Lake Bluff Library Adult Reading Lists: Social Issues

Geographer McDonald debuts with a sweeping reappraisal of the notion of historical progress. He examines frequently cited evidence of progress, including falling global poverty rates and increased lifespans, and dismisses it as “cherry-picked” data. Arguing instead that progress is a political myth used to naturalize inequality in the present by promising a better society in the future.
(Description from NoveList)

The author, who grew up poor in Urbana, Ohio, in the 70s and 80s, faces the darkness that has recently gripped her family and community, people she loves wholeheartedly, even the ones she sometimes struggles to like, and in facing difficult truths finds sparks of human dignity.
(Description from NoveList)

Dorothy Roberts grew up in a deeply segregated Chicago of the 1960s where relationships barely crossed the "colorline." Yet inside her own home, where her father was white and her mother a Black Jamaican immigrant, interracial marriage wasn't just a part of her upbringing, it was a shared mission.
(Description from NoveList)

Funt chronicles the history of sports gambling laws, detailing how an exemption for fantasy leagues in the early 2000s led to a “gray market” that allowed for the rise of FanDuel and DraftKings, platforms on which users competed to win money by drafting a team of athletes and earning points based on their real-world performances.
(Description from NoveList)

The National Book Award-winning historian of Stamped from the Beginning charts how great replacement theory has moved from the margins to become the most dominant politcal theory of our time - and what we can do to safeguard democracy from this insidious threat.
(Description from NoveList)

On the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, law professor, legal analyst, and bestselling author of The Indispensable Right Jonathan Turley explores how the unique origins of American democracy set it apart from other revolutions, whether it can survive and thrive in the 21st century, and how the unfinished story of the revolution will play out in a rapidly changing world.
(Description from NoveList)

Recounts the deeds of whom the authors believe the worst people in history: Genghis Khan, the Roman Emperor Caligula, Henry VIII, the collective evil of the 19th century slave traders, and more.
(Description from NoveList)

NBC's Senior Homeland Security correspondent Julia Ainsley takes us inside the Trump White House to show how Stephen Miller, Kristi Noem, Tom Homan, and other anti-immigration hardliners are executing the administration's mass deportation plan, seemingly prioritizing spectacle and punishment over security and legal constraints.
(Description from NoveList)

Drawing from never-before-seen archival materials, legal files, and more, Heather Ann Thompson shines surprising new light on an infamous 1984 New York subway shooting that would unveil simmering racial resentments and would lead, in unexpected ways, to a fractured future and a new era of rage and violence.
(Description from NoveList)

As Americans, we are told a rose-tinted story about our criminal courts - that these are the hallowed halls of justice, that the purpose of our legal process is to find the truth, and that those who enforce the law are both equitable and heroic. But what if the reality is purposefully obscured to hide something rotten at the system's core?
(Description from NoveList)

Presents a compelling account of Evelyn, a single mother of six navigating the realities of homelessness in Los Angeles amid a housing crisis, as she strives to keep her children in school and safe while working as a waitress and transforms her life through her relationship with a compassionate social worker.
(Description from NoveList)

In 2017, Brooke Nevils made a confidential HR complaint about one of the most powerful and familiar faces in media. Twenty-four hours later, the highest paid morning news anchor in history was fired, stunning millions of Americans in one of the MeToo era's defining stories.
(Description from NoveList)

Retired Marine Johnny Joey Jones brings to life dramatic res­cues, heart-wrenching losses, and awe-inspiring acts of courage. He delves deep into what drives these brave men and women, offering an intimate look at their personal and professional lives.
(Description from NoveList)

Drawing on cutting-edge economic research and real-world experiments, the book presents a blueprint for reform that runs all the way through the system. Doleac seeks to empower readers with practical, achievable solutions, and demonstrates that we can have both public safety and a smaller, less intrusive justice system--without waiting for structural reforms that might never come.
(Description from NoveList)

A captivating account of the most corrupt and blood-soaked chapters in Chicago law enforcement history
(Description from Amazon)

Reporter Jennifer Breheny Wallace investigates the deep roots of toxic achievement culture. Drawing on interviews with families, educators, and psychologists, she offers a humane view of the crisis plaguing today's teens and a practical framework for how to help.
(Description from catalog)

A riveting investigation into a school, a scam, and a notorious college admissions scandal that exposes the inequalities and racial segregation of American education, from two award-winning New York Times journalists.
(Description from NoveList)

An award-winning novelist and immigrant to the West, after reporting on the War on Terror, Black Lives Matter protests, and the slaughter in Gaza, concludes that much of what the West promises is a lie--that there will always be groups outside the boundaries of privilege who won't be considered fully human.
(Description from NoveList)

The January 6th insurrection was a well-planned attack coordinated largely right out in the open. Through original interviews and reporting, this oral history offers a minute-by-minute account of the riots through the never-before-heard stories of those who were there.
(Description from NoveList)

An American lawyer's brilliant, propulsive story of witnessing and playing a part in the transformation of Russia under Yeltsin and Putin, a true tale of fascinating personalities, criminal intrigue, harrowing situations, audacious actions and international politics.
(Description from NoveList)

A Montreal garbageman's sharp and funny memoir/exposé, in which he attempts to convince people to "stop imagining that your garbage magically disappears"...
(Description from Amazon)

The working homeless, trapped by skyrocketing rents and stagnant wages in gentrifying cities, are examined through the lens of five families in Atlanta, showing the human cost of homelessness for people with full-time jobs, revealing the extent and causes of a crisis where housing is treated as a privilege.
(Description from NoveList)

Winner of the George Polk Award for his investigation that brought down Stanford's president, Theo Baker offers a revelatory and gripping account of Silicon Valley hubris.
(Description from NoveList)

This isn’t just a story about Justin Glawe and his experiences as a domestic war correspondent. It’s about how the things we love can break us. From long-forgotten deaths in his Midwestern hometown, through the ravages of endless police killings, to the border and its desperate migrants, in small towns torn apart by spree killings, at the Vegas massacre, the Dallas massacre, Ferguson, and through the stories of corrupt politicians and dirty cops as reported from dive bars, cheap motels, and truck stops across the nation.
(Description from Amazon)