Reviews
Arts & Culture, History, Philosophy, Politics & Rights, Reviews
Cynical Theories: How Activist Scholarship Made Everything about Race, Gender, and Identity—and Why This Harms Everybody by Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay
Timothy Sandefur October 2, 2020
In Cynical Theories, Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay explore the connections between such phenomena as “shoutdowns,” “canceling,” and identity politics on the one hand and the philosophical doctrines taught in America’s universities on the other.
Arts & Culture, Reviews
Mulan (2020) Sullies the Legacy of a Heroine
Frank Olechnowicz October 2, 2020
If you’re looking for a Disney movie that conveys life-serving virtues and values, I passionately recommend watching (or re-watching) the 1998 animated Mulan—and abstaining from the 2020 live-action remake.
Ayn Rand & Objectivism, Reviews
Facets of Ayn Rand: Memoirs by Mary Ann Sures and Charles Sures
Jon Hersey September 24, 2020
Pick up Facets of Ayn Rand and revel in stories about one of history’s greatest storytellers.
Arts & Culture, Reviews
The Witcher by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich
John Doe 24 January 16, 2020
Whereas a lot of modern fiction advocates moral relativism or champions the “antihero,” Geralt of Rivia offers philosophically refreshing, action-packed rebuttals to those tiring tropes.
Education & Parenting, Good Living, Reviews
Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein
John Doe 0 December 5, 2019
In a world where hyper-focus on specialization is leading to greater and greater compartmentalization, this book is a welcome call for a renewed focus on integration.
Arts & Culture, Reviews
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
John Doe 29 November 21, 2019
Let’s hope that future entries in the Star Wars universe follow Fallen Order’s example and once again give us good reasons to fantasize about being Jedi.
Arts & Culture, History, Reviews
The Ascent of Jacob Bronowski: The Life and Ideas of a Popular Science Icon by Timothy Sandefur
John Doe 10 November 13, 2019
Sandefur’s well-trained and wide-ranging mind, brought to bear on a subject of deep personal interest, has delivered prose that is both graceful and direct. What emerges from his biographical portrait is the closest any of us now can get to one of the great humanistic minds of the previous century.
Arts & Culture, Reviews
Doctor Sleep by Mike Flanagan
John Doe 25 November 13, 2019
Doctor Sleep is one of the best horror films of the past thirty years, primarily because of its explicit and accurate identification of the nature of evil—and of the ability of good to overcome it.
History, Philosophy, Reviews
The Plato Cult and Other Philosophical Follies by David Stove
Jon Hersey October 9, 2019
As Ayn Rand wrote, “To laugh at the contemptible, is a virtue.” With the wit of a Mark Twain and the jaundiced eye of a Richard Mitchell, David Stove practiced this virtue diligently and thus did philosophy a tremendous service.
History, Politics & Rights, Reviews
The Rediscovery of America: Essays by Harry V. Jaffa on the New Birth of Politics
Timothy Sandefur September 17, 2019
For all of his errors, Jaffa's insistence that the truths of the Declaration are not historical artifacts but timeless principles worthy of defending will make his best work last forever.