Francis Spufford
Francis Spufford is Professor of Creative Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London. He is the author of a number of books, including Red Plenty, about Russia in the 1950s and 1960s, and the economists who tried to make good on Khrushchev’s impossible promise that Soviet citizens would shortly be richer than Americans.
Books by Francis Spufford
Red Plenty
by Francis Spufford
Red Plenty is, yes, a historical novel about economics. It’s not even about economics that works: it’s about the Soviet Union’s attempt at a sophisticated planned economy, based on math, which we all now know failed in the end. But in the 50s and 60s, when this novel is set, nobody knew it would turn out that way. It’s a brilliant, quirky book which, according to political scientist Henry Farrell in his interview on the politics of information,” has acquired kind of a cult following among social scientists.”
Interviews with Francis Spufford
The best books on 20th Century Russia, recommended by Francis Spufford
Reading about Russia’s 20th century is like finding another vision of how the world might have been. Francis Spufford, author of Red Plenty, recommends books that tell the story of Russia in the last century — from Soviet science fiction set in capitalist wastelands to Khrushchev as raconteur.
Interviews where books by Francis Spufford were recommended
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1
Red Plenty
by Francis Spufford -
2
The Market System: What It Is, How It Works, and What To Make of It
by Charles Lindblom -
3
The Sciences of the Artificial
by Herbert A. Simon -
4
Radical Markets: Uprooting Capitalism and Democracy for a Just Society
by E. Glen Weyl & Eric A. Posner -
5
Uncanny Valley: A Memoir
by Anna Wiener
The Best Books on the Politics of Information, recommended by Henry Farrell
The Best Books on the Politics of Information, recommended by Henry Farrell
Our political systems evolved in an era when information was much harder to come by. What challenges does our current reality of information overload pose for democracy? How do we even start thinking about these questions? Political scientist Henry Farrell proposes key books for building a curriculum on ‘the politics of information,’ starting with a beautifully written novel.
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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.
