National Review Online asked a bunch of us to name two or three books we would be reading this summer. As usual, much of my summer will be spent on reading work-related books and articles — and I wouldn’t subject NRO or VC readers to those recommendations. With that in mind, here was my contribution to the NRO symposium:
An Army of Davids: How Markets and Technology Empower Ordinary People to Beat Big Media, Big Government, and Other Goliaths by Glenn “Instapundit” Reynolds. I admit I’m already half-way through this book, and it’s great — an exhilarating and provocative exploration of how technological change is empowering individuals and spurring the creation of a new, dispersed entrepreneurial class. Given Glenn’s own pioneering efforts as a blogger extraordinaire, the insights of this book should be no surprise.
A Scanner Darkly by Phillip K. Dick. This novel by the ground-breaking, proto-cyberpunk sci-fi author will soon find its way to the silver screen. Given I’m a big fan of Dick’s work (including Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, the book upon which Blade Runner was based), and that Hollywood is quite good at making a hash of his stories (see, e.g., Paycheck), I want to read the book before seeing the movie.
In Defense of Freedom: And Related Essays by Frank S. Meyer. This collection by former National Review senior editor Frank Meyer is a must read — and worth re-reading (as I plan to do this summer). It sets forth the uniquely American brand of conservatism, labeled “fusionism,” that helped define the modern American conservative movement and makes a powerful case for informing conservative politics with a more libertarian view of government.
The full symposium is here. What books are VC readers planning to read this summer?