The Libertarian Reader: Classic & Contemporary Writings from Lao-Tzu to Milton Friedman Paperback – February 17, 2015

This book is an excellent compilation of highly varied readings which speak to the political philosophy of Libertarianism starting with I Samuel 8 pointing out the origin of kings is basically idolatry. That is something to really consider: how can a person of faith or of no faith want or need a king? How can a Christian or other faith based person tolerate a king/president/prime minister, etc when God is supposed to be their leader? How can an atheist refute the existence of a benevolent or malevolent god by their own authority and knowledge and yet submit to a king/president/prime minister or other such oligarch? How do we tolerate someone ruling over us when our "natural rights" as humans is self determination and liberty? Can we live without government? Certainly not because we now number in the millions upon hundreds of millions but I do believe that if we had faith in our god(s) or even just in ourselves we wouldn't allow oligarchs to rule. We would have a smaller, less expensive, much more efficient government that would be in existence only to serve us and provide justice in conflicts. Our leaders would be trustees accountable to the electorate instead of self-indulgent thieves taking the very life out of us and our children because we lack faith in ourselves.This is just the first selection. Books could be written in response to any one of the fascinating readings in this book. It is a fabulous primer for those interested not just in the Libertarian party but also those interested in developing a coherent political philosophy of their own. A thoughtful reading of this book may or may not change your party affiliation but it will wake you up.

Boaz is a master at explaining the Libertarian point of view. I have seen him on Stossel and other TV shows and just can't get enough of his insight. He is one of the reasons I am a Libertarian. I read his "Libertarianism: A Primer" and Charles Murray's "What it Means to Be a Libertarian" and was totally changed forever. This book is a collection of famous writing throughout history supporting the Libertarian view. Boaz was masterful at assembling it. Highly recommended for reading bits and pieces at a time.

David Boaz provides an amazing collection of historical writings which explain the Libertarian themes of life, liberty, and property from diverse points of view. The subjects discussed include history, politics, economics, sociology, philosophy, and morality. This is a great reference book to have on the study of liberty, and makes a great companion to The Libertarian Mind: A Manifesto for Freedom (also by Boaz).

Truly a mind-expanding book, with a very diverse series of libertarian readings. I wish this compendium was available when I was much younger. David Boaz did a fine job of introducing each reading, and assembling them into one handy source. Most readings are 3-5 pages, so you can easily read several, and then take a breather to think about the topics and points made by the author. Highly recommend to read, and reread, and it will remain in my library for a long time. I really good introduction to many authors, and their important works. It has led me to many sources I hadn't read previously.

A couple of years ago I got interested in libertarianism and had to scrounge for a reading list. Where to get started? Then this book came out, exactly what I had been looking for. While one might quibble about the choice of authors (e.g. I would have preferred P.J O'Rourke or Dave Barry over the humorless Ayn Rand), it is obviously impossible to put in one volume all the great libertarian thinkers, let alone all the great works. This book does an excellent job, and includes in an appendix a list of further recommended reading for which there wasn't room. This was the signpost that I needed, and I still refer to it frequently. The companion volume, The Libertarian Primer, of which Boaz is author rather than editor, is also good and an easier readThat it came out so late (1997) reflects libertarians' tendency to arrogance, underestimating the need to market their abstract product and educate the populace. The Cato Institute, of which Boaz is vice president, is now rapidly making up for lost time.

I regularly look back through this book. I loved the breadth of writers.

I bought a used version of this book. It was in great condition. It was an amazing book, I loved reading it. It’s a great read for anyone who already considers themselves libertarian, anyone who leans libertarian, or anyone who wants to just learn about a different ideology.

Interesting and informative as an individual trying to understand where politically i align myself this helped to solidify certain aspects of libertarianism