Courses tend to be more balanced. A professor teaching a basic course will try to explain most of the major viewpoints. A popular book written by the same professor might be completely one-sided as they try to make the strongest case for their views. Polemical works can be useful but they can be misleading if you mistake a contentious issue for an open-and-shut case.

I also just like watching courses. Reading is good, but so are listening & watching. If you do all three, you’ll probably learn more than if you just stick to text.

Here are my picks for the best free online courses to watch.