Abundance: How We Build a Better Future

(Paperback, Main)

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Description

The real threat to liberal democracy isn't autocrats - it's the lack of effective action by progressives.

In Abundance, veteran journalists Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson reveal the structural, economic and political forces that have led to the America, and much of the liberal world, of today: where scarcity and preservation drive the agenda, and we have forgotten how to deliver on big ideas.

Decades of slashing immigration, off-shoring manufacture, preventing house-building and stalling ambitious infrastructure projects like high-speed rail means America has a shortage of workers, houses, innovative products and climate-change solutions. It's a story repeated across the Western World. To progress on the greatest challenges of our time, from housing to climate change, healthcare to infrastructure, progressives need a vision of abundance, and the ability and willingness to enact transformative strategies. Here, the authors lay out the barriers to consequential action, and how we can overcome them to actively build a better, more abundant future.

Reviews

Praise for Ezra Klein: 'It's been a long time since I learned so much from one book -- Rutger Bregman, author of Utopia for Realists
Superbly researched and written' -- Francis Fukuyama * The Washington Post *
This book helped me understand modern politics better -- Bill Gates
Praise for Derek Thompson: 'Enthralling ... This book picks up where The Tipping Point left off. -- Adam Grant
Fascinating * Observer *
Spirited ... An entertaining and informative guide * The Times *
Shortages and growing unaffordability - from housing to the labour market are two of the defining characteristics of the 21st century. Klein and Thompson argue that this is because well-intentioned rules and regulations adopted in decades past have hobbled the present, and they explore how we can move from a liberalism that not only protects and preserves but also builds. -- What to Read in 2025 * Financial Times *

Author Bio

Ezra Klein is a columnist and podcast host at the New York Times. He founded Vox, and has been a columnist and editor at the Washington Post; a political analyst at MSNBC; and a contributor to Bloomberg. He is the author of NYT-bestseller Why We're Polarized, one of Barack Obama's top books of 2022. Derek Thompson is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where he writes on economics, technology and society. A news analyst with NPR, Derek is also a contributor to CBS News. He is the author of the international bestseller Hit Makers.