There's a lot of good, thoughtful philanthropy content around right now...

... so to redress the balance, and to celebrate the #GBBO final this evening, here's an updated thread of philanthropy critiques as fancy cakes

First up- I'm sure Robert Arnove would be totally down with this.

Second is @DavidCallahanIP's "The Givers".

Uncanny.

Then one of my favourite volumes- Faber & McCarthy on "Foundations for Social Change"

Then we have Karen Ferguson's "Top Down"- a searing look at the Ford Foundation's tangled historical relationship with the civil rights movement and Black Power:

Next is a big hitter- @AnandWrites "Winners Take All".

Tasty book, tasty cake.

Then this edited volume from H Peter Karoff.

Icing's a bit garish for my liking, but the book is good.

Then this great volume from @EricaKohl

(Perhaps a bit of a stretch here, but best viewed in the overall contet of the thread)

Next, there may be no such thing as a free gift, but there is such a thing as a great cake- it's @LinseyMcgoey's critique of the Gates Foundation

Then this sumptuous reimagining of @robreich's "Just Giving:

A bold cake avatar for @VillanuevaEdgar's "Decolonizing Wealth"

Is Pontefract Cake a cake?

Is it even edible?

Who knows. What is for sure is that Ben Whitaker's book "The Foundations" is a must-read.

Onto some new additions now.

First up, it's @tompkinsstange's "Policy Patrons":

Then we have @raymadoff's volume looking at the undue influence of ded donors:

Then it's Jane Mayer's seminal look at the influence of "Dark Money"

Daniel Drezner's book on the rise of philanthropically-funded "thought leadership":

And- last but not least - Mark Dowie's investigative look at the inner workings of a number of big US foundations

Right. Onto the real cakes.

And let's never speak of this again.

Though I should say that I endorse all of the books on this thread, and if you are interested in philanthropy you should go and seek out copies from your nearest independent bookshop or join me surfing the online 2nd hand markets.