Best Cultural Anthropology Books of 2025

All About Love: New Visions by bell hooks is a powerful and timeless book that explores the meaning and importance of love in our society. hooks argues that our culture has failed to provide a model for learning how to love, leading to a loveless society that lacks care, compassion, and unity. Through her incisive insights, she offers a new path to love that is sacred, redemptive, and healing for individuals and the nation. This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the transformative power of love and learn how to create a more loving and just world.

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind is a highly original book that integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas. Dr. Yuval Noah Harari explores the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be “human”. The book is sure to spark debate and is essential reading for aficionados of history and science. This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to learn about the history of humankind and where we might be heading in the future.

Hunt, Gather, Parent by Dr. Michaeleen Doucleff explores the ancient parenting techniques of three different cultures- Maya families in Mexico, Inuit families above the Arctic Circle, and Hadzabe families in Tanzania. The author discovers that these cultures build a relationship with their children based on cooperation, trust, and personalized needs rather than control and fear. The book offers a refreshing perspective on parenting and provides valuable lessons on how to raise happy, well-adjusted children without resorting to bribes, threats, or chore charts. It is an insightful read for parents looking to improve their parenting skills.

Generación idiota: Una crítica al adolescentrismo is a thought-provoking book that delves into the disappearance of intergenerational society and the rise of adolescent mentality. The author, Agustín Laje, argues that ideologies centered around adolescence are on the rise, resulting in teenagers ruling the world and dominating culture, politics, and language. The book is divided into five chapters, each exploring different themes such as the role of fashion, entertainment, and digital technology in shaping society. Laje also offers a unique model of rebellion and escape from political idiocy. If you're tired of blatant indoctrination in the media, schools, and universities, Generación idiota is a must-read.

The Psychology of Totalitarianism by Mattias Desmet is a thought-provoking book that deconstructs the societal conditions that allow collective psychosis to take hold, leading to the emergence of totalitarian regimes. The author identifies the phenomenon of "mass formation" and clearly illustrates how close we are to surrendering to such regimes. The book provides detailed analyses, examples, and results from years of research, laying out the steps that lead toward mass formation. Overall, this book is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the societal and psychological factors that contribute to totalitarianism.

The Will to Change by bell hooks is a thought-provoking book that delves into the ways that patriarchal culture keeps men from expressing their emotions and loving. Through candid and challenging discussions, hooks encourages men to reclaim the emotionally open part of themselves and find spiritual unity. This book is a compelling study of the culture's unfairness to men, and it's a clarion call to align with visionary radical feminism. Overall, The Will to Change is a brave and astonishing work that can help men reclaim the best part of themselves.

Coyote America by Dan Flores is a New York Times best-selling book that narrates the incredible story of coyotes, from their origins to their current expansion across the United States. Despite being targeted for extermination for centuries, coyotes have thrived and spread across the continent. This book is a masterful synthesis of scientific research and personal observation, making it a must-read for anyone interested in environmental studies, wildlife management, and general ecology and public policy. The book has received critical acclaim and was a finalist for the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award. Overall, Coyote America is a fascinating and captivating read that sheds light on an extraordinary animal and its relationship with humans.

New York Times Bestseller • Finalist for the 2018 National Book Critics Circle Award in Nonfiction • A New York Times Notable Book • Bloomberg Best Book of 2018. “Their distinctive contribution to the higher-education debate is to meet safetyism on its own, psychological turf . . . Lukianoff and Haidt tell us that safetyism undermines the freedom of inquiry and speech that are indispensable to universities.” —Jonathan Marks, Commentary. “The remedies the book outlines should be considered on college campuses, among parents of current and future students, and by anyone longing for a more sane society.” —Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Something has been going wrong on many college campuses in the last few years. Speakers are shouted down. Students and professors say they are walking on eggshells and are afraid to speak honestly. Rates of anxiety, depression, and suicide are rising—on campus as well as nationally. How did this happen?. First Amendment expert Greg Lukianoff and social psychologist Jonathan Haidt show how the new problems on campus have their origins in three terrible ideas that have become increasingly woven into American childhood and education: What doesn’t kill you makes you weaker; always trust your feelings; and life is a battle between good people and evil people. These three Great Untruths contradict basic psychological principles about well-being and ancient wisdom from many cultures.  Embracing these untruths—and the resulting culture of safetyism—interferes with young people’s social, emotional, and intellectual development. It makes it harder for them to become autonomous adults who are able to navigate the bumpy road of life.. Lukianoff and Haidt investigate the many social trends that have intersected to promote the spread of these untruths. They explore changes in childhood such as the rise of fearful parenting, the decline of unsupervised, child-directed play, and the new world of social media that has engulfed teenagers in the last decade. They examine changes on campus, including the corporatization of universities and the emergence of new ideas about identity and justice. They situate the conflicts on campus within the context of America’s rapidly rising political polarization and dysfunction.. This is a book for anyone who is confused by what is happening on college campuses today, or has children, or is concerned about the growing inability of Americans to live, work, and cooperate across party lines.

The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession by Alexandra Robbins is a compelling read that takes readers behind the scenes to reveal the true stories of three teachers navigating a year in the classroom. The author also includes interviews with hundreds of other teachers, shedding light on the biggest issues facing teachers today, such as school violence, inadequate support and resources, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This book is a must-read for anyone looking to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and joys of teaching in America's public schools.

Freedom's Dominion: A Saga of White Resistance to Federal Power by Jefferson Cowie is a Pulitzer Prize-winning history book that traces the fight against federal power by white Americans in Barbour County, Alabama. The author explores how white people weaponized freedom to oppress others and dominate Native lands, secede, overthrow Reconstruction, question the New Deal, and fight against the civil rights movement. The book is immersive, haunting, and a powerful reminder that White supremacist ideas of freedom are deeply embedded in American politics. It's an outstanding and urgent read for anyone who wants to understand the unholy union between racism and the rabid loathing of government.