Good Economic Books to Purchase

**Ice** · 03-01-2007, 07:24

Hey,

I'm putting this thread here because it seems to be the more scholarly part of the .org

I would like to some suggestions on which economic books I should read. I'm try to compile a list for this summer because I'm going to have a lot time to read. Anything that gives me a good look into how economics works would be appreciated. Please, though, no garbage like Marx, Engels... Etc.

So far I have the Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith on my list.

**Lorenzo_H** · 03-01-2007, 08:57

"The Penguin Dictionary of Economics" by Graham Bannock, R.E. Baxter and Evan Davis is a handy little book.

Find it here on Amazon UK.

**econ21** · 03-01-2007, 10:47

It depends what kind of thing you are after - original works, like Smith; textbook academic stuff; or "popular" economics books aimed at the non-specialist? Also, have you ever studied economics and what's your maths like (can you differentiate? read a regression equation?).

All that said, "Freakonomics" - is currently a best seller and provides nice examples of using economics to understand human behaviour (e.g. the fall in crime in the US).

My recommendations are focussed on economics as applied to developing countries, as I think the issue of how a poor country can transform itself from being dirt poor to being a rich industrialised state, as say South Korea has done, is the most fascinating practical question in economics.

"Global crises, global solutions" edited by Lomberg is a good example of top economists analysing the cost-benefit ratio of proposals to solve big problems like AIDS, global warming etc. Lomberg got a lot of flak as the "sceptical environmentalist" who challenged the cost-effectiveness of proposals to combat global warming etc, but this work should not be confused with that.There's a lighter version called "How to spend $50bn dollars to save the world" or something. You can find a lot (most) of the content online:
http://www.copenhagenconsensus.com/Default.aspx?ID=788

"The White Man's Burden" by Bill Easterly and "The End of Poverty" by Jeffrey Sachs are nicely juxtaposed contemporary reflections on aid and policy reform to fight global poverty, by two economists with a lot of practical experience and academic expertise. Easterly is a pessimist sceptic; Sachs a wide-eyed optimist.

If you want readable textbooks, I found "Development Economics" by Debrai Ray a wonderfully written introductory treatment of the economics of developing countries, focussing on the "micro" aspects of markets and individual behaviour. "Introduction to Economic Growth" by Charles Jones has similar literary virtues, but looks at things from a more "macro" perspective, focussing on investment and GDP growth. If you are thinking of studying economics formally in a school, these two texts are good tasters of what that experience might be like at its best.

**Adrian II** · 03-01-2007, 14:23

Hi Ice,

a real eye-opener is Daniel Cohen's Globalisation and Its Enemies, a brilliant analysis of what we call 'globalisation'. Cohen debunks a lot of received wisdom and highlights many underlying trends and facts. If you don't believe me, read some of the reviews as quoted by Amazon.com:

"Globalization and Its Enemies is one of the most original and incisive inquiries into the subject that I have seen. No one who reads and understands it can come away believing that the current phase of this complex and uneven process is leading to the peaceful universal market of business utopians, or accept the simple narrative of anti-capitalist movements in which underdevelopment is a consequence of the wealth of advanced countries. There is more wisdom in Cohen's short book than in dozens of weightier tomes..."
-- John Gray, The New York Review of Books

"Daniel Cohen's breathtaking tour of globalization across the centuries is supremely entertaining and provocative. He punctures cherished myths and offers cool common sense and wisdom in the midst of hysterical debates. A must read!"
--William Easterly, Professor of Economics, New York University, and author of The Elusive Quest for Growth and The White Man's Burden

If you have read John Gray, you will know that here is an original (Conservative) thinker who recognizes another one. And if you haven't, I would recommend you add his False Dawn to your list.

**Ice** · 03-01-2007, 22:38

Thanks guys. I'll make sure to look some of these up.

I've taken university intro microecon and am in the process of completing intro macro. I have a basic understanding of the market/economics, but am a very good learner when it comes to economics.

**Barbarossa1221** · 03-02-2007, 01:20

"Das Kapital" By Karl Marx, a classic explanation of economics with of course his Marxist twist it. If you have any interest in Socialist Economics or the ideas of Labour-Power then this is a book for you.
If your going to read "Wealth of Nations" and all that Laissez Faire nonsense read "Das Kapital" so you get a good balance.

**MilesGregarius** · 03-02-2007, 05:24

Originally Posted by Barbarossa1221

"Das Kapital" By Karl Marx, a classic explanation of economics with of course his Marxist twist it. If you have any interest in Socialist Economics or the ideas of Labour-Power then this is a book for you.
If your going to read "Wealth of Nations" and all that Laissez Faire nonsense read "Das Kapital" so you get a good balance.

Marx is disparaged because his prescriptions and predictions haven't borne out, but his analysis is often quite insightful. And as Barbarossa1221 says, Marx, and Marxist theorists in general, provide a good balance to the classical and neo-liberal strains of economics that currently hold sway.

If your looking for a good basic economic history, try The Growth of the International Economy, 1820-2000 by A.G. Kenwood and A.L. Lougheed. For a good history of exhange rate mechanisms Globalizing Capital by Barry Eichengreen is solid. Too many who claim to understand economics are overly fond of spouting theory, but not many seem to understand what has actually transpired.