Reading Recommendations

Newspapers/Magazines/Blogs and other Good Info Sources:

(a caveat here is that I don’t always keep track of everything said by these sources, or by people they may have on their newspaper/program, so I don’t necessarily endorse everything reported by these sources)

  • Jacobin
    • Probably the best-known leftist new source in the US today. Aside from their website/newsletter, they have a good podcast as well (Jacobin Radio)

  • CounterPunch
    • Good leftist newspaper

  • The Nation
    • Progressive newspaper in the US

  • Democracy Now!
    • Good independent source for news

  • The Progressive Magazine
    • Longstanding leftist newspaper

  • Worker’s World
    • The publication of The Worker’s World Party, a leftist political party

  • Liberation
    • The newspaper of the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL)

  • Socialist Alternative
    • The newspaper of the political party of the same name

  • International Viewpoint
    • News magazine of the "Fourth International"

  • Freedom
    • British Anarchist news source

  • The De-Colonial Horizon
    • Substack by Alain Alameddine giving valuable anti-zionist and anti-capitalist perspectives, particularly as relates to Palestine and the Levant

  • The Young Turks
    • Progressive news source primarily streaming through Youtube (though is also accessible through multiple other channels)

  • Second Thought
    • Youtube channel that discusses current events from a socialist perspective

  • Hakim
    • Youtube channel that discusses current events from an overtly anti-imperialist and socialist perspective

  • The Deprogram
    • Fairly popular leftist news podcast

  • Red Menace
    • Podcast that discusses current events through a leftist perspective

  • Revolutionary Left Radio
    • Podcast that discusses current events through a leftist perspective

  • The Socialist Program with Brian Becker
    • Podcast that discusses current events through a leftist perspective

  • Rupture Radio
    • Podcast that discusses current events through a leftist perspective

  • Best of the Left
    • Podcast discussing current events from a leftist perspective

  • Richard D Wolff
    • Leftist economist, also has a Youtube channel where he comments on current events

  • Belly of the Beast
    • News source that primarily focuses on current events in Cuba

  • In Defense of Marxism (marxist.com)
    • website put together by the Revolutionary Communist International (RCI) with myriad resources on leftism

  • Reddit.com/r/askcommunists
    • As of writing this (4/2026), they have an excellent reading list on leftist philosophy on their wiki that is worth checking out if you’re interested in learning more about communism

  • Reddit.com/r/socialism_101
    • As of writing this (4/2026), they have a good collection of writings divided by topics on their wiki

  • Reddit.com/r/socialism
    • As of writing this (4/2026), they have a good collection of writings and resources in their wiki

 

Books:

Middle East Current Events and History:

  • The New Sectarianism: The Arab Uprisings and the Rebirth of the Shi'a-Sunni Divide by Geneive Abdo 
    • Decent book that talks about events in the Middle East from the 2010’s onward, particularly focused on the Arab Spring. It frames much of the conflicts during this time period as being explicitly religious/sectarian in nature, which I don’t necessarily agree with.

  • No God but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam by Reza Aslan
    • Good book that gives a basic overview of the history of Islam using a modern lens. While the author himself seems to be fairly non-religious, his Shia upbringing does come through at times, particularly in how the way he frames certain events in Islamic history contrasts with the way I heard it being raised as a Sunni.

  • The Great Caliphs: The Golden Age of the Abbasid Empire by Amira Bennison
    • Fairly dry, but interesting, book about the history of the Abbasid Caliphate. At its height, this was considered by many to be the “Golden Age of Islam”.

  • The Great War for Civilization: The Conquest of the Middle East by Robert Fisk
    • Excellent book by Robert Fisk, a British journalist who spent much of his life living in the Middle East and covering various conflicts. In this book, he covers many of the conflicts in the Middle East (and Afghanistan) from the 1970’s-late 2000’s, aside from the Lebanese Civil War, which is in a separate book. His legacy is marred somewhat by his pro-Syrian government stance during the Syrian Civil War, but it doesn’t detract from how good this book is.

  • Pity the Nation by Robert Fisk
    • Another excellent book by Robert Fisk, a British journalist who spent much of his life living in the Middle East and covering various conflicts. In this book, he covers the Lebanese Civil War. His legacy is marred somewhat by his pro-Syrian government stance during the Syrian Civil War, but it doesn’t detract from how good this book is. 

  • The Modern Middle East: A History by James Gelvin
    • Good, basic survey of Middle East History.

  • Osman’s Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire by Caroline Finkel
    • This is a detailed, if somewhat dry, book about the political events/narrative of the Ottoman Empire, from its foundation through to its dissolution and briefly touches on the founding of the modern Turkish state.

  • The First Dynasty of Islam: The Umayyad Caliphate by G. R. Hawting
    • Short, detailed, dry book about major political events of the Umayyad Caliphate.

  • The New Arab Wars: Uprisings and Anarchy in the Middle East by Marc Lynch
    • Decent, if not terribly illuminating, book giving a survey of conflicts in the Middle East following the Arab Spring.

  • The Biggest Prison on Earth: A History of the Occupied Territories by Ilan Pappe
    • Good book that gives an overview of how Israel has “administered” the land and people in the West Bank and Gaza. It’s a little out of date now given that it does not cover event following Israel’s invasion of Gaza in 2023

  • A Rage for Order by Robert Worth
    • Decent, if not terribly illuminating, book giving a survey of conflicts in the Middle East following the Arab Spring.

  • The Ghosts of Martyrs Square by Michael Young
    • Great book about events in Lebanon in the mid-2000’s surrounding the Syrian withdrawal.

  • Lords of the Land: The War Over Israel's Settlements in the Occupied Territories, 1967-2007 by Idith Zertal and Akiva Eldar
    • Another decent book that primarily focuses on the act of Jewish settlement within the West Bank and Gaza. It is now also 20 years out of date.

Latin American Current Events and History:

  • Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life by Jon Lee Anderson
    • Excellent book giving an overview of the life of Ernesto Guevara, one of the great Leftist revolutionaries of the 20th century. Also gives a good overview of some of the people he spent a lot of time with, such as Fidel Castro.

  • Born in Blood and Fire: A Concise History of Latin America by John Charles Chasteen
    • Good, basic survey of Latin American history.

  • A History of the Cuban Revolution by Aviva Chomsky
    • Short, interesting book talking about different aspects of life in Cuba following the revolution

  • Fidel's Ethics of Violence: The Moral Dimension of the Political Thought of Fidel Castro by Dayan Jayatilleka
    • Interesting book discussing Castro’s philosophies around the ethical use of violence

  • The Last Days of the Incas by Kim MacQuarrie
    • Excellent book covering the story of the Spanish conquest of the Incas

  • Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs by Camilla Townsend 
    • Great book covering the story of the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs, primarily using indigenous sources

Communist and Leftist Theory:

  • The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon
    • Landmark work by leftist philosopher Frantz Fanon regarding the effect of colonialism on the psyche of the colonized peoples

  • From Marx to Gramsci: A Reader in Revolutionary Marxist Politics by Paul Le Blanc
    • Excellent overview of different leftist schools of thought

  • The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
    • Very short, very famous, work by two of the most important leftist philosophers that helps codify the basic tenets of communism, ie. historical materialism

  • Democracy at Work: A Cure for Capitalism by Richard Wolff
    • Good book where Wolff expounds on a possible alternative economic system

  • Contending Economic Theories: Neoclassical, Keynesian, and Marxian by Richard Wolff
    • Good book where Wolff gives a brief summary of different economic systems

US Current Events and History:

  • Citizens of the Empire by Robert Jensen
    • A book I read a long time ago, but Jensen critiques American imperialist actions in the post-cold-war and encourages increased political engagement by the populace

  • A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn
    • Famous book that has been criticized for certain elements that may not be completely historically accurate, but does an excellent job presenting American history from the point-of-view of the common man, whatever that may mean for the specific historical era that is being presented.

World Current Events and History:

  • Thomas Sankara: An African Revolutionary by Ernest Harsch
    • Good biography of Thomas Sankara, a leftist revolutionary in Burkina Faso

  • The History of the World by J.M. Roberts
    • Good book that gives a basic survey of major events in world history. As a single-volume work, it is limited in the amount of detail that it goes into for any given event.

  • A Failed Empire: The Soviet Union in the Cold War from Stalin to Gorbachev by Vladislav Zubok
    • Decent book that gives an overview of political events in the Soviet Union during the Cold War

Healthcare:

  • An American Sickness by Elisabeth Rosenthal
    • Decent book that gives an overview for how the current health insurance situation in American came to be with a focus on how different players/actors in the healthcare space work towards maximizing profit

  • Remedy and Reaction by Paul Starr 
    • Decent book that gives an overview for how the current health insurance situation in American came to be and prior attempts to reform it

 

Podcasts: (not specifically for news or current events)

  • Revolutions by Mike Duncan
    • Excellent podcast that discusses different revolutions, primarily in Europe, spanning from the English Civil War to the Russian Revolution. While it is a very Eurocentric podcast, it does a decent job of creating an overarching narrative for the transition in Europe from overtly autocratic forms of government to the liberal governments in place today

  • Fall of Civilizations Podcast
    • Good podcast that picks one civilization and over the course of the episode gives a brief overview of the rise and fall of that civilization. Because each civilization is just one episode, he doesn’t go into a ton of detail, but it’s still interesting.

  • History of Rome by Mike Duncan
    • Good podcast that details the history of Rome from the early days of the Republic to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire

  • The Hellenistic Age Podcast
    • Decent podcast that details the history of Alexander the Great and his conquests, how it spread Greek influence throughout the Mediterranean, and the rise and fall of each of the fragmented Greek kingdoms that followed his death