Unlock the publisher’s digest free
Roula Khalaf, editor -in -chief of the FT, selects her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Environment
By Pilita Clark
How we sold our future: the failure of the fight against climate change by Jens Beckert, translated by Ray Cunningham (Polity)
The reason why the world continues not to significantly approach climate change may not be as obvious as you think. The German sociologist Jens Beckert makes A powerful case, although dismal, that even the greatest governments and companies hide action that would reduce the profits, tax revenues and the economic growth they need to survive.
Faudly different: how five women have recovered nature in the world of a man by Sarah Lonsdale (Manchester)
Think of a large explorer and it is likely that you will think of a man. But as This book showsExplorers, environmentalists and scientists have braved famine, icy temperatures and dark attitudes of male opponents to trace the natural world longer than what is largely imagined.
Is a river alive? by Robert MacFarlane (Hamish Hamilton / WW Norton)
Who speaks for nature? It is difficult to say that it is the law, given the loss of the wild nature of the world. This acclaimed writer asks us to think about the rivers The way in which many indigenous communities have, as alive, better better to protect them and the life they support.
Looking for green China by my Tianjie (Polity)
Everyone knows that China is a colossus of green energy with powerful adhesion on the solar, wind, battery and electric markets in the world. The story of His struggle to clean Its air and its notoriously polluted rivers are less known and as this book shows, a bit like certain battles by environmental western activists.
The power of nuclear: the rise, the fall and the return of our most powerful energy source by Marco Visscher (Bloomsbury)
Nuclear energy has a moment and this book maintains that it is high time to reconsider one of the most controversial forms of electricity in the world. He was surreal and underestimated For too long, writes the Dutch journalist screissing, partly because of his first early association with the atomic war.
Science
By Clive Cookson
Our brain, our self: what patients of a neurologist taught him the brain by Masud Husain (Canongate)
The neurologist Husain writes a Initiate medical memories On his experiences with seven patients whose symptoms illustrate the functioning – and defects – of the human brain. At the same time, he looks with sympathy the way society treats people as their neural disorders are progressing and their behavior changes.
Forgotten meaning: the new science of smell by Jonas Olofsson (William Collins)
Do not underestimate the power of your nose, urges the olfactory researcher OLOFSON, who is on a mission raise the status of smell in a time dominated by sight and hearing. Unlike popular belief, humans can detect odors better than most animals (but not as well as dogs). It also offers animated advice on improving your own smell.
The ideological brain: a radical science of sensitive minds by Leor Zmigrod (Viking / Henry Holt)
Zmigrod is a leading researcher in the emerging field of political neuroscience, which aims to link the ideological inclinations of people – and the flexibility or the rigidity of their thought – to brain biology. Although many responses are not clear, his book provides a Fascinating and sometimes provocative guide To work in progress.
Proof: the uncertain science of certainty by Adam Kucharski (profile / basic books)
As a leading British epidemiologist, Kucharski has become a hero for some and nasty for others for his opinions based on evidence on the Covid-19 pandemic. Experience led him to write this Excellent book on proofUncertainty and – very important – how to communicate scientific evidence to the public as clearly and convincingly as possible.
Blueprints: how mathematics shape creativity by Marcus du Sautoy (4th estate)
From Sautoy, a master’s master’s master’s master, illuminates the complex relationships between numbers, nature and creative arts. He crosses key mathematical principles that have inspired painters, architects, writers and musicians – consciously or unconsciously – giving lively descriptions of resulting production.
Summer books 2025
All this week, writers and FT critics share their favorites. Some highlights are:
Monday: Business by Andrew Hill
Tuesday: Environment By Pilita Clark
Wednesday: Economy By Martin Wolf
THURSDAY: Fiction by Maria Crawford
Friday: Policy by Gideon Rachman
SATURDAY: Choice of criticism
Technology
By John Thornhill
Superbloom: How connection technologies tear us off By Nicholas Carr (WW Norton)
To understand why the debate on technology becomes darker and darker, it is worth reading the incisive test of Carr. Each new technological innovation, from telegram to Internet television and AI, has been accompanied by great hopes that this will lead to a flowering of human understanding. But we cannot resist gorging on our own desires.
Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman’s Openai by Karen Hao (Penguin Press)
The unauthorized examination of Hao of the Openai of Sam Altman is criticism and annoyingLifting great doubts about the character of its director general and the governance of the company as it rushes to build more and more powerful AI models. The story of “The Blip” when Altman was dismissed and rehired by the board of directors is particularly striking.
The optimist: Sam Altman, Openai and the race to invent the future by Keach Hagey (WW Norton)
Two books on Openai can be considered excessive. But as the journalist and author of the Wall Street Journal maintains, the start-up that has developed Chatgpt is becoming one of the most consecutive companies of our time. Hagey’s account contains more direct contributions from Sam Altman himself and those around him, but also increases concerns about its reliability.
World manufacturers: technology and new geopolitics by Bruno Mace (Cambridge)
A former Portuguese politician who has become an author makes a daring attempt, if not completely convincing, to redraw the contours of our time by exploring the interconnections between Technological innovation and geopolitical change. Competition between the major powers goes from the world of atoms to the bits, revolving around software and internet protocols as much as rockets and battleships.
Reckless people: a story of where I worked By Sarah Wynn-Williams (Macmillan / Flaton Books)
A former Facebook employee raises the lid on the interior functioning of Facebook revealing what is happening when a lot of quasi-orders, brandishing technological superpowers and an impious money, rethink the world. A lively and well -told personal story that highlights Scary inscriber of Silicon Valley. No wonder Facebook has tried to close the advertising.
Tell us what you think
Are you going to take one of these books during your summer vacation this year? Which ones? And what titles have we missed? Let us know in the comments below
Join our online books online on Facebook in Ft Books Coffee