Recommended Reading List
We’ve put together a recommended reading list for prospective students and for students starting at King's. None of these readings are required unless otherwise stated.
All Programmes
Academic Writing Skills: Chapter 3 of Robert Leach, The Politics Companion (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008).
Politics
Fundamentals of Politics Research
World Politics since 1945
No preparatory reading is expected for this course. It might be useful to order a version of the Baylis, Smith and Owens in advance so you have it for the start of the course. The ‘Introduction’ chapter is part of the essential reading for the first seminar in the week commencing 25 September.
This is used throughout the course as introductory reading. There are dozens of copies in the library, but these will be popular so it would be very useful to have your own copy. The 6th edition is also acceptable if you are looking for an inexpensive option, though note that page numbers and chapters will vary to those listed in the course guide.
- Baylis, J., Smith, S. and Owens, P. (eds.) (2017) ‘The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations’. 7th Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Brown, C. and Ainley, K. (2009) Understanding International Relations 4th Edition - (3rd edition digital copy available for free via the library - http://www.kcl.eblib.com/patron/FullRecord.aspx?p=296368)
- Burchill, S., Linklater, A. et al. (eds) (2013) Theories of International Relations, 5th edition, Basingstoke: Palgrave.
- Dunne, T., Kurki, M. and Smith, S. (2016) International Relations Theories: Discipline and Diversity, 4th edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Williams, P. D. (2014) Security Studies: An introduction, Routledge.
- Calvocoressi, P. (2009) World Politics since 1945, Pearson Education.
- Young, J. W. and Kent, J. (2004/14) International Relations since 1945: A global history, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Comparing Political Systems
- Levitsky, Steven, and Daniel Ziblatt (2018). How Democracies Die. Crown Publisher
- Norris, Pippa, and Ronald Inglehart (2019). Cultural Backlash: Trump, Brexit, and Authoritarian Populism. Cambridge University Press.
Introduction to Political Theory
- Wolff, J. (2006) An Introduction to Political Philosophy, Oxford: OUP.
- Swift, A. (2006) Political Philosophy: A Beginners' Guide for Students and Politicians, Second Edition, Cambridge: Polity.
- Barry, N. (2000) An Introduction to Modern Political Theory, Fourth Edition, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Goodin, R.E., Pettit, P. & Pogge, T. (eds.) (2012) A Companion to Contemporary Political Philosophy, Second Edition, Oxford: Blackwell.
- Kymlicka, W. (2002) Contemporary Political Philosophy: An Introduction, Second Edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Statistics for Political Science
- Foster, L., I. Diamond, and J. Jefferies. Beginning Statistics: An Introduction for Social Scientists. SAGE Publications, 2014.
- Silver, Nate. The signal and the noise: why so many predictions fail--but some don't. Penguin, 2012.
Political Economy
Fundamentals of Politics Research
Comparing Political Systems
- Levitsky, Steven, and Daniel Ziblatt (2018). How Democracies Die. Crown Publisher
- Norris, Pippa, and Ronald Inglehart (2019). Cultural Backlash: Trump, Brexit, and Authoritarian Populism. Cambridge University Press.
Introduction to Political Theory
- Wolff, J. (2006) An Introduction to Political Philosophy, Oxford: OUP.
- Swift, A. (2006) Political Philosophy: A Beginners' Guide for Students and Politicians, Second Edition, Cambridge: Polity.
- Barry, N. (2000) An Introduction to Modern Political Theory, Fourth Edition, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Goodin, R.E., Pettit, P. & Pogge, T. (eds.) (2012) A Companion to Contemporary Political Philosophy, Second Edition, Oxford: Blackwell.
- Kymlicka, W. (2002) Contemporary Political Philosophy: An Introduction, Second Edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Quantitative Methods
- Moore / Notz / Fligner ‘The Basic Practice of Statistics’ 6th edition (2013) Palgrave.
- Ben Goldacre 2009 Bad Science, Harper Perennial.
Principles of Economics
- Please register for core-econ.org (online resource)
- Rodrik, D. (2015) Economics Rules: The Rights and Wrongs of the Dismal Science, First Edition, New York: WW. Norton & Company Inc.
Politics, Philosophy and Economics
Introduction to Philosophy
- Jennifer Nagel, (2014) Knowledge: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press.
- Alyssa Ney, (2014) Metaphysics: An Introduction, Taylor & Francis.
- Julia Driver, (2005) Ethics: The Fundamentals, Wiley-Blackwell.
Comparing Political Systems
- Levitsky, Steven, and Daniel Ziblatt (2018). How Democracies Die. Crown Publisher
- Norris, Pippa, and Ronald Inglehart (2019). Cultural Backlash: Trump, Brexit, and Authoritarian Populism. Cambridge University Press.
Political and Economic Philosophy
- Mark Timmons, (2012) Moral Theory, An Introduction (Rowman and Littlefield)
- Jonathan Anomaly, Geoffrey Brennan, Michael C. Munger, Geoffrey Sayre-McCord, eds. 2016 Philosophy, Politics and Economics: An Anthology edited by, (Oxford University Press).
- Elinor Ostrom, 1991 Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action (Cambridge University Press)
- John Stuart Mill, (1859) On Liberty.
Principles of Economics
- Please register for core-econ.org (online resource)
- Rodrik, D. (2015) Economics Rules: The Rights and Wrongs of the Dismal Science, First Edition, New York: WW. Norton & Company Inc.
Quantitative Methods
- Moore / Notz / Fligner ‘The Basic Practice of Statistics’ 6th edition (2013) Palgrave.
- Ben Goldacre 2009 Bad Science, Harper Perennial.
Economics
Mathematics for Economists
- Ian Jacques, Mathematics for Economics and Business.
Principles of Economics
- Please register for core-econ.org (online resource)
- Rodrik, D. (2015) Economics Rules: The Rights and Wrongs of the Dismal Science, First Edition, New York: WW. Norton & Company Inc.
Studying Economics
Statistics
- Rowntree, D. (1981) Statistics Without Tears, Penguin Group.
The World Economy and its History
- Allen, R. (2011) Global Economic History: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press.
- Frieden, J. Globalization: Its Rise and Fall in the Twentieth Century. Norton & Company.
- Kindleberger, C. World Economic Primacy, 1500-1990. Oxford University Press.