*A Waterstones, Financial Times and New Statesman Book of the Year*

'A tremendous book, timely, wise, authoritative and clear' Stephen Fry
'The most excellent book … substantive and beautifully expressed suggestions for improving almost everything’ James O'Brien
'Clear, brave, compelling' David Miliband
'Inspiring ... impassioned ... full of hope' Zadie Smith
'This is a fantastic book' Thomas Piketty

Imagine: you are designing a society, but you don't know who you'll be within it - rich or poor, man or woman, gay or straight. What would you want that society to look like?

This is the revolutionary thought experiment proposed by the twentieth century's greatest political philosopher, John Rawls. As economist and philosopher Daniel Chandler argues in this hugely ambitious and exhilarating intervention, it is by rediscovering Rawls that we can find a way out of the escalating crises that are devastating our world today.

Taking Rawls's humane and egalitarian liberalism as his starting point, Chandler builds a careful and ultimately irresistible case for a progressive agenda that would fundamentally reshape our societies for the better. He shows how we can protect free speech and transcend the culture wars; get money out of politics; and create an economy where everyone has the chance to fulfil their potential, where prosperity is widely shared, and which operates within the limits of our finite planet.

This is a book brimming with hope and possibility - a galvanising alternative to the cynicism that pervades our politics. Free and Equal has the potential not only to transform contemporary debate, but to offer a touchstone for a modern, egalitarian liberalism for many years to come, cementing Rawls's place in political discourse, and firmly establishing Chandler as a vital new voice for our time.

"A vigorous case for adopting the liberal political framework laid out by John Rawls. . . . Chandler is a lucid and elegant writer, and there’s an earnest sense of excitement propelling his argument — a belief that Rawls’s framework for thinking through political issues offers a humane way out of the most intractable disputes." - New York Times Book Review

"An exemplary demonstration of how public reasoning can be done . . . Chandler’s virtue is his blend of philosophy with evidence-based policy. This is a kind of erudite public intellectualism reminiscent of Amartya Sen, and is a welcome respite from the knee-jerk moralism that dominates the op-ed pages and social media" - New Statesman

"Powerfully argued and lucidly written" - Financial Times

"Inspiring ... A stirring call for egalitarian liberalism based on the ideas of John Rawls" - Guardian

"A breath of fresh air... Engaging, clear and persuasive" - Literary Review

"A shining example of how a lucid writer can develop practical proposals to improve society" - Irish Times

"Attractively written and strongly argued ... This is a welcome reminder of what progressive politics should be" - Times Literary Supplement

"Genuinely original . . . An inspiring catalogue of fresh ideas each with a clear and jargon-free philosophical underpinning drawn from Rawls’ work" - Byline Times

"Brilliant . . . there’s no doubt that Chandler is answering a yearning for something . . . a crisp exposition of Rawl’s principles . . . Skipping freely between gritty evidence and high theory, and grappling impressively and impatiently with practical obstacles to change . . . Chandler is reminiscent of his one-time teacher, Amartya Sen" - Prospect

"A refreshing and useful contribution to envisioning a better world . . . Free and Equal provides a model for what politically engaged philosophy should look like" - Jacobin

"

A really vibrant piece of work, which provides social democrats with something there's been precious little of for a long time: inspiration

"Sparkles with insight and intelligence . . . strikingly innovative" - The Critic

"If liberal democracy is to survive as a form of government, it needs a complete rethink. So argues Chandler in this rousing homage to the political philosopher John Rawls" - The New York Times

"Welcomely ambitious ... Richly erudite and thoughtful ... A sanely conventional vision of a state reformed in the direction of ever greater fairness and equity, one able to curb the excesses of capitalism and to accommodate the demands of diversity" - The New Yorker

"In Free and Equal he seeks to reinvent liberalism as a relevant, radical doctrine . . . he mixes boldness and pragmatism" - Financial Times

"A galvanising vision for society that uses the revolutionary ideas of American thinker John Rawls as its starting point" - Guardian, 2023 in Books

"Chandler traverses a range of political, economic and social issues, suggesting one reform or innovation after another. The manner in which he does this is impressive; he writes with great clarity" - Spectator

"The thinker of the moment . . . Free and Equal offers a manifesto for change shaped by the ideal of a fair society. Clearly expressed and strongly argued" - Australian Book Review

"Timely and optimistic . . . a bold attempt to resuscitate the ideas of John Rawls" - Fabian Review

"An inspiring and achievable vision for a better society . . . that rarest of things: a comprehensive and down to earth blueprint for a “fair” society . . . a book all liberal egalitarians and democratic socialists should read for its wisdom, lucidity and above all visionary realism" - Liberal Currents