2012 is also shaping up to be quite a vintage year for political books and biographies, particularly with Robert Caro’s long awaited fourth volume of the life of LBJ (with a fifth also on the way).

1.       Colonel Roosevelt by Edmund Morris

The finale of another great series about another great President.  Following on from ‘The Rise Of Theodore Roosevelt’ and ‘Theodore Rex’, this magisterial work takes the Teddy Roosevelt story on from when he left office in 2009.  And Roosevelt is unique amongst US Presidents for being as interesting for what he did after leaving office as he is for what he did in office.  When Taft succeeded him as President in 2009, Roosevelt quickly believed that his legacy was being squandered.  His 2010 Kansas speech launched Roosevelt’s most progressive, radical phase and left him on a collision course with Taft and much of the GOP.

With the speech, he launched one of the most fascinating phases in American politics.  Roosevelt joined the Republican primaries for 2012, but he joined them too late and Taft became the GOP nominee.  He then formed the Progressive Party, commonly known as Bull Moose, which went on to push the Republicans and Taft into third place.  And this book has plenty of contemporary relevance – President Obama gave one of his best speeches for some time in the same town in which Teddy Roosevelt launched his more progressive agenda.  Roosevelt used his populist campaign to campaign for the interests of “the people” against “the powerful” – arguing that both the Democrats and the Republicans had become dominated by the interests of big business, rather than the interests of the people.  Such a concept has a huge amount of resonance today.  Expect Obama to go back to the populist source in this year’s election.  This book is a must read about an extraordinary man, whose people versus powerful message can teach us a great deal today.

2.       Chavs – The Demonisation of the Working Class by Owen Jones

Owen Jones’s work about social class has come in for justified high praise, from the New York Times to Eric Hobsbawm.  And the book deserves the high praise.  I reviewed ‘Chavs’ back in July and described it back then as:

 “a highly readable and very important book.  Although, as he suggests himself, Jones is from a middle-class background, he does understand and address many of the big issues facing working class communities.  The book correctly addresses the marginalisation of many working class people from political life (just look at turnout figures for lower income social groups as confirmation of this).  It has helped to ignite a debate about how to bridge the gulf between Westminster and working class communities and how to best turn round those areas most affected by the blight of unemployment and deindustrialisation.”

For too long, it has suited both left and right to ignore class and to ignore the crucial issues around class.  As politics has become more professional and more and more middle class, working class concerns have fewer voices in the upper echelons.  Jones has helped ensure that a new debate has been created on the subject.  It’s a lively and very good book and, whether you agree with Owen Jones’s politics or not (as I pointed out when I reviewed it, Chavs is more pointing out problems than suggesting solutions), it is well worth a read.

3.       Adapt by Tim Harford

 Not strictly a political book but a book that is having a real political impact.  In this book, Harford extols the virtues of experimentation, of risk-taking and, crucially, failure.  As the book’s subtitle suggests, success always starts with failure.  Tim Harford also spoke about the book at Policy Exchange and I blogged about the event here.  The importance of his ideas are multiple.  Namely, that local trial and error are good things and we shouldn’t expect a monopoly of wisdom from central government or anywhere else.  Equally, prizes could be a particularly effective way of bringing about innovation.

4.       You Can’t Say That by Ken Livingstone  

There are few more interesting politicians than ‘Red Ken’.  Lovingly described as “the most odious man in Britain” by The Sun, Livingstone emerged from battles with Thatcher’s Government, the law Lords and Tony Blair and ongoing battles with the Evening Standard to become the first elected Mayor of London.  Ken is one of the lone survivors of the politics of the 1980s and has quite a tale to tell.  And he tells the tale in some detail.  It’s open to question whether we need to hear the near verbatim diary of his hitchhiking trip to Africa as a young man or plenty of internal Labour of GLC committee meetings in the 1970s.  Having said that, there are some great sparks and some great humour in this book which is much more compelling than most examples of the genre.

Ken is a marmite politician (I find, amongst other things, the links with Chavez pretty distasteful).  But controversial, marmite politicians are good in an age of soundbites.  You may not agree with what he says, but you have to respect the fact that he’s one of the few genuinely working class politicians at the front line today and you have to respect that the support for gay and ethnic minority communities for which he was lambasted in the 1980s has now become mainstream.  A politician who provokes strong emotions on both sides, his autobiography is a worthwhile read for anybody interested in British politics of recent decades.

5.       Tory Pride and Prejudice by Michael McManus

 It’s only a decade or so since front bench Conservatives were openly supporting Section 28 and others were using offensive language about reducing the age of consent and other key issues.  In only a few years, the Tory Party changed from being a party portrayed as being anti gay to being the party with more openly gay MPs than any other.  It’s a pretty radical and hugely welcome change, accompanied by a much needed mea culpa or two along the way.  This fascinating book charts the attitude of the Conservatives towards homosexual law reform from the crackdown in the 1950s through to the welcome approach of this Government, with its support for gay marriage (which was announced shortly after the book went to print).  There’s some great anecdotes here as well – the book is a fascinating illustration of the changing nature of the Tory Party and the changing nature of society (very much for the better).

There is an exceptional piece by Danny Finkelstein in today’s Times (£) in which he takes the ‘mainstream Conservatives’ to task.  It is well worth a read.

Danny suggests that:

“There is still the unresolved question of the election, with many on the Right advancing the entertaining theory that if the party had been more “robust” (in other words right-wing) it would have won a majority and wouldn’t need to compromise with the Liberal Democrats at all.

The nub of their argument is that a government implementing the largest retrenchment in public spending in modern times, the introduction of free schools, a daring (very possibly too daring) market-orientated reform of the NHS and a massive change to welfare provision is somehow not being Conservative enough. They aren’t satisfied.

This dissatisfaction is accompanied by the claim that the critics are the “real” Conservatives, the “authentic” Tories. And this is a very dangerous claim because it suggests no room in authentic Conservatism for practicality, compromise with electoral reality or moderation.”

He suggests that there are three things that must be resisted and, in each case he is right:

“The first is a lack of proportion, without which any party is sunk. Issues are being raised to the level of high principle that simply do not belong there… The second is a lack of willingness to accept compromise and a good deal… Most important of all there is the claim to being the “real” Conservatives. If moderate Tories surrender that, the game is up.”

That final sentence is the best summary I have seen about the importance of moderates in the party winning the debate about whether the Party should remain in the centre or shift to the right.

We are very lucky in British politics to have classy biographers, great contemporary historians and some wonderful journalists, who often turn their hands towards writing must read books.  I have restricted the list below to books about British politics.  Feel free to use the comments section to make your own suggestions.

1. Supermac – The Life of Harold Macmillan by D.R. Thorpe

For years, Harold Macmillan was ignored by modern Tories and seen as a forgotten Prime Minister.  His brand of One Nation Toryism didn’t appeal to a generation of neo-liberal right wingers who owed more to the liberal politics of Gladstone, Herbert Spencer and Hayek than to the Tory ideas of Disraeli, Oakeshott and Macmillan.  Thankfully, the Tory Party has now rediscovered the progressive pragmatism that has made the Party such a successful political party.  Harold Macmillan has emerged from the changed political and philosophical environment with a greatly enhanced reputation – now regarded as a great Prime Minister.  In D.R. Thorpe he has found a great biographer.

Thorpe clearly has great affection for Macmillan and has produced a biography that is immensely readable and really captures the spirit and the essence of the man.  From his much mythologised background as a crofter’s Grandson (as well as a Duke’s son in law) through his early years as a maverick Tory radical – often going out of his way to offend Baldwin’s “hard faced men who look like they have done very well out of the war” – setting out radical new ideas to tackle the scourge of unemployment in areas such as the Stockton constituency he represented – and consistently and passionately opposing appeasement, Thorpe sets out nicely how Macmillan’s politics were formed by the seismic events of the 1930s.  His description of the post war events that led to Butler and Macmillan modernising and  reshaping the Tory Party and leading to 13 years of unbroken Tory rule, with ever increasing majorities, is vivid and insightful as is the description of Macmillan’s time in the Cabinet and the events that led from Suez to the Macmillan replacing Eden as Prime Minister.

Thorpe is fair and objective about Macmillan’s radical Premiership.  His time in Number 10 was one characterised by high growth, low inflation, low unemployment, social harmony and social justice.   He concludes that Macmillan had “style, vision, breadth of view and compassion.”  The Sunday Times called this book a “superb biographical achievement” and they were right.  Thorpe understands politics, keeps up the narrative against the backdrop of immense historical events, whilst never losing touch with the importance of Macmillan’s troubled personal life in the making of the man and the making of the politician.  This biography should be read as a splendid biography of a first rate Prime Minister.  It should also be used as a guide for a successful, radical and progressive Tory future.

2. The New Machiavelli – How To Wield Power In The Modern World by Jonathan Powell

It is often said that the powers behind the throne have as interesting a story to tell as the wielders of power themselves.  Nowhere is this more the case than with Jonathan Powell and this magisterial part biography, part attempt to translate the teachings of Machiavelli to the workings of modern Government and politics.  A thread running through the book is a staunch loyalty to Tony Blair and Blairism and an equally trenchant savaging of Gordon Brown’s interference and unsuitability for the task of modern leadership.  Powell also defends the often misunderstood writings of Machiavelli and counsels the reader to look beyond ‘The Prince’ towards some of his lesser known writings.

This book works as one of the ultimate insider accounts to the New Labour years – Powell was almost always at Blair’s side, sharing his successes and experiencing the same frustrations.  It also works on an intellectual level – musing about the pressures on politicians and leaders in a fast paced media driven world.  A must read for anybody with an interest in modern British politics.

3. Red Tory by Philip Blond

Philip Blond has been a regular on our television screens since his Prospect article hit the newsstands a few years ago and his Respublica think-tank, the launch of which I reviewed very favourably, has proven to be a great success.  The publication of Red Tory put plenty of flesh on the bone.  The book includes a Tory critique of Thatcherism and a plea for the reinvigoration of a more radical, transformative type of Conservatism – not purely rooted in economically liberal values.  Blond’s call for a reinvigoration of civil society (echoing similar calls from the likes of David Marquand and John Gray) and the capitalisation of the poor represent some of the most exciting ideas to be put into the Tory bloodstream for decades.  Winning the battle of ideas is a crucial part of winning the overall political battle and Philip Blond’s ideas, as expressed in Red Tory represent the kind of bold and radical ideas that will help Tories win this battle in the coming years.

4. The End Of The Party by Andrew Rawnsley

Servants of the People was one of the must-read contemporary histories of recent years and Rawnsley certainly kept up the high standards of that book with this chronicle of the decline and fall of New Labour.  His writing is ultra readable, his knowledge of politics and the world of Westminster is second to none and his sources are numerous and impeccable.  This book, with its revelation of Gordon Brown’s alleged bullying dominated the headlines for weeks at the start of the year but there is much more to it than that.  The heroes of the book –Alan Milburn and Tony Blair, amongst others are as clear as the villains – Gordon Brown and the Brownite coterie, including Ed Milband.  This is contemporary ‘journalistic history’ as it should be and should be read by anybody with an interest in modern British politics.

5. The British General Election of 2010 by Philip Cowley and Dennis Kavanagh

This book is part of a series that goes back to 1945.  But the general election of 2010 was no ordinary election.  Some of the books about previous elections had seemed excessively academic and didn’t necessarily capture the drama and twists and turns that go with British election campaigns.  This book, though, is indispensable.  The authors had access to all of the major campaigns and the major players during the campaign and use it to brilliantly chronicle the unpredictable rollercoaster that was this year’s election.  This is a must read for anybody interested in what really happened back in May and followers of all political parties should be reading this to work out what went right and what went wrong for their party in the Spring.

Bubbling Under.  Close To The Top Five…

Tony Blair’s compelling biography was one of the best reads of the year.  A Journey, written as Blair speaks, breaks the mould of political autobiographies.  Blair, three years after leaving the scene remains deeply relevant – hugely important to both the coalition (the coalition contains a large number of devotees to Blair’s domestic reforms) and the Labour Party (with Ed Miliband seemingly determined to ignore the lessons of Labour’s most successful ever leader).  A Journey is the autobiography of a man who remains as relevant as ever.

Two newly elected Tory MPs have produced books of genuine interest this year.  ‘What does the Big Society mean’ is a question that many, including we at Platform 10 and even those esteemed scholars at the Oxford English Dictionary.  Jesse Norman goes closer than pretty much anybody else in explaining what the Big Society is.  Jesse Norman argues that the Big Society will redefine British politics and the book in which he makes this case is well worth a read.  Nick Boles caused quite a stir when his, ‘Which Way’s Up’ was published – largely because he floated the idea of an electoral pact between the coalition partners.  The book overall is a cracking read though – setting out how the coalition has the potential to transform Britain for the better.

Whilst Roy Hattersley doesn’t come close to matching John Grigg’s four volume biography of the great man, his biography of Lloyd-George is well worth a read.  Lloyd George – The Great Outsider is as good a one volume biography as you will find of one of the greatest politicians in modern history, with Hattersley adding a politician’s understanding of DLG (intriguingly Hattersley says the idea was initially suggested by Roy Jenkins, who disliked Lloyd George so much that he couldn’t even envisage writing a biography of him).

Whilst not about UK politics, the brilliant ‘Race Of A Lifetime’ cannot go without a mention in the list of the year’s best political books.  It offers an insider’s account to one of the most remarkable Presidential elections of the post war period.  A thoroughly compelling read.

Red faces for more Lib Dems today – but really, are any of us surprised that there are disagreements and unease about governing together? I’d be more concerned if the two parties didn’t need to negotiate through each policy. I’m sure that most of them are the better for having been chewed over from differing points of view. And, as Alex Massie reminds us, getting a Conservative majority next time rather depends on this term being a success…

I’m stretching the red thing a little now… but you don’t need to go into the red to join the Labour party if you’re under 27! It’s only 1p. I wonder if that’s sensible pricing – after all, political parties need the income, and I have always thought that you value and engage more with someone if it’s worth something to you. Not sure about this one.

However, my two favourite discoveries of the day:

Firstly, that someone has built Big Ben in gingerbread (which looks kind of red) – thanks to Ian Birrell for that one, and there are more here.

And lastly, Jodrell Bank is on Twitter! Worth a follow; I didn’t know about the red moon yesterday until afterwards.

Steve Richards has a good piece about the power of blogging and the importance of the rise of ‘rolling comment’.  Elsewhere at the Indy, John Rentoul’s list of banned phrases has reached the 100 mark – he also draws attention to a similar list that Orwell put together in 1946.  Mainstream Conservative supporters might be pleased to hear that both banned lists include the word ‘progressive’!

Ken Clarke has a must read article in the Yorkshire Post defending the shift to an evidence based and enlightened penal policy.  Ken Argues that, “Without radical reform prison is at risk of becoming just an expensive way of giving society a rest from offenders who will simply go out and commit crime again once they are let out. This does nothing to protect the public in the long-term, and according to the National Audit Office, costs our economy more than £7bn a year.”

With Christmas Eve only a week away and the Christmas Party season in full swing across Westminster, Paul Richards has a great piece looking at how political diarists spent their Christmases in the past.  Well worth a read.

Danny Finkelstein, in an excellent piece in today’s Times (£), argues that the Conservative Party must not be seen as a right wing party moderated only by the influence of the Lib Dems.  That is, he rightly argues, the route to electoral disaster.  Tim Montgomerie has responded on Conservative Home – setting the dividing lines even more clearly.  Alex Massie, who has been extremely sharp in responding to the ‘mainstream Conservative’ idea, responded quickly to the latest article on Con Home – pointing out the lack of unionism in the idea of ‘mainstream Conservatism’.

Some on the right of the party seem to think that 1975 was a year zero for Conservatism.  They would be recommended to read Peter Marsh’s latest book on the Chamberlain dynasty, reviewed by Alistair Cooke, over at the blue blog.  Joseph Chamberlain, one of the trinity of great progressive Conservatives in the late 19^th Century (along with Disraeli and Lord Randolph Churchill) was the embodiment of a liberal Conservative – having crossed the floor over home rule.  He presided over a remarkable transformation of Birmingham and brought his radical ideas and bold social reforming spirit to the Cabinet table.  He should have been PM rather than Balfour.  We would be wise to remember his Liberal Conservatism, rather than looking for a narrow definition of Toryism.

Phil Collins has put together an amusing little quiz to see how Thatcherite you are.  I would be intrigued to see differences between Liberal and mainstream Conservatives.

Two titans of modern politics – Bill Clinton and Tony Blair – discussed the future of progressive politics recently.  The video is well worth a watch.

 Conservative Home is still going strong (though is it a blog or a group blog or a news website???) and today Greg Clark MP set outs the six big decentralisation themes contained in the Localism Bill. Third Sector tells us how the Bill allows community groups to challenge councils over public service delivery. The Localism Bill contains lots of positive news for local government, according to Andrew Stunell MP.

 The Government’s ‘regulation busters’ are listed by Fraser Nelson. Eric Pickles comes top of the class, while Ken Clarke is bottom.

 Phil Cane on the Vote No to AV blog has invited people to tell him why they are not AVing it. I have yet to make-up my mind which way I will be voting in the AV referendum, thus am looking forward to the debate.

 While all this has been going on Labour has made their first serious pitch to the Lib Dems. Ed Miliband wants Lib Dems to input into Labour’s policy renewal process.  Richard Grayson, former director of policy for the Lib Dems, is interested in setting the foundations for a possible future Lab-Lib pact. Mary Ann Sieghart is spot on about the need for some Lib Dem voters to grow-up.

 Eric Pickles has launched one of the Coalitions flagship initiative: the Localism Bill. More on this in the next few days. Julian Dobson may suffer from instinctive cynicism whenever anyone in the Coalition talks about ‘Big Society’ but he does make some good points about what localism actually is. According to Political Cream the key challenge for Big Society advocates is to convince citizens of its benefits without drawing attention to the enforced nature of its implementation.

There cannot be a better polemicist than Christopher Hitchens.  He is on coruscating form damning the conspiracy theories behind the Tea Party movement.  Hitchens suggests that a “hateful kind of populist claptrap” is poisoning the American body politic.  His Vanity Fair piece is a must-read.

The FT Westminster blog has a remarkable piece about how Civil Servants tried to stop George Osborne buying a cheaper Christmas tree for the Treasury.

On the same day as a poll is released saying that British people have grown even more hostile to the EU, the FT carries a damning polemic by Wolfgang Munchau about a “hopeless Europe, unable to cope.”

Jim Naughtie’s spoonerism this morning has dominated a lot of the chatter on Twitter and in the blogosphere.  Political Scrapbook have a recording of the gaffe and its aftermath.

Twitter seems to be becoming a ‘must have ‘ accessory for modern sportsmen – Tiger Woods picked up hundreds of thousands of followers in his first few hours of tweeting last week.  Today, Aussie batsman Michael Clarke used Twitter to apologise for not walking in the second test when he was clearly out.