The War on the West: How to Prevail in the Age of Unreason

Written by Douglas Murray

Narrated by Douglas Murray

SUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER

‘The most important book of the year’  Daily Mail

The brilliant and provocative new book from one of the world’s foremost political writers

‘The anti-Western revisionists have been out in force in recent years. It is high time that we revise them in turn…’

In The War on the West, international bestselling author Douglas Murray asks: if the history of humankind is one of slavery, conquest, prejudice, genocide and exploitation, why are only Western nations taking the blame for it?

It’s become perfectly acceptable to celebrate the contributions of non-Western cultures, but discussing their flaws and crimes is called hate speech. What’s more it has become acceptable to discuss the flaws and crimes of Western culture, but celebrating their contributions is also called hate speech. Some of this is a much-needed reckoning; however, some is part of a larger international attack on reason, democracy, science, progress and the citizens of the West by dishonest scholars, hatemongers, hostile nations and human-rights abusers hoping to distract from their ongoing villainy.

In The War on the West, Douglas Murray shows the ways in which many well-meaning people have been lured into polarisation by lies, and shows how far the world’s most crucial political debates have been hijacked across Europe and America. Propelled by an incisive deconstruction of inconsistent arguments and hypocritical activism, The War on the West is an essential and urgent polemic that cements Murray’s status as one of the world’s foremost political writers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Apr 28, 2022
• ISBN: 9780008492823

Douglas Murray

Douglas Murray is an associate editor of The Spectator. His latest publication, The Madness of Crowds, was a bestseller and a book of the year for The Times and The Sunday Times. His previous book, The Strange Death of Europe: Immigration, Identity, Islam, was published by Bloomsbury in May 2017. It spent almost twenty weeks on the Sunday Times bestseller list and was a number one bestseller in nonfiction.

Reviews for The War on the West

[Gabriel Ailincai · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The common sense that is so immensely lacking these activists exposes how preposterous and hateful their motivations are.

[Danita · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Absolutely brilliant.
I am so happy that someone with a v oice has the guts to stand up and say it.
2+2=5 REALLY?!

[Alex · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I shall don my armour and ride forth to fight and defend the West to the best of my ability. This book has reinforced my loyalty and belief in the society that I was born into and educated in.

[Bill Heasley · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A very balanced and fair analysis of racial issues in the west. My solution, unfortunately, is to stop engaging and to stop working hard. I don't see another viable solution. The racial issue is compounded by the gender issue and the LGBTI+ issue. There is no point to working hard. I think the system has to fail.

[JimmyJazz77 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great book. Really insightful. Fine read. Fair and positive attitude towards western culture.

[Oscar van Ders · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Truly worthy of a review. A brilliantly written masterpiece. Simultaneously terrifying and hilarious. Excellent to listen to on audiobooks.

[Dalise Williamson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Shockingly insightful and, incredibly important. A must read for the current times we find ourselves in.

[G A McKee · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

There is so much in this grand narrative by Douglas Murray that one could write about. Just as we can admire the great cathedrals and past works of art without destroying them through neo-Marxist deconstruction, so we can admire this work of prose without deconstructing it in the same way. The book can be viewed as a work literature. The author draws ideas from other great writers like Dostoevsky for example, upon whose shoulders he stands to see the world in a healthy light. This reader found chapter 8 of this audiobook particularly helpful. It introduced the insight of how the human emotion of resentment - and its antidote gratitude - play out in the modern world . Or, rather, postmodern world.

[Benjamin · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Absolutely accurate depiction of what the West is allowing itself to go through and the deranged ideias of the architects of its demise. A must read for anyone who wants an in-depth primer on the subject

[tower_bob · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

3.5 actually.Nothing really wrong with the book, but, at least for me, I didn't learn too much more about the subject, that I didn't know already.

[daniel5estes · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The arguments in The War on the West are meticulous and convincing. I agree with pretty much all of them. What feels off is how these problems might seem like a "war" only if you primarily live and work inside Academia. Experts and intellectuals would contend that Academia isn't simply one industry among many, but a leading frontier for of ALL of society. Any internal threats to the industry would feel like a threat to everyone, but is really? Maybe. It's difficult to tell in the context of all the other problems the modern world faces. I absolutely believe in the free exchange of ideas and will always welcome a spirited debate, even at the expense of someone's comfort level, and when I hear countless examples of this not happening, on campuses or in the public square, I am, of course, concerned. But at the same time many of those examples feel so insular, like they're an unintended consequence of the changing nature of the institutions themselves. I am concerned, but I'm not yet outraged at the level Douglas Murray is trying to convince me to be. Time will tell if I should be.

[renzomalo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A great, informative read and one that ends with an uplifting prescription on how to stand up against the left’s racist war on Western Civilization, regardless of the color of an individual's skin. Dr. King would approve.Four and a half stars for a job well done.

[teepland · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The author has presented a solid defense of classical liberal Western culture. One weakness is in the final chapter, where the author flirts a bit with the same race wars he decries earlier in the book rather than presenting his case for Western ideals shared by all peoples who value them, regardless of race. Other than that, it is an excellent book.