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Reading Lists |
TOLFA is self-contained. There is no mandatory, external reading list - no books you must buy, in order to complete the course. Therefore, it's completely free of charge.
Many of its segments end with references to external articles that may help round out the subject of each particular one; where possible we have copied those over to the TOLFA site so that the links provided will not expire over time. Click on those links, take free advantage!
There is also reference provided to external books that can be bought. There is a rich library of pro-freedom books, written by some outstanding people over many years, and the learning process is greatly enhanced by reading them. Again: not essential, but warmly recommended.
There are some 40 books on that "recommended" list, and (the above being said and meant) it's really important to build one's own library with at least some of them. All should be read critically of course, for few include a clear rationale and plan to be rid of the State once and for all (if any did, perhaps TOLFA would not have been needed!) so they aren't error-free; but each does add some priceless depth to what is learned here, in its particular subject area. There's no need to buy them all new, and the whole set can probably be acquired over time for $100 or $200 in the used-book market on the Net.
Which to buy first? - hard question to answer, they are all so rich! Here's one view of a minimum, short-shelf library:
- "The Market for Liberty" by Morris & Linda Tannehill - a short, classic masterpiece, outlining in clear, mostly economic terms how a free society would function.
- "The Adventures of
Jonathan Gullible" by Ken Schoolland - another classic, highly successful book published in many languages worldwide for readers of all ages, which pours gentle but devastating scorn on the ludicrous results of government rule.
- "Power and Market" by Murray Rothbard - an economics masterpiece, perhaps Rothbard's best. Get your teeth into this in-depth analysis and re-read frequently during the years ahead.
- "Death by Government" by R J Rummel - a book to upset every appetite. Nobody can read this catalog of slaughter and continue to believe in the myth of benevolent government.
- "I Must Speak Out"
by Carl Watner - nearly 500 pages of meticulously researched and tightly reasoned articles from "The Voluntaryist" that no bookshelf should be without.
- "What Has Government Done
to Our Money?" by Murray Rothbard - no clearer description exists, of the reality of what's in your wallet.
- "Dumbing Us Down" by John Taylor Gatto - an awesome explanation, written by an accomplished insider, of why those twelve school years were such a bore and a waste.
- Jim Davies' "Liberty" trilogy - Denial, Vision and Transition - specifically written for TOLFA members, to enhance and amplify the Academy. Denial, particularly, is designed to help attract new students, so it's good to have some copies ready to loan out.
- "The Most Dangerous Superstition" by Larken Rose - an excellent book for motivating friends to join the Academy to learn more - see the News page.