Thomas de Waal joins EI’s Jack Dickens to discuss how the recent elections in Armenia could reshape geopolitics in the Caucasus and beyond.

Image: Armenian flag with Mount Ararat in background. Credit: Alamy

The late Len Deighton produced novels that were packed with excitement and suspense but also infused with moral complexity and psychological insight. Read by Leighton Pugh. 

Read the essay here: https://engelsbergideas.com/essays/len-deightons-spycraft/.

Image: Michael Caine in The Ipcress File. Credit: Allstar Picture Library Ltd 

George Magnus speaks to EI’s Jack Dickens about the geopolitical logic behind China’s economic strategy.

Image: A container ship from China. Credit: Rudmer Zwerver

The largest Jewish community in the world is defined by its deep integration into America's national story, its liberal traditions and scepticism towards Israeli governments. Read by Leighton Pugh. 

Read the essay here: https://engelsbergideas.com/essays/a-jewish-american-dream/

Image: A member of the American Jewish Congress participating in the 1965 Montgomery March, advocating for civil rights. Credit: Image Bank

Marc David Baer speaks to EI’s Paul Lay about his new book 'Children of Abraham: The Story of Jewish-Muslim Relations', and the deep historical connection between two faiths, bound by common roots.

Image: Tiles at Ali Ben Youssef Medersa in Marrakech, Morocco. Credit: Stelios Michael.

Re-reading CS Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, Hannah Lucinda Smith discovers glimmers of the culture and history of the Turkic peoples in the author's work. Read by Leighton Pugh.

Read the essay here: https://engelsbergideas.com/essays/finding-turkey-in-narnia/

Image: Puffin paperback editions of the Narnia tales by author CS Lewis. Credit: NearTheCoast.com / Alamy Stock Photo

Filmmaker Maura Smith discusses Steve Schapiro: Being Everywhere, her documentary on the photographer who captured modern America.

Image: Steve Schapiro in the 1960s. Credit: Steve Schapiro

Elżbieta Zawacka, who played a key role in the Home Army’s resistance efforts, was one of the most highly decorated women in Polish history. Clare Mulley assesses her legacy. Read by Leighton Pugh. 

Read the essay here: https://engelsbergideas.com/portraits/agent-zo-the-spy-who-saved-poland/. 

Image: Monument to Agent Zo. Credit: Alamy

Craig Fehrman speaks to EI’s Max Mitchell about his new book ‘This Vast Enterprise: A New History of Lewis & Clark’, shedding light on one of America’s founding myths.

Image: ‘America in the Making: Lewis and Clark’ by Newell Convers Wyeth (1938). Credit: Alamy

From Xi Jinping in China to Narendra Modi in India and Donald Trump in the US, Nicholas Wright explores how powerful leaders are reshaping the rules of the global great game. Read by Leighton Pugh.

Read the original essay here: https://engelsbergideas.com/essays/why-powerful-individuals-are-dominating-politics/.

Image: Caspar David Friedrich’s ‘Wanderer above the Sea of Fog’. Credit: incamerastock