What to read

Primal Screams: How the Sexual Revolution Created Identity Politics
Mary Eberstadt
Templeton Press, 192 pages

The sexual revolution, the decline of the family, and the rise of identity politics are interrelated, says Mary Eberstadt, astute senior research fellow with the Faith and Reason Institute. In Primal Screams, she connects these dots. Sexual freedom undermines family values, leading to the breakdown of marriages and families; lacking this foundation where we traditionally find our identity, young people seek their “identity” elsewhere by latching onto ideological groups or tribes, on the right as well as the left, as their self-defining cause in what Eberstadt calls “The Great Scattering.” Their outrage at the perceived flaws of society represents a cry for help as they mourn the loss of real family and community.

Freedom or Equality: The Key to Prosperity Through Social Capitalism
Daniel Lacalle
Post Hill Press, 205 pages

The rise of socialist ideas in American politics is feeding a palpable disenchantment with capitalism among the middle class, and that’s got to stop, says economist and fund manager Daniel Lacalle. Socialism isn’t the solution, nor is “Modern Monetary Theory,” protectionism, or redistributionism. Instead, Lacalle advocates social capitalism, a model that calls for a smaller and more efficient government, rewards hard work and success, and incentivizes savings and prudent investing. He writes that social capitalism is “an extension of capitalism in which we apply free-market thinking to problems and sectors that have long been considered the government’s purview,” such a health care, education, and the social safety net. His arguments are well worth pondering.

How the Church Has Changed the World (Vol. I and Vol. II)
Anthony Esolen
Magnificat, 189 pages (Vol. I), 184 pages (Vol. II)

These two volumes together provide 49 essays from Esolen’s regular column in the monthly Magnificat, each telling a colorful story to illustrate the impact of Catholicism in our world today. His anecdotes relate the witness of clergy, religious, and lay people — scientists, missionaries, revolutionaries, artists, writers, architects, politicians, and more — whose achievements and influence have brought abundant blessings to humanity even beyond the sphere of spreading the gospel message. You may meet a number of important historical figures that lead you to say, “I didn’t realize he was Catholic!”