Strongmen
Mussolini to the Present

Strongmen by Ruth Ben-Ghait pairs well with Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum. Strongmen covers the history of several well-known dictators; that is, their rise to power through to their fall and death. It repudiated the idea that autocracy is an efficient and effective form of government. Quotes: "A......more

In today's world the strongmen are back: heads of state who damage or destroy democracy rule Russia, Turkey, Hungary and Brazil. And even a lot of stable democracies see the rise of populists, who all seem to run the same scenario. In this book, Ruth Ben-Ghiat show that nothing is new, and a lot of......more

Recounting the acts of solidarity and dignity that have undone strongmen over the past 100 years, Ben-Ghiat makes vividly clear that only by seeing the strongman for what he is—and by valuing one another as he is unable to do—can we stop him, now and in the future. They use masculinity as a symbol o......more

Recently I read Anne Applebaum’s book THE TWILIGHT OF DEMOCRACY which laid out where the United States stood in a world that seems to trend toward autocratic rule. To say the least her thesis which depicts how American democracy has gone so terribly wrong is scary and alarming. It appears that there......more

Decent book but not quite a must-read in my opinion. At least not for those who are already very well-informed about authoritarian leaders and regimes. The problem is, like usual, the people (mainly in the US) that really need to read this book (primarily as a cautionary tale) are the ones who never......more