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Kevin Merida

Executive Editor, Los Angeles Times

The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X
by Les Payne and Tamara Payne

Les was a tremendous investigative journalist and a mentor of mine. This biography is rigorously reported—amplified by Les’s incisive voice—and will help readers understand Malcolm more completely. His daughter Tamara heroically finished the book after Les died unexpectedly in 2018. The Paynes’ book won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography and Autobiography this year.

Postcolonial Love Poem
by Natalie Diaz

Poets are some of our most underappreciated writers, and Natalie Diaz is simply brilliant. This collection is both arresting and enlightening. A beautifully rendered education on Native Americans’ experience and sensibilities, and a scorching look at America. Natalie’s book won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry this year.

Dissent: The Radicalization of the Republican Party and Its Capture of the Court
by Jackie Calmes

Jackie is a Los Angeles Times journalist who spent four decades covering politics and policy, including Congress and the White House. This book was just released June 15, and I am looking forward to reading Jackie’s authoritative account of the Republican Party’s rightward evolution and its shaping of the federal judiciary.

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OTHER MEDIA

Kevin Merida
Los Angeles Times

Sally Buzbee
Washington Post

Gwendolyn Bounds
Consumer Reports

Adrienne LaFrance
Atlantic

Anup Kaphle
Rest of World

Danielle Belton
HuffPost

S. Mitra Kalita
URL Media

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Other 2021 reading lists you might want to explore

McKinsey Global Publishing’s top 25 picks

Summer books of 2021: Business (Financial Times)

Summer is coming. Bring a book. (New York Times)

Barack Obama: My summer 2021 lists (Medium)

The Harvard Business School faculty summer reader 2021 (Harvard Business School)

The books of summer (Wall Street Journal)

Summer reading: The 50 hottest new books everyone should read (Guardian)

Summer reading: 10 of the best art books of the past year (Christie’s)

5 ideas for summer reading (Bill Gates)

Summer reads 2021: What are Princeton professors reading—and listening to—this summer? (Princeton University)

What politicos are reading this summer (Politico)

Summer reading book list (reading adventures for babies, kids, and teens) (New York Public Library)

McKinsey on Books
Explore this month’s best-selling business books, prepared exclusively for McKinsey Publishing by NPD, and a collection of books by McKinsey authors on the management issues that matter.

Author Talks
Dive into insightful conversations with authors on crucial management topics including leading through a crisis, unleashing innovation, coping with organizational culture shifts, and more.

Acknowledgments

It takes a village to curate amazing lists from this rather busy group of leaders from all over the world. We would like to thank Kris Coratti, Chantal De Soto, Rimjhim Dey, Melanie Newman, Joellen Perry, and Jayne Rosefield for their help.

Within McKinsey Global Publishing, Eleni Kostopoulos led the effort to make this year’s list come alive, with collaboration and support from Mike Borruso, Nancy Cohn, Victor Cuevas, Torea Frey, Mary Halpin, Drew Holzfeind, Kathleen O'Leary, LaShon Malone, Philip Mathew, Janet Michaud, Kanika Punwani, Sarah Thuerk, Duane Tomaszewski, Petra Vincent, and Nathan Wilson.

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