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EXTRACURRICULAR @[email protected] · 2026-08-08 · 10:20 UTC

What happens when you realise a crisis isn’t always treated as a tragedy? Book review: The Shock Doctrine

I finished The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein and immediately had the uncomfortable experience of wanting to recommend a book that made me deeply uncomfortable.

I don’t believe in every argument Naomi makes; however, I wanted to recommend it because, whether you agree with her or not, she definitely changes the way you look at the world once finished and surely that’s a book worthwhile.

Published in 2007, the book explores a simple but unsettling idea that moments of collective crisis, whether natural disasters, wars, financial collapse or political upheaval, often create opportunities to push through economic policies that would ordinarily face far greater resistance.

Sinister, I know. Naomi traces this argument across decades and continents, weaving together economics, politics and history into a narrative that’s equal parts investigative journalism and historical analysis. She moves from Chile under Augusto Pinochet to post-Soviet Russia, the invasion of Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, arguing that each crisis became an opportunity for sweeping political and economic change.

Reading it felt like watching hundreds of seemingly unrelated events slowly click together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

Whether that pattern convinces you is almost secondary. The real value of the book lies in the questions it leaves behind…

Who benefits from crisis, who decides what recovery looks like and who exactly are we rebuilding for?

I found myself thinking whilst reading the hurricane Katrina chapter (one of the many crises mentioned in the book) how we often describe events as inevitable, as though history simply unfolded on its own. Klein makes you question the opposite as she asks us to consider who made decisions in the background, who held power and who profited from moments when everyone else was distracted by survival.

It’s a perspective I don’t think I’ll easily shake moving forward, especially as someone studying health science. I couldn’t help but draw parallels with public health.

Despite it being the most uncomfortable reading experience of 2026 thus far, I have to rate it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I tried to read it without annotating to much on my first pass as I suspect I’ll revisit this repeatedly over the years underlining sentences and adding thoughts.

Would I recommend it?

Yes, with one caveat. Read it as an argument to interrogate rather than form a solid conclusion. And definitely follow the footnotes and additional research in the back for a comprehensive overview of what Naomi is talking about.

Who is this for?

I think readers interested in political economy, history and public policy will get the most from it. That said, don’t let the subject matter put you off. Klein writes in an accessible, engaging style and despite its length and extensive footnotes, I found it surprisingly easy to read.

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#bookReview #disasterCapitalism #humanRights #NaomiKlein #nonFiction #politics #stateViolence #theShockDoctrine

#bookreview #disastercapitalism #humanrights #naomiklein #nonfiction #politics