THE
FIFTY BEST
* Walter Truett Anderson, All
Connected Now: Life in the First Global Civilization (2001), discussed by
us about two-thirds of the way down HERE
Walter Truett Anderson, The
Next Enlightenment: Integrating East and West in a New Vision of Human
Evolution (2003), discussed by us HERE
Tom Atlee, The
Tao of Democracy: Using Co-Intelligence to Create a World that Works for All
(2003), mentioned by us HERE
+ / * John Avlon, Independent
Nation: How Centrism Can Change American Politics (2004), discussed by us HERE
William Baumol, Robert Litan & Carl Schramm, Good
Capitalism, Bad Capitalism, and the Economics of Growth and Prosperity
(2007), discussed by us HERE
Thomas Bender, A
Nation Among Nations: America’s Place in World History (2006), discussed
by us HERE
Paul Berman, Power
and the Idealists; or, the Passion of Joschka Fischer and Its Aftermath
(2005), reviewed by us HERE
Stewart Brand, Whole
Earth Discipline: An Ecopragmatist Manifesto (2009)
Marcus Borg, Reading
the Bible Again for the First Time: Taking the Bible Seriously but Not
Literally (2001), discussed by us HERE
+ / * Lawrence Chickering & James Turner, Voice
of the People: The Transpartisan Imperative in American Life (2008),
appreciated by us HERE
//////////
Edward Cornish, Futuring:
The Exploration of the Future (2004), reviewed by us HERE
Ross Douthat & Reihan Salam, Grand
New Party: How Republicans Can Win the Working Class and Save the American
Dream (2008), previewed by us HERE
Gregg Easterbrook, The
Progress Paradox: How Life Gets Better While People Feel Worse (2003),
reviewed by us HERE
Amitai Etzioni, Next:
The Road to the Good Society (2001), discussed by us about one-third of
the way down HERE
+ Morris Fiorina, Culture
War?: The Myth of a Polarized America (2nd ed. 2006), reviewed by us HERE
* Richard Florida, The
Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community
and Everyday Life (2002), mentioned by us about halfway down HERE
Thomas Friedman, The
World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century (2005),
reviewed by us HERE
Robert Fuller, Somebodies
and Nobodies: Overcoming the Abuse of Rank (2003), reviewed by us HERE
Mark Gerzon, Leading
through Conflict: How Successful Leaders Transform Differences Into
Opportunities (2006), reviewed by us HERE
+ Anthony Giddens, The
Third Way and Its Critics (2000), mentioned by us HERE
//////////
Edward Gresser, Freedom
from Want: American Liberalism and the Global Economy (2007), discussed by
us HERE
+ / * Ted Halstead & Michael Lind, The
Radical Center: The Future of American Politics (2001), reviewed by us HERE
+ Ted Halstead, ed., The
Real State of the Union: From the Best Minds in America, Bold Solutions to the
Problems Politicians Dare Not Address (2004), discussed by us HERE
Marilyn Hamilton, Integral
City: Evolutionary Intelligences for the Human Hive (2008), appreciated by
us HERE
Lawrence Harrison & Samuel Huntington, eds., Culture
Matters: How Values Shape Human Progress (2000), discussed by us about
halfway down HERE
* Alanna Hartzok, The
Earth Belongs to Everyone: Articles and Essays (2008), appreciated by us HERE
Jason Hill, Becoming a Cosmopolitan: What
It Means To Be a Human Being in the New Millennium (2000), discussed by us
HERE
Steven Hill, 10
Steps to Repair American Democracy (2006), reviewed by us HERE
* David Hollinger, Postethnic
America: Beyond Multiculturalism (rev. 2000), discussed by us HERE
Walter Isaacson, Benjamin
Franklin: An American Life (2003), discussed by us about halfway down HERE
//////////
Zachary Karabell, A
Visionary Nation: Four Centuries of American Dreams and What Lies Ahead
(2001), discussed by us HERE
Robert Karen, The
Forgiving Self: The Road from Resentment to Connection (2001), discussed
by us HERE
Michael Kinsley et al., Creative
Capitalism: A Conversation (2009)
Stephen Kinzer, Overthrow:
America’s Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq (2006), reviewed
by us HERE
Art Kleiner, The
Age of Heretics: A History of the Radical Thinkers Who Reinvented Corporate
Management (2nd ed. 2008), appreciated by us HERE
* Anatol Lieven & John Hulsman, Ethical
Realism: A Vision for America’s Role in the World (2006), reviewed by us
HERE
* Steven Lukes, The
Curious Enlightenment of Professor Caritat: A Novel of Ideas (2nd ed.
2009), see brief excerpt on our Political Book Awards page HERE
John McWhorter, Winning
the Race: Beyond the Crisis in Black America (2005), reviewed by us HERE
+ / * Matthew Miller, The
Two Percent Solution: Fixing America's Problems in Ways Liberals and
Conservatives Can Love (2003), discussed by us HERE
Charles Murray, In
Our Hands: A Plan to Replace the Welfare State (2006), reviewed by us HERE
//////////
* Ted Nordhaus & Michael Shellenberger, Break
Through: From the Death of Environmentalism to the Politics of Possibility
(2007), reviewed by us HERE
* George Packer, The
Assassins’ Gate: America in Iraq (2005), reviewed by us HERE
Samantha Power, “A
Problem from Hell”: America and the Age of Genocide (2002), mentioned by
us HERE
+ Paul Ray & Sherry Anderson, The
Cultural Creatives: How 50 Million People Are Changing the World (2000),
reviewed by us HERE
+ Mark Satin, Radical
Middle: The Politics We Need Now (2004), featured by us HERE
Carmen Sirianni & Lewis Friedland, Civic
Innovation in America: Community Empowerment, Public Policy, and the Movement
for Civic Renewal (2001), discussed by us about halfway down HERE
Zadie Smith, On
Beauty (novel; reviewed by us HERE)
Ken Wilber, A
Theory of Everything: An Integral View for Business, Politics, Science, and
Spirituality (2000), described HERE
* Robert Wright, Nonzero:
The Logic of Human Destiny (2000), reviewed by us HERE
Fareed Zakaria, The
Post-American World (2008), appreciated by us HERE
III.
STILL NOT SATISFIED?
See our picks of the best visionary political books from the 1990s, HERE;
from the 1980s, HERE;
from the 1970s, HERE.