Books

The diplomat and historian George F. Kennan, past Faculty in the Institute's School of Historical Studies (1956–74), is the subject of an "informative, clear-eyed, and compelling" biography written by past Member (2009–10) and Director's Visitor (2011), Frank Costigliola.

Yve-Alain Bois, Professor Emeritus in the School of Historical Studies, has published An Oblique Autobiography, a collection of essays and reminiscences, with no place press.

The life and work of renowned scientist, visionary, and iconoclast Freeman Dyson, who spent most of his career at the Institute for Advanced Study, is the focus of a new book edited by American physicist and historian of science David Kaiser.

Animating the Antique: Sculptural Encounter in the Age of Aesthetic Theory, a pioneering work of eighteenth and nineteenth century art history, has been published by Penn State University Press. Sarah Betzer, a Member and former Visitor (2014–15, 2016) in the School of Historical Studies, wrote the book during her time at the Institute, culminating in the groundbreaking and widely-acclaimed text that spans a century-and-a-half and offers new account of the distinctively modern allure of the antique.

James D. Wolfensohn Professor Didier Fassin and past Distinguished Visiting Professor Axel Honneth (2018–19) are the editors of Crisis Under Critique: How People Assess, Transform, and Respond to Critical Situations.

Past Members in the School of Natural Sciences Robert J. Vanderbei (2019–20) and Michael A. Strauss (1991–95), along with Neil deGrasse Tyson and J. Richard Gott, have authored a unique journey into the cosmos titled Welcome to the Universe in 3D: A Visual Tour, the fourth in a series of astrophysical tours for Princeton University Press. 

Pandemic Exposures: Economy and Society in the Time of Coronavirus, a collection of essays on the COVID-19 pandemic and its reverberations, edited by James D. Wolfensohn Professor Didier Fassin and Visiting Professor Marion Fourcade (2019-20).

Yve-Alain Bois, Professor in the School of Historical Studies, has completed volume two of his catalogue raisonné of American painter Ellsworth Kelly. Working with the artist’s estate, Bois has produced a thorough catalogue of the artist’s paintings, sculptures, and reliefs between the years 1954 and 1958, including high-quality reproductions of the art, history of ownership and exhibition, and bibliographic notes. 

Death of a Traveller: A Counter Investigation by Didier Fassin, James D. Wolfensohn Professor in the School of Social Science, was published on July 6, 2021, by Polity:

“It is a simple story. A 37-year-old man belonging to the Traveller community is...

Kurt Gödel, a Member of the Institute Faculty in the School of Mathematics, is the topic of the biography Journey to the Edge of Reason by Stephen Budiansky, published by W. W. Norton.

In conducting research for the book, Budiansky worked closely...