“In 1958, Ayn Rand… gave a private series of extemporaneous lectures in her own living room on the art of fiction…. The Art of Fiction offers invaluable lessons, in which Rand analyzes the four essential elements of fiction: theme, plot, characterization, and style. She demonstrates her ideas by dissecting her best-known works, as well as those of other famous authors, such as Thomas Wolfe, Sinclair Lewis, and Victor Hugo.” “[Ayn Rand] maintains that writing is a rational sphere, governed by rationally identifiable principles. ‘Writing is no more difficult a skill than any other, such as engineering,’ she says. ‘Like every human activity, it requires practice and knowledge. But there is nothing mystical to it.’ ”
Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt
A beautifully written book that explains how the market works. The best introduction to economics ever written.
Capitalism: A Treatise on Economics by George Reisman
An encyclopedic presentation (1000 pages) of the nature and value of capitalism. This is an advanced, college-level text.
Civil Rights Rhetoric or Reality? by Thomas Sowell
Explains how the collectivist solutions of so-called civil rights “leaders” create more problems than they solve.
Philosophy: Who Needs It by Ayn Rand
This collection of essays was the last work planned by Ayn Rand before her death in 1982.