The World is Curved: Hidden Dangers to the Global Economy

by David M. Smick

Very interesting look at today’s economy and the problems we face. Among other points, the author notes that the political and economic worlds increasingly do not understand each other, which produces devastating consequences for our country.

Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief

by James M. McPherson

Lincoln: The Biography of a Writer

by Fred Kaplan (Hardcover- October 28, 2008)

With the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, there is a flood of new books on our greatest President. These two are excellent. One surveys Lincoln’s role in directing the war. The other is an in-depth look at his influences and development as a writer.

Redefining Health Care

by Michael E. Porter and Elizabeth Olmsted Teisberg

Argues that our health care system should be reformed to have competition based on value for the patient. The book says that mandatory measurement and reporting of results is perhaps the single most important step in reforming the health care system.

The Shack

by William P. Young

An amazing work of Christian Fiction that is sweeping the country.

Fixing Failed States

by Ashraf Ghani and Claire Lockhart

Insightful look at what does and does not work in building nations.

Congressman Mac Thornberry's Review of Future Jihad:

by Walid Phares

Terrorist Strategies against America by Walid Phares "The war on terror is winnable if the war of ideas is won." Lebanon-born Walid Phares helps provide the kind of deep understanding of our adversary needed to wage successfully that war of ideas in Future Jihad: Terrorist Strategies against America. Emphasizing that the jihadists are "on a mission to resume what their ancestors began," Phares describes movement's history, objectives and strategies, as well as the danger and the vulnerabilities posed by its ideological prison. He argues, correctly in my view, that the West has reacted to individual terrorist events rather than pursuing a long-term strategy that undermines the root cause of the movement - its ideas. Much has been written on terrorism and jihad in six years since 9/11, but only a few works provide the penetrating insight that will help equip us to wage effectively the broader ideological struggle. This book is one.

Patriotic Grace

by Peggy Noonan

Pg. 43 “What we need most right now, at this moment, is a kind of patriotic grace- a grace that takes the long view, apprehends the moment we’re in, comes up with ways of dealing with it, and eschews the politically cheap and manipulative.”

The Forgotten Man, A New History of the Great Depression

by Amity Shlaes

Insightful study of the Great Depression and government actions that made it longer and deeper.

7 Deadly Scenarios: A Military Futurist Explores War in the 21st Century (Hardcover)

by Andrew Krepinevich

One of the top national security thinkers in the country spells out some nightmare scenarios to help focus our planning and better understanding the security challenges we face. Highly recommended.