This short book (good for popping in the bathroom hehe) is Kapuściński at his most stripped-back and unsettling.

Written as a reflection on propaganda, power, and the language of persuasion, An Advertisement for Toothpaste looks at how states, media, and institutions sell ideas the same way they sell products, through repetition, simplification, and emotional pressure.

A split from his reportage to more of an essay to show his ethics, it's sharp, ironic, and uncomfortable. It reads now like a warning label for contemporary politics and media culture.