The Kingdom of Man: Genesis and Failure of the Modern Project by Remi Brague

 Excellent analysis of the philosophical and social consequences of the Enlightenment

An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding by David Hume

 A philosophical classic and essential Enlightenment reading.

The Enlightenment - The Rise of Modern Paganism by Peter Gay

Volume One of Peter Gay's history of the Enlightenment and it is excellent. Gay clearly values the contributions of the Enlightenment but can also see its flaws, as well as its debt to things it ostensibly despises (like Christianity).

Re-read of An Intellectual History of Liberalism by Pierre Manent

This book, along with Manent's The City of Man, is indispensable for understanding what it means to be modern. And we are all inevitably modern.

The Enlightenment - Invention of the Modern Self by Leo Damrosch

This is a series of lectures by Prof. Damrosch and produced by the Great Courses. The theme is the development of the "modern self" during the Enlightenment, and touches on Boswell, Rousseau, Hume and others. I listened to this while doing my long runs. It's an excellent series and understanding the Enlightenment is critical to understanding ourselves, as we are all children of the Enlightenment whether we know it or not.

Re-read of The City of Man by Pierre Manent

This is one of my favorite "companion" books and is the most thorough and penetrating analysis of modern thought that I have read. It's always worth re-reading every year or two.

Why Grow Up? Subversive Thoughts for an Infantile Age by Susan Neiman

Susan Neiman was a philosophy professor at Yale and now lives in Berlin. This book wasn't quite what I thought it would be and turned out to be a vigorous defense of the Enlightenment, invoking Kant, Rousseau and their pals. Neiman tells us that there are forces conspiring to keep us infantile - principally government and corporations - because an infantile population is easier to manipulate and control. The answer is to embrace the Enlightenment challenge to think for yourself.

While I don't agree with Neiman's assessment of the Enlightenment, I always appreciate a sincere, principle, and straightforward defense of a philosophical position. And Neiman is a clear and excellent writer.

Making Man in Reason's Image: The Enlightenment and the Birth of Modern Humanity

A series of lectures from the Teaching Company that I listened to while running. Good overview of the Enlightenment. By James Schmidt

The Enlightenment and Why It Still Matters by Anthony Pagden

A history and defense of the Enlightenment, well-written and fascination, although I ultimately disagree with Pagden's interpretation of the Enlightenment.

The Heavenly City of the Eighteenth Century Philosophers by Carl Becker

One of the joys of browsing used bookstores is stumbling over the occasional treasure. This book was originally published in 1932 and the author has a wonderful style.