Our Recommended Reads

The new year means new reads! We know that for many of us, New Year's means setting new goals. For many on our team, it means finding new books to read as we gear up for a busy year on the road, traveling from state to state to help Democrats win competitive races up and down the ballot. In the process, our team is thrilled to share a curated collection of our favorite reads, born out of our shared belief that the best organizers are often the most inspired readers. While our daily work focuses on mobilizing voters and strengthening democratic participation, we know that the fuel for that fire more often than not comes from the stories, histories, and big ideas found in the pages of a great book. This list represents the diverse perspectives of our entire staff, from the field organizers on the ground to our digital strategists behind the screens.

We’ve pulled together a mix of titles that span gripping political memoirs, deep dives into social movements, and even a few works of fiction that offer a much-needed escape during the height of campaign season. These aren't just "required reading"; they are the books that have sparked late-night debates in our homes, changed our tactical approaches, or simply kept us grounded during long days on the trail. We hope these recommendations provide you with the same sense of insight and energy they’ve given us as we continue the work of getting out the vote!

State and Revolution

Vladimir Lenin’s State and Revolution remains one of the most provocative and essential texts for anyone seeking to understand the mechanics of political power. Written in the heat of 1917 while Lenin was in hiding, the book serves as a masterclass in dismantling the idea of the state as a "neutral arbiter." Instead, Lenin argues that the state is fundamentally an instrument of class rule, a "special body of armed men" designed to maintain the dominance of one group over another. By stripping away the polite veneer of parliamentary democracy, he challenges readers to look at the underlying structures of the police, the military, and the bureaucracy to see who they truly serve.

What makes this book a compelling read today is its visionary attempt to imagine what comes after the "smashing" of the old system. Lenin doesn't just critique; he offers a blueprint for a "workers' state", where officials are paid workmen's wages and are subject to immediate recall by the people. He describes a transition in which democracy expands for the majority before the state itself begins to "wither away" as class distinctions disappear. Whether you are a student of history, a political activist, or simply someone skeptical of the status quo, State and Revolution provides a sharp, uncompromising lens through which to view every government on the planet.

We The People

Harvard historian Jill Lepore delivers a brilliant and urgent corrective to the way we view our nation’s founding document. She argues that the Constitution was never meant to be a static relic "kept under glass," but was designed by the Framers to be a work in progress and a piece of living machinery that requires constant "tinkering" by each new generation. By drawing on a massive database of over 12,000 proposed amendments, Lepore tells the vibrant, often-overlooked history of ordinary Americans, from civil rights activists to environmentalists, who have fought to "mend" the nation by amending its supreme law.

What makes this book essential reading for the GOTV PAC community is its sobering analysis of our current "constitutional freeze." Lepore points out that the U.S. Constitution has become one of the most difficult in the world to change, with no meaningful amendments ratified since 1971. She warns that when the democratic path of amendment is blocked, power inevitably shifts toward unelected judges and executive orders, increasing the risk of political instability. We the People is a rallying cry to reclaim the "philosophy of amendment," reminding us that the power to shape the future of American democracy does not belong only to the courts; it belongs to us.

Elite Capture

Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò provides a vital toolkit for any organizer who has ever felt that radical ideas lose their teeth the moment they enter the mainstream. Táíwò argues that "elite capture" isn't just a conspiracy of bad actors but a systemic process in which the most advantaged members of a group (those with the most "being-in-the-room privilege") end up steering resources and political agendas toward their own narrow interests. By tracing the history of identity politics back to the radical Black feminism of the Combahee River Collective, he shows how a concept meant to build solidarity across differences has been hollowed out into a "politics of deference" that prizes symbolic gestures over material change.

For the GOTV PAC community, this book is an essential reminder that "inclusion" is not synonymous with "empowerment." Táíwò warns against a "deferential" strategy that focuses solely on who is speaking in the room, rather than who built the room in the first place. Instead, he calls for a "constructive politics" that focuses on building new, durable institutions, whether it be unions,  community-led cooperatives, etc, that can actually redistribute power and resources. Reading Elite Capture is a challenge to stop simply "reading the room" and start "building a new house," making it a must-read for anyone serious about long-term, structural democratic reform.

Butterflies are Free to Fly

Stephen Davis offers a perspective that is as unconventional as it is liberating, blending quantum physics with personal transformation. Davis argues that our physical reality is not a solid, objective "out there" but a sophisticated holographic projection created by what he calls the "Infinite I." By utilizing metaphors like the "Movie Theater" and the "Human Game," he suggests that our experiences, including the struggles we face in organizing and advocacy, are part of a scripted reality designed for soul-level learning. For those in the GOTV PAC community, this book offers a radical mental reset, encouraging us to look past the "cocoon" of our limiting beliefs and the seemingly immovable obstacles of the political landscape.

What makes this a compelling addition to our list is Davis’s focus on "spiritual autolysis", or the process of peeling away false identities and societal conditioning until only the truth remains. He challenges the reader to move from being a "player" caught up in the drama of the game to a "butterfly" that has emerged with a new level of consciousness and detachment. Whether or not you subscribe to the holographic model, the book’s emphasis on letting go of judgment, fear, and the need for external validation is a powerful antidote to the burnout and cynicism that can often plague long-term movement work. It is a call to evolve our internal state so we can navigate the external world with a sense of play, purpose, and profound freedom.

World Order

Henry Kissinger provides a magisterial sweeping history of how different civilizations have attempted to define and impose stability on a chaotic world. His central thesis is that a sustainable "world order" is not a natural state of affairs but a delicate construction that requires a constant balance between two pillars: power and legitimacy. Kissinger argues that order exists only when the major players in the system agree on a set of rules for conduct and possess a relatively equal distribution of power that prevents any one nation from dominating the others. For organizers at GOTV PAC, this book offers a high-level masterclass in the "realist" school of thought, stripping away the rhetoric of international relations to reveal the cold, hard mechanics of statecraft that shape the global stage we operate on today.

Kissinger offers a sobering analysis of our current era, where he warns that the global consensus is fracturing. He explores how the rise of non-state actors, the digital revolution, and competing cultural visions are challenging the traditional nation-state model. He poses a vital question for the 21st century: Can a diverse world with fundamentally different values ever agree on a single, shared order? Whether you agree with his "Realpolitik" approach or find it controversial, World Order is an essential read for anyone who wants to understand the historical tectonic plates that are shifting beneath our feet, influencing everything from trade policy to the very definition of national sovereignty.