Traditionally neglected in university courses, economic history has made a comeback in the wake of the financial crisis, and so it’s no surprise we have an interview with former IMF chief economist Simon Johnson on why it matters.
Giving us their top choices of economics books are Emma Rothschild of Harvard, Peter Temin of MIT and the writer and journalist David Lynch. Professor Mark Blyth of Brown University chooses his favourites on how the world’s political economy works, and Michael Lind, author of Land of Promise: an Economic History of the United States, looks at the US. The Nobel prize-winning economist Robert Barro discusses the lessons of the Great Depression and the author Niall Kishtainy talks to us about the history of economic thought, focusing mainly on the post-war period.
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1
Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists
by Luigi Zingales & Raghuram G Rajan -
2
Exit, Voice, and Loyalty
by Albert Hirschman -
3
Antitrust Paradox
by Robert H. Bork -
4
Lectures on Antitrust Economics
by Michael D. Whinston -
5
Radical Markets: Uprooting Capitalism and Democracy for a Just Society
by E. Glen Weyl & Eric A. Posner
The best books on Market Competition, recommended by Jason Furman
The best books on Market Competition, recommended by Jason Furman
Despite the large number of brands, most Americans buy their beer from just two companies. Consumer choice in the new digital economy is hardly better. Economist Jason Furman, chair of the Council of Economic Advisers under Barack Obama and now a professor at Harvard, recommends books to better understand market competition.
Peter Temin on An Economic Historian’s Favourite Books
Distinguished economic historian, Peter Temin, talks us through some of his favourite books. His own latest book, The Vanishing Middle Class, charts America's regression towards a pre-industrial society: with many poor, a few rich, and not much in between.
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1
The World in the Model: How Economists Work and Think
by Mary Morgan -
2
Red Plenty
by Francis Spufford -
3
Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste: How Neoliberalism Survived the Financial Meltdown
by Philip Mirowski -
4
Economics and Utopia: Why the Learning Economy is Not the End of History
by Geoffrey Hodgson -
5
Rationalizing Capitalist Democracy: The Cold War Origins of Rational Choice Liberalism
by S M Amadae
The best books on The History of Economic Thought, recommended by Niall Kishtainy
The best books on The History of Economic Thought, recommended by Niall Kishtainy
Many people feel dissatisfied with aspects of neoliberalism, but fewer know what it is or where it came from. Economic historian Niall Kishtainy recommends some of his favourite books on the history of economic thought, books that use intellectual history to examine issues confronting us in the real world.
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1
A Monetary History of the United States, 1867-1960
by Milton Friedman and Anna Schwartz -
2
Macroeconomic Effects from Government Purchases and Taxes
by Robert Barro -
3
Identifying Government Spending Shocks
by Valerie Ramey -
4
Essays on the Great Depression
by Ben Bernanke -
5
The Great Depression in the United States from a Neoclassical Perspective
by Harold Cole and Lee Ohanian