🏢 Corporate Power

Investigations into how corporations shape politics, culture, and daily life — often in ways invisible to the public. These books follow the money and influence to reveal who really holds the reins.

Bad Company

by Megan Greenwell • 2025

Private equity buys hospitals, newspapers, and homes with debt that falls on everyone except them.

4.03

5k+

🏢 Private Equity 📉 Economic Inequality ⚖️ Corporate Accountability 🔍 Investigative Journalism 🏛️ Regulatory Capture

Bad Company

Private equity buys hospitals, newspapers, and homes with debt that falls on everyone except them.

by Megan Greenwell 2025

4.03

5k+ ratings

🏢 Private Equity 📉 Economic Inequality ⚖️ Corporate Accountability 🔍 Investigative Journalism 🏛️ Regulatory Capture

The Wal-Mart Effect

by Charles Fishman • 2006

200,000 gallons of pickles a week: the hidden cost behind the lowest sticker price.

3.84

4k+

🏬 Big-Box Retail 🔗 Supply Chain 🛒 Consumer Ethics 👷 Labor Exploitation 🌍 Global Trade

The Wal-Mart Effect

200,000 gallons of pickles a week: the hidden cost behind the lowest sticker price.

by Charles Fishman 2006

3.84

4k+ ratings

🏬 Big-Box Retail 🔗 Supply Chain 🛒 Consumer Ethics 👷 Labor Exploitation 🌍 Global Trade

Blowout

by Rachel Maddow • 2019

Fracking, oligarchs, and a 50-kiloton bomb in Colorado: how the oil industry broke global democracy.

4.34

16k+

🛢️ Oil And Gas Industry 🌏 Energy Geopolitics 💎 Resource Curse 🇷🇺 Russian Oligarchs 🏛️ Political Corruption

Blowout

Fracking, oligarchs, and a 50-kiloton bomb in Colorado: how the oil industry broke global democracy.

by Rachel Maddow 2019

4.34

16k+ ratings

🛢️ Oil And Gas Industry 🌏 Energy Geopolitics 💎 Resource Curse 🇷🇺 Russian Oligarchs 🏛️ Political Corruption

The Social Determinants of Health

by Kathryn Strother Ratcliff • 2017

What if America's worst health problems can't be cured in a hospital?

4.19

🏥 Public Health 🏗️ Structural Inequality 🌎 Environmental Health ⚖️ Health Disparities 💰 Political Economy

The Social Determinants of Health

What if America's worst health problems can't be cured in a hospital?

by Kathryn Strother Ratcliff 2017

4.19

37 ratings

🏥 Public Health 🏗️ Structural Inequality 🌎 Environmental Health ⚖️ Health Disparities 💰 Political Economy

America

by Chris Hedges • 2018

Addiction, casinos, and the death of work: the symptoms of late capitalism's terminal stage.

4.23

3k+

🛒 Late Capitalism 🇺🇸 American Decline 💊 Opioid Crisis ⚙️ Working Class Erosion 📕 Marxist Critique

America

Addiction, casinos, and the death of work: the symptoms of late capitalism's terminal stage.

by Chris Hedges 2018

4.23

3k+ ratings

🛒 Late Capitalism 🇺🇸 American Decline 💊 Opioid Crisis ⚙️ Working Class Erosion 📕 Marxist Critique

Private Empire

by Steve Coll • 2012

How ExxonMobil became a nation-like force, with its own intelligence, foreign policy, and security.

4.00

4k+

🛢️ Oil Industry 🏢 Corporate History 🔍 Investigative Journalism ⚡ Energy Politics 🌍 Climate Denial

Private Empire

How ExxonMobil became a nation-like force, with its own intelligence, foreign policy, and security.

by Steve Coll 2012

4.00

4k+ ratings

🛢️ Oil Industry 🏢 Corporate History 🔍 Investigative Journalism ⚡ Energy Politics 🌍 Climate Denial

The Great Divide

by Joseph E. Stiglitz • 2015

Inequality isn't fate; it's a policy choice, and the architects designed it for themselves.

3.82

1k+

💸 Income Inequality 🏛 Political Economy 💰 Money In Politics 📉 Regressive Taxation 🌐 Welfare State Models

The Great Divide

Inequality isn't fate; it's a policy choice, and the architects designed it for themselves.

by Joseph E. Stiglitz 2015

3.82

1k+ ratings

💸 Income Inequality 🏛 Political Economy 💰 Money In Politics 📉 Regressive Taxation 🌐 Welfare State Models

The Golden Passport

by Duff McDonald • 2017

The MBA credential that built corporate America also hollowed it out.

3.41

346

📚 Business Schools 🎓 Elite Education 🏛️ Institutional Failure 💰 Shareholder Primacy ⚖️ Business Ethics

The Golden Passport

The MBA credential that built corporate America also hollowed it out.

by Duff McDonald 2017

3.41

346 ratings

📚 Business Schools 🎓 Elite Education 🏛️ Institutional Failure 💰 Shareholder Primacy ⚖️ Business Ethics

Propaganda Blitz

by David Edwards • 2018

The news isn't broken. It's working exactly as designed: manufacturing consent for the powerful.

4.28

184

🧐 Media Criticism 📣 War Propaganda 🎭 Manufacturing Consent 📡 Media Ownership 🔍 Propaganda Techniques

Propaganda Blitz

The news isn't broken. It's working exactly as designed: manufacturing consent for the powerful.

by David Edwards 2018

4.28

184 ratings

🧐 Media Criticism 📣 War Propaganda 🎭 Manufacturing Consent 📡 Media Ownership 🔍 Propaganda Techniques

Medicare for All

by Abdul El-Sayed • 2021

$5,220 for a US hospital day, $765 in Australia. The fix, and how to win it.

4.36

349

🏥 Healthcare Reform 🇺🇸 American Healthcare 🏛️ Single-Payer Systems 💰 Health Economics ✊ Grassroots Organizing

Medicare for All

$5,220 for a US hospital day, $765 in Australia. The fix, and how to win it.

by Abdul El-Sayed 2021

4.36

349 ratings

🏥 Healthcare Reform 🇺🇸 American Healthcare 🏛️ Single-Payer Systems 💰 Health Economics ✊ Grassroots Organizing

Sons of Wichita

by Daniel Schulman • 2014

Four Kansas brothers, a billion-dollar feud, and the political machine that remade the GOP.

3.85

2k+

🏛️ Family Dynasties 💰 American Oligarchy ⚔️ Sibling Rivalry 🗳️ Campaign Finance 🗽 Libertarian Politics

Sons of Wichita

Four Kansas brothers, a billion-dollar feud, and the political machine that remade the GOP.

by Daniel Schulman 2014

3.85

2k+ ratings

🏛️ Family Dynasties 💰 American Oligarchy ⚔️ Sibling Rivalry 🗳️ Campaign Finance 🗽 Libertarian Politics

Davos Man

by Peter S. Goodman • 2022

A global elite rewrote economic rules to enrich themselves. The pandemic was their biggest payday.

3.93

1k+

🔻 Economic Inequality 💰 Tax Evasion 🌪️ Disaster Capitalism 📉 Neoliberalism Critique 💸 Political Corruption

Davos Man

A global elite rewrote economic rules to enrich themselves. The pandemic was their biggest payday.

by Peter S. Goodman 2022

3.93

1k+ ratings

🔻 Economic Inequality 💰 Tax Evasion 🌪️ Disaster Capitalism 📉 Neoliberalism Critique 💸 Political Corruption

Billionaire, Nerd, Saviour, King

by Anupreeta Das • 2024

From monopolist to saint: Bill Gates's image was manufactured. His hidden empire was not.

3.01

441

💻 Big Tech 💰 Billionaire Critique ⚖️ Wealth Inequality 🔎 Investigative Biography 🎗️ Philanthropy Critique

Billionaire, Nerd, Saviour, King

From monopolist to saint: Bill Gates's image was manufactured. His hidden empire was not.

by Anupreeta Das 2024

3.01

441 ratings

💻 Big Tech 💰 Billionaire Critique ⚖️ Wealth Inequality 🔎 Investigative Biography 🎗️ Philanthropy Critique

The Silenced Majority

by Amy Goodman • 2012

The news decides which wars and uprisings didn't happen. Here is what they buried.

4.06

251

📻 Independent Media 📺 Media Criticism 🔍 Investigative Journalism ✊ Grassroots Movements 💸 Economic Inequality

The Silenced Majority

The news decides which wars and uprisings didn't happen. Here is what they buried.

by Amy Goodman 2012

4.06

251 ratings

📻 Independent Media 📺 Media Criticism 🔍 Investigative Journalism ✊ Grassroots Movements 💸 Economic Inequality

Cloudmoney

by Brett Scott • 2022

Cash blocks total surveillance of your spending. Banks and tech firms are dismantling it together.

3.66

480

💳 Digital Payments 🏦 Cashless Society 👁️ Financial Surveillance 💻 Tech Criticism 💰 Monetary Reform

Cloudmoney

Cash blocks total surveillance of your spending. Banks and tech firms are dismantling it together.

by Brett Scott 2022

3.66

480 ratings

💳 Digital Payments 🏦 Cashless Society 👁️ Financial Surveillance 💻 Tech Criticism 💰 Monetary Reform

The Economics of Innocent Fraud

by John Kenneth Galbraith • 2004

Free markets, consumer choice, central bank rescue: stories the powerful tell to hide their control.

3.61

525

🌐 Political Economy 🏛️ Institutional Economics 📢 Manufactured Demand 📋 Corporate Governance 🎖️ Military-Industrial Complex

The Economics of Innocent Fraud

Free markets, consumer choice, central bank rescue: stories the powerful tell to hide their control.

by John Kenneth Galbraith 2004

3.61

525 ratings

🌐 Political Economy 🏛️ Institutional Economics 📢 Manufactured Demand 📋 Corporate Governance 🎖️ Military-Industrial Complex

The Handover

by David Runciman • 2023

Three inhuman agents run the world: states, corporations, and now AI. We have to pick one.

3.71

234

🏛️ Political Theory 🤖 Ai Governance 👥 Institutional Power 🧠 Group Decision Making 🏗️ State Capacity

The Handover

Three inhuman agents run the world: states, corporations, and now AI. We have to pick one.

by David Runciman 2023

3.71

234 ratings

🏛️ Political Theory 🤖 Ai Governance 👥 Institutional Power 🧠 Group Decision Making 🏗️ State Capacity

The Great Tech Game

by Anirudh Suri • 2022

Power once meant factories and oil. Now it runs on code, chips, and data.

4.43

131

🖥️ Tech Geopolitics 💻 Digital Economy 🌐 Great Power Competition 🛡️ Cyber Warfare 🔒 Digital Sovereignty

The Great Tech Game

Power once meant factories and oil. Now it runs on code, chips, and data.

by Anirudh Suri 2022

4.43

131 ratings

🖥️ Tech Geopolitics 💻 Digital Economy 🌐 Great Power Competition 🛡️ Cyber Warfare 🔒 Digital Sovereignty

The Tech Coup

by Marietje Schaake • 2024

When tech companies became the state, democracy became a user agreement no one reads.

3.78

468

🏛️ Tech Regulation 👁️ Surveillance Capitalism 🔒 Digital Authoritarianism 🌐 Internet Governance ⚖️ Tech Accountability

The Tech Coup

When tech companies became the state, democracy became a user agreement no one reads.

by Marietje Schaake 2024

3.78

468 ratings

🏛️ Tech Regulation 👁️ Surveillance Capitalism 🔒 Digital Authoritarianism 🌐 Internet Governance ⚖️ Tech Accountability

Fight Oligarchy

by Bernie Sanders • 2025

Three billionaires behind one president. The diagnosis of American oligarchy, and the cure.

4.36

4k+

🏛️ American Oligarchy 💰 Wealth Inequality ✊ Grassroots Organizing 👷 Working Class Politics 📢 Economic Populism

Fight Oligarchy

Three billionaires behind one president. The diagnosis of American oligarchy, and the cure.

by Bernie Sanders 2025

4.36

4k+ ratings

🏛️ American Oligarchy 💰 Wealth Inequality ✊ Grassroots Organizing 👷 Working Class Politics 📢 Economic Populism

The Devil's Chessboard

by David Talbot • 2015

He built the CIA. Kennedy fired him. Then he led the cover-up of Kennedy's murder.

4.35

8k+

🕵️ Intelligence Agencies 🥶 Cold War Politics 🕶️ Covert Operations 💥 Regime Change 🧠 Mind Control Experiments

The Devil's Chessboard

He built the CIA. Kennedy fired him. Then he led the cover-up of Kennedy's murder.

by David Talbot 2015

4.35

8k+ ratings

🕵️ Intelligence Agencies 🥶 Cold War Politics 🕶️ Covert Operations 💥 Regime Change 🧠 Mind Control Experiments

Connectography

by Parag Khanna • 2016

Connectivity rewrites global power: pipelines, cables, and supply chains are the borders that count.

3.82

1k+

🧵 Supply Chain Geopolitics 🏙️ Megacities 🗺️ Functional Geography 🌐 Digital Sovereignty 🛤️ Infrastructure Alliances

Connectography

Connectivity rewrites global power: pipelines, cables, and supply chains are the borders that count.

by Parag Khanna 2016

3.82

1k+ ratings

🧵 Supply Chain Geopolitics 🏙️ Megacities 🗺️ Functional Geography 🌐 Digital Sovereignty 🛤️ Infrastructure Alliances

System Error

by Rob Reich • 2021

Tech companies optimized for growth and broke democracy. The cure is political, not digital.

3.82

608

⚖️ Algorithmic Bias 🔒 Data Privacy 🤖 Automation And Labor 🧑‍💻 Tech Criticism 💰 Venture Capital

System Error

Tech companies optimized for growth and broke democracy. The cure is political, not digital.

by Rob Reich 2021

3.82

608 ratings

⚖️ Algorithmic Bias 🔒 Data Privacy 🤖 Automation And Labor 🧑‍💻 Tech Criticism 💰 Venture Capital

Uncommon Wealth

by Kojo Koram • 2022

Offshore finance and debt traps: empire's playbook, tested abroad, now returned to reshape Britain.

4.29

508

🏛️ British Empire 🌍 Global Inequality 🏦 Offshore Finance 🔗 Neocolonialism ✂️ Austerity Politics

Uncommon Wealth

Offshore finance and debt traps: empire's playbook, tested abroad, now returned to reshape Britain.

by Kojo Koram 2022

4.29

508 ratings

🏛️ British Empire 🌍 Global Inequality 🏦 Offshore Finance 🔗 Neocolonialism ✂️ Austerity Politics

The Great Exception

by Jefferson R. Cowie • 2016

The New Deal era was a historical anomaly built on crisis and compromise; it won't return.

3.90

203

🏭 Labor History 🗽 20th Century America 📜 New Deal Era 🔄 Revisionist History 💔 Class Fragmentation

The Great Exception

The New Deal era was a historical anomaly built on crisis and compromise; it won't return.

by Jefferson R. Cowie 2016

3.90

203 ratings

🏭 Labor History 🗽 20th Century America 📜 New Deal Era 🔄 Revisionist History 💔 Class Fragmentation

The Plot to Seize the White House

by Jules Archer • 1973

Wall Street plotted a fascist coup against FDR. The general they recruited was the wrong man.

4.03

974

🏛️ American Politics 🕰️ 1930s America ⚠️ Fascism In America ⚡ Democracy Under Threat 📜 New Deal Era

The Plot to Seize the White House

Wall Street plotted a fascist coup against FDR. The general they recruited was the wrong man.

by Jules Archer 1973

4.03

974 ratings

🏛️ American Politics 🕰️ 1930s America ⚠️ Fascism In America ⚡ Democracy Under Threat 📜 New Deal Era

The Age of Acquiescence

by Steve Fraser • 2015

Mass movements once made America ungovernable for the rich. Now extreme inequality meets silence.

3.82

454

✊ Class Conflict 💰 Wealth Inequality 👷 Labor Movements 🏦 American Capitalism 🎩 Gilded Age

The Age of Acquiescence

Mass movements once made America ungovernable for the rich. Now extreme inequality meets silence.

by Steve Fraser 2015

3.82

454 ratings

✊ Class Conflict 💰 Wealth Inequality 👷 Labor Movements 🏦 American Capitalism 🎩 Gilded Age

Financially Stupid People Are Everywhere

by Jason Kelly • 2010

Credit cards, car loans, and mortgages are not tools. They are the traps that keep Americans broke.

3.50

134

🏡 Frugal Living 💳 Debt Reduction 🗽 Financial Independence 🛒 Consumer Debt 🏦 Austrian Economics

Financially Stupid People Are Everywhere

Credit cards, car loans, and mortgages are not tools. They are the traps that keep Americans broke.

by Jason Kelly 2010

3.50

134 ratings

🏡 Frugal Living 💳 Debt Reduction 🗽 Financial Independence 🛒 Consumer Debt 🏦 Austrian Economics

One Nation, Uninsured

by Jill Quadagno • 2005

Organized interests, not national values, killed universal health care in the United States.

3.61

123

🏥 Health Care Policy 📜 Public Health History 🏛️ Interest-Group Politics 🩺 Health Reform ⚖️ Racial Health Disparities

One Nation, Uninsured

Organized interests, not national values, killed universal health care in the United States.

by Jill Quadagno 2005

3.61

123 ratings

🏥 Health Care Policy 📜 Public Health History 🏛️ Interest-Group Politics 🩺 Health Reform ⚖️ Racial Health Disparities

Earth Democracy

by Vandana Shiva • 2005

The enclosure of common land never ended. It just moved to seeds, water, and biodiversity.

3.97

749

🍽️ Food Politics 🌍 Anti-Globalization ⚖️ Environmental Justice 🏞️ The Commons 🌸 Ecofeminism

Earth Democracy

The enclosure of common land never ended. It just moved to seeds, water, and biodiversity.

by Vandana Shiva 2005

3.97

749 ratings

🍽️ Food Politics 🌍 Anti-Globalization ⚖️ Environmental Justice 🏞️ The Commons 🌸 Ecofeminism

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