The University Bookman
Reviewing Books that Build Culture
After Ideology but Before the Revolution: The Liberal Soul
“Walsh could give voice to a devastating criticism of the critics of liberal democracy because they forgot the most important aspect of what they chopped to pieces: there can be no analysis of liberal democracy outside the convictions that underpin it, namely mutual respect for the dignity and rights of others. There is no higher purpose possible than the affirmation of the infinite worth of each human being, of each ‘person,’ and the political consequences of that affirmation: to build that insight into the regimes of self-government.”
Liberalism’s Death Has Been Greatly Exaggerated
“In this profound work, Walsh engages the friends and foes of liberalism alike to reveal its enduring appeal and resilience. Throughout he urges us to consider liberalism not so much as a stale academic doctrine, but as a lived experience rooted in the core belief of the inviolable dignity of each person as a free and rational being.”
The Paradox of Liberal Resilience
“The defense of inner liberty seems always to come as the long-awaited response and corrective to the modern state’s interventions…”
Marxism and the Rising Generation
“Gonzalez and Gorka have performed an important service in bringing together a wide range of fact and theory and in establishing a coherent line stretching directly from Marx through many important figures to the present day.”
Cracking the Code to Civilization
“In a world flooded with online influencers, ‘red pill’ rhetoric, and algorithmic posturing, Newell offers something older, wiser, and far superior: a code of manliness rooted in the Western tradition of virtue, character, and service. His message is that true manliness is not a pose or performance; it is the integration of moral and intellectual excellence, what he calls ‘the manly heart.’”
France and the Problem of Abstraction
“…French people’s love for ideas, indeed for ideology, often puts them at odds with the pragmatic requisites of a mature democracy and with reality itself. France is, as she very aptly puts it, ‘a country of dreamers who fall into melancholy when reality catches up with them.’ But far from being merely a psychological explanation for French unhappiness, this idealism is the key to a political understanding of our complicated relationship with the very principle of democracy.”
Humane Literature and the Divided Soul
“…White’s debut book… unites a memoir in fragments with a syllabus of literary works on the question of how to harmonize our duties and desires.”
Antisemitism, a Foreign Tradition
“…Nadell substitutes an explanation of what antisemitism is and how to chart it with a tacit theory that antisemitism always exists and always makes life miserable. For those reasons, [it] is a book best left unread.”
The Urbanity of Russell Kirk
“The urban fabric must also be mended and darned through continuous upkeep. The city is not yours to experiment. From Russell to Russello, our ancestral spirits cast their shadows whether or not we choose to observe the city of god in the cities of men.”
The Book Gallery
A collection of conversations with Bookman editor Luke C. Sheahan and writers and authors of imagination and erudition. Click on the icon in the upper right corner of the video to see more episodes in this series or check out our YouTube page.
Register for our next book gallery on June 22, 2026:
Russell Kirk On America: How to Understand the Legacy of 1776
Our critic’s pick: “On America: How to Understand the Legacy of 1776,” by Russell Kirk (Creed & Culture). @C_and_C_Books @JamesPanero
https://newcriterion.com/dispatch/the-critics-notebook-112/#1
@newcriterion @C_and_C_Books @JamesPanero You may sign up for the @ubookman discussion of Russell Kirk’s On America here:
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