London in revolt – revisiting the English Civil War
Andrew Stone looks at a new history of the origins of the English Civil Wars, finding an engaging account of the class character of the process which ultimately saw Charles I executed. London may not have the same revolutionary reputation of Paris or St Petersburg, but in this new account of the outbreak of the […]
The Marx family visits the Commune
Leslie Cunningham reviews a new piece of political fiction, imagining Karl and Jenny Marx visiting the Paris Commune. Marx in Paris provides a great introduction to both the Commune and its political significance for socialists today. This short work (100 pages) purports to be a “found document”, a blue notebook discovered in a trunk containing […]
The deviant law student
In a piece originally published in Socialist Lawyer, Kate Bradley reviews the Critical Legal Pocketbook, and finds it a useful corrective to capitalist legal education, perfect for socialists who study and work in law. There are many reasons why socialists may be attracted to the legal profession. Though it is an embattled terrain dominated by […]
Lowering expectations: misrepresentations of McAlevey
Trade unionists have been inspired by McAlevey’s work. But now sections of the union bureaucracy are co-opting her insights.
Review | Legacy of Violence: A History of the British Empire
Caroline Elkins’ compelling new book makes the barbarity of the British empire in the twentieth century absolutely clear.
Municipal politics and the revolutionary left
Danny Schultz reviews Paint Your Town Red, by Matthew Brown and Rhian E Jones, finding an interesting discussion of the possibilities of radical local politics.
Moving past the graveyard of Green New Deals
Gus Woody reviews ‘A People’s Green New Deal’ by Max Ajl
Capitalism, debt and feminism
Kate Bradley reviews A Feminist Reading of Debt, finding an insightful account of the relationship between debt, gender, and capitalism, as well as examples of how to fight back against debt.
Revolutionary Reads – What books got us through 2021?
We asked rs21 members what they’ve been reading in 2021, whether new works of revolutionary theory, fiction, or old classics. These were some of the examples our members had. James B – Psychoanalysis and Revolution (2021) Pyschoanalysis and Revolution argues for the relevancy of psychoanalysis as a tool for those of us involved in liberatory […]
Review | Anti-Gender Politics in the Populist Moment
We need a feminism integrated with struggles for economic justice and against racism, homophobia and transphobia.
Review | China in One Village
Charlie Hore reviews China in One Village by Liang Hong, finding an informative and personal account of the contradictions of rapid urbanisation and societal change in China. Liang Hong, China in One Village, translated by Emily Goedde, (London: Verso, 2021) 316 pp, £16.99 China’s meteoric rise to becoming the world’s economic powerhouse was powered by […]
How can unions rebuild power?
Ian Allinson reviews Jane Holgate’s new book, Arise! Power, Strategy and Union Resurgence, an exploration of why unions have failed to revitalise themselves.
Review | Red Metropolis
Danny Schultz reviews Red Metropolis, the latest work by acclaimed political thinker and architectural critic Owen Hatherley. Schultz argues it provides an insightful history of radicalism within London, yet falls short in considering the importance of the working class struggles which make municipal socialism possible. Owen Hatherley, Red Metropolis: Socialism and the Government of London […]
Review | Revolutionary Rehearsals in the Neoliberal Age
Andy N reviews Revolutionary Rehearsals in the Neoliberal Age, a new collection discussing political upheavals since 1989. He finds a wide ranging and insightful work, which will deepen both the theory and practice of the modern left. Colin Barker, Gareth Dale, and Neil Davidson, Revolutionary Rehearsals in the Neoliberal Age (Chicago: Haymarket Books, 2021) 410 […]
Review | Working for the War Effort
Merilyn Moos reviews a recent work on German-speaking refugees and their role in British wartime propaganda.
Review | Migration Beyond Capitalism
Baindu Kallon reviews Hannah Cross’ new book Migration Beyond Capitalism. Kallon celebrates a book that brings a new left-wing response to the narrative around migration. Cross, Kallon argues, effectively demonstrates why an internationalist working-class response is the key to defeating neoliberal power and creating a new world. This review was originally published by the Review of […]
Revolutionary Reflections | Antisemitism and the Russian Revolution
A new book by Brendan McGeever casts new light on the role of antisemitism in the 1917 Russian Revolution and illuminates the struggle against the rise of antisemitism today.
Review | Sinews of War and Trade
Mykola Macke reviews an important book which bring together the history of development in the region with the parallel evolution of world shipping routes as the life-blood of world capitalism.
Review | Sylvia Pankhurst: Natural Born Rebel
Sylvia Pankhurst’s life was full of tireless activism in the cause of women’s rights, anti-imperialism and the emancipation of the working class
Review | Tomorrow Sex Will Be Good Again
Kate Bradley reviews a highly readable intervention into recent debates amongst feminists
Cultural Marxism? A review of The Dialectics of Art
Ian Birchall reviews The Dialectics of Art, a new work by John Molyneux.
Lighting a spark: How to Blow Up a Pipeline
How to Blow Up a Pipeline gives a balanced assessment of the conditions which make strategic direct action necessary in a warming world.
Cultural commodities that got us through 2020
From Netflix binges to a new theory of ‘alternative hedonism’, here are the shows, films, music, and books that kept us going in 2020.
‘Climate change is a woodchipper into which metaphors are fed’
‘The Uninhabitable Earth’ puts forward a radical pessimism toward climate breakdown that calls for action while shying away from any critique of neoliberalism.
Review | Fascism: History and Theory
Luigi Hay reviews a timely analysis of the origins of fascist organisation, which looks critically at different strategies adopted by the left to fight fascism.
Review: Hong Kong in revolt and The Art of Rebellion
Two new books provide valuable insight into the huge and defiant revolt in Hong Kong that erupted in 2019.
Global fever
The Covid-19 pandemic is a foretaste of the approaching climate catastrophe. Andreas Malm’s electrifying new book looks at both these crises and asks what we’ll need to do to face them down.
Review: The Covid-19 Catastrophe
Stacey Williams reviews The Covid-19 Catastrophe, by leading UK medical writer Richard Horton
Review: Radical Happiness
Lynne Segal’s most recent work, Radical Happiness, addresses the relationship between political action and personal fulfilment.
Review | Fortunes of Feminism
Leslie Cunningham reviews Fortunes of Feminism by Nancy Fraser, a critical account of changes in feminist thought in the era of neo-liberalism.