Author Archives: stuartelden

Samuel Fury Childs Daly, Soldier’s Paradise: Militarism in Africa after Empire – Duke University Press, October 2024 In Soldier’s Paradise, Samuel Fury Childs Daly tells the story of how Africa’s military dictators tried and failed to transform their societies into martial … Continue reading →

Sean Sayers, The Making of a Marxist Philosopher: A Memoir – Routledge, July 2024 The Making of a Marxist Philosopher is a revealing and beautifully written memoir and family history from renowned Marxist philosopher Sean Sayers. His father was the son of … Continue reading →

Malika Dekkiche (ed.), A History of Diplomacy, Spatiality, and Islamic Ideals – Routledge, August 2024 Just a very expensive hardback, unfortunately. Inspired by the “spatial turn,” this volume links for the first time the study of diplomacy and spatiality in the … Continue reading →

Colin Flint, Near and Far Waters: The Geopolitics of Seapower – Stanford University Press, July 2024 Seapower has been a constant in world politics, a tool through which powerful countries have policed the seas for commercial advantage. Political geographer Colin … Continue reading →

Darin Weinberg, On Addiction: Insights from History, Ethnography, and Critical Theory – Duke University Press, September 2024 The introduction is open access here. Mainstream addiction science sees addiction either as a biomedical disease that renders one incapable of self-control or … Continue reading →

Ilias Alami and Adam D. Dixon, The Spectre of State Capitalism – OUP, July 2024 (print and open access) The state is back, and it means business. Since the turn of the 21st century, state-owned enterprises, sovereign funds, and policy banks have … Continue reading →

I’m really pleased to have an article in the new issue of the Journal of the History of Ideas: Stuart Elden, “Foucault and Dumézil on Antiquity”, Journal of the History of Ideas, Vol 85 No 3, July 2024, 571-600 The … Continue reading →