The New Machiavelli / H. G. Wells

Title: The New Machiavelli 

Author: H. G. Wells

Subjects: Fiction; Political

The novel's themes are politics and sex, both abiding preoccupations of the author. Biographer David Smith called The New Machiavelli, Wells's most autobiographical novel. The main character Dick Remington, has a passion for statecraft and reforming the social and political systems. But how his affair forced him to abandon his dreams is the main story.

A Modern Utopia / H. G. Wells

Title: A Modern Utopia 

Author: H. G. Wells

Subjects: Political; Fiction

The book is written more as non-fiction than fiction. In this hybrid book, H.G. Wells describes his ideal world state. Two travelers fall into a space-warp and suddenly find themselves upon a Utopian Earth controlled by a single World Government.

The Jungle / Upton Sinclair

Title: The Jungle 

Author: Upton Sinclair

Subjects: Classic; Fiction; Political 

The novel portray the life of immigrants in the United States in Chicago when it is published in 1906. The book depicts working-class poverty, harsh and unpleasant conditions, and a hopelessness among workers. These elements are contrasted with the deeply rooted corruption of people in power. A review by the writer Jack London called it "the Uncle Tom's Cabin of wage slavery.

Notes from the Underground / Fyodor Dostoevsky

Title: Notes from the Underground 

Author: Fyodor Dostoevsky

Subjects: Classic; Fiction; Political

Notes is considered by many to be one of the first existentialist novels. The first part of the story is told in monologue form, or the underground man's diary, and attacks emerging Western philosophy, especially Nikolay Chernyshevsky's What Is to Be Done? The second part of the book is called "Apropos of the Wet Snow" and describes certain events that appear to be destroying and sometimes renewing the underground man, who acts as a first person, unreliable narrator and anti-hero.

The Communist Manifesto / Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

Title: The Communist Manifesto

Author: Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

Subjects: Non-Fiction; Communism; Political; Socialism

The Manifesto was recognised as one of the world's most influential political documents. It presents an analytical approach to the class struggle and the conflicts of capitalism and the capitalist mode of production. It features the ideas for how the capitalist society would eventually be replaced by socialism. The Communist Manifesto was registered to UNESCO's Memory of the World Programme. A must read. 

On the Duty of Civil Disobedience / Henry David Thoreau

Title: On the Duty of Civil Disobedience (Resistance to Civil Government)

Author: Henry David Thoreau

Subjects: Essay; Philosophy; Political; Social

Thoreau argues that individuals should not permit governments to overrule or atrophy their consciences, and they have a duty to avoid allowing such acquiescence to enable the government to make them the agents of injustice. It influence: Mohandas Gandhi,

The Prince / Nicolo Machiavelli

Title: The Prince 

Author: Nicolo Machiavelli 

Translator: W. K. Marriott

Subjects: Classic; Political; Philosophical 

The Prince was written as if it were a traditional work. It was especially innovative, written in the vernacular Italian rather than Latin. The Prince is sometimes claimed to be one of the first works of modern political philosophy, concerning politics and ethics. Must read for political students and interested in political science.  

The Republic / Plato

Title: The Republic 

Author: Plato 

Translator: B. Jowett

Subjects: Classic; Political; Utopian 

The Republic has been the most important, famous and widely read dialogue and work of political writing. It contains Socratic dialogue about the meaning of justice and whether the just man is happier than the unjust man. Must read political work of all time.