Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present

In Age of Revolutions, Fareed Zakaria explores the cycles of progress and backlash that have shaped our world, from the birth of classical liberalism to today’s polarized and unstable era.

Zakaria traces this dynamic through history, starting with the Dutch Republic, the first modern liberal state, whose ideas spread to England in the Glorious Revolution. He contrasts bottom-up change, like the Industrial Revolution, with radical upheavals such as the French Revolution, which highlight the dangers of top-down transformation.

The second half of the book examines today’s upheavals—globalization, digital transformation, identity politics, and rising authoritarianism. As Russia and China push back against liberalism, the West faces its own crisis of populism and cultural division, threatening the democratic foundations we take for granted.

Zakaria warns that while liberalism has freed individuals, it has also left many feeling adrift, vulnerable to tribalism and reactionary movements. In an age of rapid change, the challenge is to preserve progress without losing the social bonds that make life meaningful.

A sweeping historical analysis and urgent call to action, Age of Revolutions helps us understand where we are, how we got here, and what’s at stake.