Person
Ezra Klein books: every book Ezra Klein wrote and recommended
Across 9 podcasts. Every show Ezra Klein appears on, in one place — not just one.
Books by Ezra Klein
Ezra Klein’s most recommended books
- Hillbilly Elegy by J D Vance
- Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman
- The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order by Gary Gerstle
- White Teeth by Zadie Smith
- The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt
- The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel
- Of Boys and Men by Richard Reeves
- The Revolt of the Public and the Crisis of Authority in the New Millennium by Martin Gurri
- Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
- Daring Young Men by Richard Reeves
Ezra Klein is an American liberal political commentator and journalist. He has been a New York Times columnist since 2021 and is the host of The Ezra Klein Show podcast. He is a co-founder of Vox and was formerly the website's editor-at-large. Throughout his appearances on podcasts, Klein has discussed and recommended several notable titles. On Modern Wisdom, he recommended Neil Postman's Amusing Ourselves to Death while examining media theory. During episodes of The Ezra Klein Show, he highly recommended Helena Rosenblatt's The Lost History of Liberalism while introducing her, and mentioned Brink Lindsey's The Permanent Problem while exploring ideas adjacent to abundance. Klein also praised Patti Smith's Just Kids for capturing the feeling of a historical moment and winning the National Book Award, noting that he had read it repeatedly. Additionally, he brought up Suzanne Mettler and Trevor Brown's Rural Versus Urban to introduce a discussion on politics, recommended Zeke Faux's Number Go Up during a conversation about crypto speculation, and cited Zack Beauchamp's The Reactionary Spirit to highlight international perspectives on authoritarianism.
Books recommended by Ezra Klein
-
Hillbilly Elegy
Hillbilly Elegy by J.D.
Discussed“and it is directly at odds with the lion version of JD Vance who wrote Hillbilly.”
Where to get it
-
Amusing Ourselves to Death
Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman is a media critique arguing that modern public discourse has been dangerously degraded by the shift from print culture to television and visual entertainment, where amusement supersedes serious thought.
Recommended“There's a great uh it's not a controversy, it's it's a Neil Postman argument that he makes in Amusing Ourselves to Death, which is always one of my books I recommend to people.”
Where to get it
-
Abundance
Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson is a widely debated political manifesto that challenges progressive orthodoxy by arguing that liberals must embrace economic growth, regulatory reform, and actual physical building to achieve their goals.
Discussed“And I think that the book that Derek Thompson I wrote released us here abundance which it was one of these things.”
Where to get it
-
The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order
The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order by Gary Gerstle explores the emergence, dominance, and ultimate crisis of neoliberalism as a dominant political and economic paradigm.
Discussed“what does that tell us in his book the rise and fall of the neoliberal order the historian Gary gell introduced me to this concept of political orders these structures of political consensus that stretch over decades”
Where to get it
-
White Teeth
White Teeth by Zadie Smith is a vibrant debut novel that explores multicultural contemporary London through the intersecting lives of various immigrant families.
Discussed“it reminded me as a book more than anything else as I read it of white teeth by Zade Smith”
Where to get it
-
The Anxious Generation
The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt is a contemporary psychological study examining how the rise of smartphones, social media, and a shift toward safetyism have devastated adolescent mental health and created a severe youth loneliness crisis.
Discussed“I've known John height for many many years he's been on this show I've read the anxious generation”
Where to get it
-
The Sabbath
The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel is a profound theological exploration of time, sacred rest, and the spiritual dimensions of Judaism.
Recommended“When I was in college uh a rabbi I knew he gave me Abraham Joshua hessel's book the Sabbath”
Where to get it
-
Of Boys and Men
Of Boys and Men by Richard Reeves is an insightful sociological examination of the modern challenges, educational struggles, and structural disadvantages currently facing boys and men.
Discussed“last year I interviewed Richard Reeves about his book of boys and men about what has happened to men in America why they've fallen so far behind and what we should think about it what we can do about it”
Where to get it
-
The Revolt of the Public and the Crisis of Authority in the New Millennium
The Revolt of the Public and the Crisis of Authority in the New Millennium by Martin Gurri is a sociological and political analysis examining how digital technology and the internet have empowered ordinary citizens to challenge traditional institutional authority.
Discussed“I was talking about this ABS I was talking about this with Martin G that he has a sort of Revolt of the public there I was like no this is a Revolt of Elites”
Where to get it
-
Gilead
Marilynne Robinson's Pulitzer Prize-winning epistolary novel, Gilead, is a profound meditation on faith, family history, and grace, told through the extended letter of an aging Congregationalist minister to his young son.
Recommended“there's a really beautiful quote in the book Gilead about this uh by Marilyn Robinson which is I think my favorite book and it it's all the book is this letter of an older man to his young son and he says you see how it is Godlike to love the being of someone”
Where to get it
-
Daring Young Men
Daring Young Men by Richard Reeves is a sociology and parenting book that examines the structural challenges, employment struggles, and educational disparities facing modern boys and men.
Discussed“and this is a point you make in the book which I think is a little counterintuitive because there's a way of coding this conversation as an almost backlashing conversation”
Where to get it
-
The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie is a controversial postmodern novel that explores themes of migration, identity, and religious faith, famously resulting in a fatwa calling for the author's death upon its publication.
Discussed“he just sat in my Consciousness as the author of this Eerie sounding novel called The Satanic Verses a novel so somehow dangerous he had to go into hiding”
Where to get it
-
The Virtue of Nationalism
The Virtue of Nationalism by Yoram Hazony is a political theory book that defends the nation-state and examines the historical and philosophical roots of nationalism against global governance and empires.
Discussed“In 2018, Yor Mazonei, an Israeli political theorist, released a book that became a sensation on the right. It was called the virtue of nationalism and it sought to build a right that could withstand the challenge that liberals like Obama had posed.”
Where to get it
-
Chip War
Chip War by Chris Miller is an essential exploration of the semiconductor industry and its profound influence on global geopolitics.
Recommended“I mean if people read chip Wars which is I think the best book on this the semiconductor supply chain is just extraordinarily complicated and and fragile”
Where to get it
-
Confidence Man
Confidence Man by Maggie Haberman is a biography of Donald Trump that examines his career as a real estate developer in New York and his subsequent political trajectory.
Recommended“And so, you know, if you read, say, Maggie Haberman's great biography of Donald Trump, Confidence Man, which focuses a lot on his time as a real estate magnate in New York, you see like Donald Trump doesn't build a ton of stuff in other states.”
Where to get it
-
God, Human, Animal, Machine
God, Human, Animal, Machine by Meghan O'Gieblyn is an insightful exploration of technology, artificial intelligence, and the enduring influence of Christian theology on modern digital culture.
Recommended“and I've recommended it before but Megan ogubin's great book God human animal machine right is sort of all about a lot of the Christian mythology operating in a suburbs away here”
Where to get it
-
Recoding America
Recoding America by Jennifer Pahlka is a critical examination of why public sector technology and government delivery so often fail to meet expectations.
Recommended“Jennifer paa is the the founder of code for America and the author of one of the very best books on why government doesn't deliver recoding America”
Where to get it
-
Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor
Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor by Yossi Klein Halevi is a personal and intellectual exploration of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict presented through a series of letters addressed to an anonymous neighbor.
Recommended“Yosi K Hali you have many great books but one that I read in anticipation of this and that I would really recommend to people in this moment is letters to my Palestinian neighbor which is excellent”
Where to get it
-
The Rise and Decline of Nations
The Rise and Decline of Nations by Mancur Olson is a famous public interest economics book that explores how institutional bargaining structures and rigidities develop in stable societies over time.
Recommended“We talk a lot about a book, I dunno if you've run into this one, but it's by Mancur Olson, who's sort of a Founder of Public Interest Economics, and it's called The Rise in Decline of Nations, this is like a very famous book, libertarians love this book, and I love this book.”
Where to get it
-
The Sabbath World
The Sabbath World by Judith Shulevitz is a reflective exploration of the history, meaning, and modern practice of the Sabbath, examining how designated days of rest shape human psychology, culture, and spiritual life.
Discussed“in her beautiful book the Sabbath World Judith schvitz looks very squarely at that question”
Where to get it
- To Shape a New World - Essays on the Political Philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr by Tommie Shelby
- Asymmetric Politics by Matt Grossmann
- Believe by Ross Douthat
- Full Surrogacy Now by Sophie Lewis
- Fully Automated Luxury Communism by Aaron Bastani
- How Democracies Die by Steven Levitsky, Daniel Ziblatt
- In Defense of Politics by Bernard Crick
- Inventing the Renaissance by Ada Palmer
- Knife by Salman Rushdie
- Presidents, Populism, and the Crisis of Democracy by William G. Howell
- Primary Politics by Elaine Kamarck
- Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
- The Affluent Society by John Kenneth Galbraith
- The Hollow Parties by Daniel Schlozman
- The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt
- The Shadow by Hans Christian Andersen
- What Art Does by Bette Adriaanse
- Just Kids by Patti Smith
- Age of Revolutions by Fareed Zakaria
- Bread of Angels by Patti Smith
- Bright dead things by Ada Limón
- Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman
- Tomorrow Is Yesterday by Hussein Agha
- Unreliable Boyfriend by Chrystia Freeland
- The Sirens' Call by Chris Hayes
- The Hurting Kind by Ada Limón
- The Lost History of Liberalism by Helena Rosenblatt
- A First-Rate Madness by Nassir Ghaemi
- Comfortable with Uncertainty by Pema Chödrön
- Feel Free by Zadie Smith
Questions about Ezra Klein’s book recommendations
What book does Ezra Klein recommend most?
Hillbilly Elegy by J D Vance. Ezra Klein discussed it in 7 episodes.
How many books has Ezra Klein recommended on podcasts?
We have found 236 books Ezra Klein recommended or discussed, across 160 episodes of 9 podcasts. Ad reads and passing mentions are not counted.
What books are on Ezra Klein's reading list?
The books Ezra Klein has recommended most on podcasts are Hillbilly Elegy by J D Vance, Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman, The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order by Gary Gerstle, White Teeth by Zadie Smith and The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. The year-by-year lists below have all 236.
What books has Ezra Klein written?
Why We're Polarized (2020) and Abundance (2025).
What did Ezra Klein recommend on The Ezra Klein Show?
Hillbilly Elegy, Amusing Ourselves to Death and Abundance, among 225 books in all.
What is the latest book Ezra Klein recommended?
Unreliable Boyfriend, discussed on The Ezra Klein Show (2026-10-20).
People who recommend the same books
Ezra Klein’s latest episodes with books
Ezra Klein’s book recommendations by year
All 236 books Ezra Klein recommended or discussed across 160 episodes, filed by the year each episode came out. Each year goes episode by episode, with the minute every book came up.