Science · Similar reads

Books like Enlightenment Now

The best books like Enlightenment Now are The Better Angels of Our Nature, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, and Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow. Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker is about progress, reason, humanism. If that's what drew you in, here are 12 books that share its DNA — each summarized on Superbook, and ready to chat with in the app.

  1. The Better Angels of Our Nature
    The Better Angels of Our Nature

    01

    The Better Angels of Our Nature

    Steven Pinker · Science

    The Better Angels of Our Nature is Steven Pinker's argument, supported by extensive historical and statistical data, that human violence has declined dramatically over long time periods and that this decline is real, not an artifact of reporting or perception.

    A kindred science read.

    Read the summary →
  2. Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
    Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

    02

    Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

    Yuval Noah Harari · History

    Sapiens traces the full arc of human history from the emergence of Homo sapiens in Africa roughly 70,000 years ago to the present.

    A kindred science read.

    Read the summary →
  3. Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow
    Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow

    03

    Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow

    Yuval Noah Harari · History

    Homo Deus picks up where Sapiens left off, but turns to face the other direction.

    A kindred science read.

    Read the summary →
  1. The Second Machine Age
    The Second Machine Age

    04

    The Second Machine Age

    Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee · Economics

    The Second Machine Age is Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee's argument that digital technology has entered a qualitatively new phase — one in which machines can perform cognitive tasks previously reserved for humans, creating economic disruption and opportunity simultaneously.

    A kindred science read.

    Read the summary →
  2. How the Mind Works
    How the Mind Works

    05

    How the Mind Works

    Steven Pinker · Science

    How the Mind Works is Steven Pinker's synthesis of cognitive science and evolutionary psychology, built around a central thesis: the mind is a computational system — a neural computer — shaped by natural selection to solve the adaptive problems that faced our ancestors on the Pleistocene savanna.

    A kindred science read.

    Read the summary →
  3. Civilized to Death
    Civilized to Death

    06

    Civilized to Death

    Christopher Ryan · Science

    Christopher Ryan is the co-author of Sex at Dawn, a 2010 book that argued human beings are not naturally monogamous.

    Both dig into progress.

    Read the summary →
  4. The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer
    The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer

    07

    The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer

    Siddhartha Mukherjee · Science

    The Emperor of All Maladies is Siddhartha Mukherjee's account of cancer from antiquity to the present — its biology, its treatments, its false dawns, and the scientists and patients caught in the middle of each.

    Both dig into science.

    Read the summary →
  5. Where Is My Flying Car?
    Where Is My Flying Car?

    08

    Where Is My Flying Car?

    J. Storrs Hall · Science

    Where Is My Flying Car?

    Both dig into progress.

    Read the summary →
  6. American Moonshot
    American Moonshot

    09

    American Moonshot

    Douglas Brinkley · History

    Douglas Brinkley's American Moonshot focuses less on the engineering triumph of Apollo 11 than on the political decision that made it possible: John F.

    Both dig into science.

    Read the summary →
  7. American Prometheus
    American Prometheus

    10

    American Prometheus

    Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin · Biography

    Kai Bird and Martin J.

    Both dig into science.

    Read the summary →
  8. Critique of Pure Reason
    Critique of Pure Reason

    11

    Critique of Pure Reason

    Immanuel Kant · Philosophy

    The Critique of Pure Reason is Kant's attempt to resolve a crisis in 18th-century philosophy by asking what human reason can and cannot know.

    Both dig into reason.

    Read the summary →
  9. Discourse on the Method
    Discourse on the Method

    12

    Discourse on the Method

    René Descartes · Philosophy

    The Discourse on the Method is Descartes' intellectual autobiography and the founding document of modern Western philosophy.

    Both dig into reason.

    Read the summary →

Books like Enlightenment Now: quick answers

What are the best books like Enlightenment Now?

The best books like Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker are The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari, The Second Machine Age by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, How the Mind Works by Steven Pinker, plus 7 more below. Each was chosen for themes it shares with Enlightenment Now, such as progress, reason, humanism.

What should I read after Enlightenment Now?

A natural next read after Enlightenment Now is The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker. A kindred science read. Other strong choices are Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari, The Second Machine Age by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee.

What books are similar to Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker?

Enlightenment Now centers on progress, reason, humanism. Books with a similar feel include The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari, The Second Machine Age by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, How the Mind Works by Steven Pinker, Civilized to Death by Christopher Ryan — all free to read and chat with on Superbook.

Chat with Enlightenment Now

Ask questions. Adapt it to your life. Get answers based on your goals.

Download on the App Store