The Economist reads
Drought and fire
What to read to understand the burning of the American West
Our correspondent picks four essential books and one podcast
Economic history
What to read to understand the history of Western capitalism
Our senior economics writer picks three books and two papers
Latin America
Our Bello columnist on the essential books for understanding Latin America
The seven books for getting to grips with the Americas
Taiwan
Our former Asia columnist on what to read to grasp the looming crisis in Taiwan
The best five books for understanding a likely flashpoint
Italy
Our Rome correspondent on the six books that serve as the best guide to Italy
The country can be infuriatingly difficult to understand
Myanmar
The seven books to read about Myanmar
Our former South-East Asia correspondent picks his guides to a deeply troubled country
Football
Five essential books on football
An eclectic selection covering the beautiful game and why it matters
Abortion
The best books to explain America’s debate on abortion rights
Four recommendations from our American social affairs correspondent
Brexit
Our Brexit editor picks seven books to help make sense of the issue
A reader’s guide to understanding the events of the past six years
Brazil
Our correspondent in São Paulo recommends six books about Brazil
A set of guides to take you beyond the football and the favelas
Hong Kong
The seven books that best explain Hong Kong’s history
Our Asia digital editor reads up on the city’s colourful tale
Africa
Our Africa editor chooses five books, and one album, as an introduction to the great continent
For a first taste of Africa, begin with these