Smidt’s book is essential to anyone dealing with Critique of Dialectical Reason in a substantial manner and provides an entry point . . .for those interested in a critical and well-articulated overview of Sartre’s positions.

Marx and Philosophy Review of Books

Through a series of carefully executed and highly engaging analyses, Austin Hayden Smidt proposes an original perspective on Sartre’s philosophical project. Exploring in detail Sartre’s critique of dialectical reason and the way it allows us to rethink not just key issues in philosophy but also important aspects of political economy in the neoliberal era, he makes a strong case for the relevance of Sartre’s thought in the current moment.

Martijn Konings, Professor of Political Economy and Social Theory, University of Sydney

Sartre, Imagination, and Dialectical Reason is an original and profound contribution to Sartre scholarship and contemporary critical theory. Against conventional readings, Austin Smidt argues meticulously and compellingly that Sartre’s second major philosophical treatise is better than a work of social ontology; it is a work of ‘formal logic,’ a transformative and liberatory logic of social creation. In keeping with Sartre’s lifelong and too often underappreciated fascination with the imaginary, Smidt reaffirms the centrality of imagination for critical theory, both in our efforts to understand the world better than we do, and more importantly, in our efforts to make the world a better place than it is.

Matthew C. Ally, Professor of Philosophy, City University of New York/BMCC

This is an important and elaborate rethinking of Sartre’s all too often neglected Critique of Dialectical Reason. Through a patient and systematic unpacking of this work, set in dialogue with Marx and other critical thinkers, Smidt convincingly demonstrates the power, relevance, and utility that Sartre’s thought continues to hold for us today. Highly recommended!

Nick Srnicek, co-author of Inventing the Future: Postcapitalism and a World Without Work