Phil Price

I've written 6 books about military and intelligence programs designed to prevent Nuclear World War III... So—what happens if deterrence fails? NUCLEAR WAR: A SCENARIO — coming March 2024 Pre-order shorturl.at/zGJM4

I try to use my time traveling between Indiana and Washington for reading. Here are ten books I greatly enjoyed in 2025: - Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present by @FareedZakaria — Zakaria, a respected journalist and thinker, examines why some societies have successfully adapted to dramatic technological and social change while others have faltered. Helpful for understanding today’s turbulence, and how progress might be sustained.
 - Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy by @IanWToll — A detailed account of the political resolve, strategic vision, and institutional pushback behind the creation of the U.S. Navy. Toll reminds us that maritime strength is hard-won but has been essential to American sovereignty from the very beginning.
 - Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West by Stephen Ambrose — Ambrose chronicles how President Jefferson’s vision and Lewis’s leadership translated ambition into action. From logistical planning to physical hardships to geopolitical consequences, this is an account of American initiative, exploration, and national purpose.
 - The Neptune Factor: Alfred Thayer Mahan and the Concept of Sea Power by Nicholas Lambert — A timely reassessment of Alfred Thayer Mahan, the Navy’s first great strategist. Lambert underscores Mahan’s insight that maritime power rests not only on fleets, but on commerce, industry, and economic decision-making. Important lessons as we debate shipbuilding and industrial capacity today.
 - King Leopold’s Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam Hochschild — History can inspire, but it must also warn. Hochschild exposes the brutality and exploitation at the heart of King Leopold’s Congo, reminding readers how unchecked greed and power can corrode human dignity and why moral clarity matters in global affairs.
 - A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them by @nytegan — Set in 1920s Indiana, this gripping account traces the KKK’s alarming rise into mainstream political power, and its sudden collapse. It is a reminder that democratic institutions require vigilance, and that courage and integrity can prevail over entrenched hatred and corruption.
 - Freedom’s Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II by @ArthurLHerman — Herman tells the story of industrial leaders like William Knudsen and Henry Kaiser, who mobilized American manufacturing to defeat fascism. The book offers enduring lessons about public-private partnership, industrial readiness, and national unity.
 - New Cold Wars: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion, and America's Struggle to Defend the West by @SangerNYT — A veteran New York Times reporter examines the false sense of finality that followed the Cold War and how a new era of great-power competition emerged.
 - Nuclear War: A Scenario by @AnnieJacobsen — Jacobsen offers a rigorously researched hypothetical to illustrate how quickly nuclear escalation could unfold under real-world constraints: limited time, imperfect information, and human fallibility. The book is a sobering reminder that deterrence is fragile and the stakes could not be higher.
 - All The King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren — Often called the definitive American political novel, this classic traces the rise and fall of Willie Stark, a populist reformer undone by corruption and ambition. It is a cautionary tale about power, character, and the moral demands of public service.