We’ve asked friends and contributors of the New Statesman to tell us their favourite books of 2010. Here is Ed Miliband’s choice:
My book of the year is David Plouffe’s The Audacity to Win (Penguin USA, $16). I found it difficult to put down during the long summer months of Labour’s leadership election; it was a reassurance and inspiration to me during that time. The book reminds us that politics – and hard work – can still change the world. Plouffe has clarity of thinking; his book is a guide for all political campaigners and thinkers trying to return their party to power. The Obama team of 2008 rejected negative campaigning, threw out conventional wisdom, and built a new, honest politics rooted in people’s lives. In doing so, they created a powerful progressive movement. With a new reality in the US after this month’s midterm elections, many will return to the wisdom in The Audacity to Win to inspire again in the months and years ahead. One to give to friends who become cynical about the change that politics can bring to people’s lives.