Suggested Summer Reading for Economics Students

Suggested Summer Reading for Economics Students

Summer Reading Suggestions For Economics Students Missouri State University, Department of Economics Remember, these are just suggestions. If you find something that looks interesting, read it! You can find light & enjoyable reading that three books of the Foundation series by involves economics. Here are a few Isaac Asimov: Foundation, Foundation & outstanding examples: Empire, and Second Foundation. Despite his formal training in astronomy, Asimov • Robert Heilbroner, The Worldly Philosophers frequently bases his books on social • Todd G. Buchholz, New Ideas from Dead science, and economic, perspectives. Economists (Similar to Heilbroner but more up-to- date; it has received very favorable comments from Staying with the science fiction theme, many ECO 155 students.) consider these classics: • Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner, • Robert Heinlein’s The Moon is a Harsh Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Mistress (Here you find the origin of Explores the Hidden Side of Everything TANSTAAFL—resource issues are really important on the moon!) • William Breit & Barry Hirsch, Lives of the Laureates, Eighteen Nobel Economists • H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine (a great commentary on the evolutionary • Jonathan Wight, Saving Adam Smith: A outcome of the Industrial Revolution) Tale of Wealth, Transformation, and Virtue • Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (Classic sci- fi, classic take on the dark side of • Marshall Jevons, The Fatal Equilibrium industrialization, Shelley was also the • Marshall Jevons, Murder at the Margin daughter of the optimistic pre-economist Wm. Godwin who helped inspire • Murray Wolfson & Vincent Buranelli, In Malthus) the Long Run We Are All Dead • Edward Bellamy’s Looking Backward (talk • William Greider (former Rolling Stone about economic efficiency, here is a look writer), Secrets of the Temple: How the from a much different perspective) Federal Reserve Runs the Country • Since we are on the subject of economic • E. F. Schumacher, Small is Beautiful: efficiency, take a look at Upton Sinclair’s Economics as if People Mattered The Jungle. While not science fiction, it’s • Vastly different from the movie, The a classic Bourne Identity is a great read. In the These three classics were all published book, the girl who helps Bourne, Marie, in the same year; yet represent vastly is a PhD economist from the Bank of different perspectives on economics. Canada. Needless to say, if it was not Reading all three is a good way to open for her, there would not have been a up the mind to different perspectives. sequel! • F. A. Hayek, The Road to Serfdom • If you think economic forecasting and econometrics are a great way to divine • Karl Polanyi, The Great Transformation the future (or if you have ever heard of • C. E. Ayres, The Theory of Economic cliometrics), you ought to read the first Progress World. The book is a look at the harmful effects of globalization and market Oldies but goodies—these provide a power. great background to the discipline: • John Kenneth Galbraith’s Affluent Society • Adam Smith, An Inquiry into the Nature is a classic as relevant today as when it and Causes of the Wealth of Nations was written. (You might consider • David Ricardo, The Principles of Political anything by JKG, one of the few Economy and Taxation economists who is truly a great writer.) Galbraith is not a mainstream, orthodox • Alfred Marshall, Principles of Economics economist, but he always has something • Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels, The to say, and his insights are often very Communist Manifesto profound. He provides a worthwhile • J. M. Keynes, The General Theory of critique of markets and market power. Employment, Interest, and Money • To balance Galbraith, you might pick up • John Stuart Mill, Autobiography Milton Friedman’s Free to Choose. This book has been foundational for much of • Thorstein Veblen, The Theory of the Leisure the change in how government Class approaches economic policy and how the business world now sees itself. Have a desire to see economics beyond the textbook, in the real world? Try these: Behavioural Economics • C. Wright Mills, The Power Elite • Dan Ariely, Predictably Irrational: The • Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed: Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions On (Not) Getting By in America • George Akerlof and Robert Shiller, • Hernando deSoto, The Mystery of Capital Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives the Economy, and Why It Matters • Paul Krugman, The Great Unravelling for Global Capitalism Robert Wright, Nonzero: The Logic of • • Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Human Destiny (Especially the first 2/3 Slow of the book is a cool mix of game theory and economic anthropology.) • Richard H. Thaler and Cass Sunstein, Nudge: Imporving Decisions About • Francis Fukuyama, The End of History Health, Wealth, and Happiness and the Last Man and his newer The Origins of Political Order: From • Barry Schwartz, The Paradox of Choice: Prehuman Times to the French Why More is Less Revolution • Robert J Shiller, Irrational Exuberance • Nassim Taleb, Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets (A necessary check for Want a good Biography? those enamoured by econometrics) • Consider Sylvia Nasar’s A Beautiful Mind. Who • Consider these two New York Times best would have ever thought that the life of an sellers by Thomas Friedman: The Lexus economist would be made into a movie,with and the Olive Tree, and The World is Russell Crowe no less? Flat; both address globalization. • Robert Skidelsky, John Maynard Keynes: 1883- • If you read one of Friedman’s books, you 1946. An abridged version of the three- might consider also reading David volume biography of the most influential Korten’s When Corporations Rule the economist of last century. .

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