Book recommendations from the heart of Washington Eight American Spring-themed picks from D.C. institution "Politics & Prose"

We asked our favorite local bookstores to share titles that fit the American Spring theme. Buy them direct from the store and help our essential independent stores survive and thrive.

Featured bookstore: Politics & Prose

Location: 5015 Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008

Website: www.politics-prose.com

American Spring Book List:

"Ill Fares the Land," by Tony Judt

"Debt: The First 5,000 Years," by David Graeber

"The Price of Civilization: Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity," by Jeffrey D. Sachs

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"Death of the Liberal Class," by Chris Hedges

"The Change I Believe In," by Katrina Vanden Heuvel

"Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer – And Turned Its Back on the Middle Class," by Jacob S. Hacker & Paul Pierson

"Were You Born on the Wrong Continent? How the European Model Can Help You Get a Life," by Thomas Geoghegan

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"The Enigma of Capital And the Crises of Capitalism," by David Harvey

About Politics & Prose

The most obvious thing that distinguishes Politics & Prose is our events schedule. For instance, in the last week of November we hosted Robert Massie for "Catherine the Great," Chris Matthews for "Jack Kennedy," Ann Beattie for "Mrs. Nixon," Walter Isaacson for "Steve Jobs" and Bill Clinton for "Back to Work." That was a bit more luminous than some weeks, but there are engaging speakers here nightly year round.

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Being in D.C. also distinguishes P&P. Our clientele is savvy, educated and often well connected. It’s not unusual to see members of Congress, Supreme Court justices and local and national journalists browsing in the store.

We also recently installed an Espresso book machine so we can assist local authors with self-publishing projects, and print books on demand for people while they’re in the store.

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There are a great number of other things: a first-class children’s section (and children’s events schedule), 14 in-store book groups (led by staff and open to the public), a slate of classes taught by experts in their fields, and day trips to nearby points of interest. And much more ...