Books on Economics?

WickedLou9 · 05-05-2008, 03:45 PM

So it's getting closer and closer to Beach season and I am looking for some light reading on Economics to take with me to the shore. OK I don't really mean light reading. I need some good books for the person without an academic background in economics. So far I think I want Friedman's "Free to Choose" and also Charles Wheelan's "Naked Economics". I might want to throw in some Jeremey Siegel as well but perhaps I won't have time to get to that. That's more finance related anyway.

Any ideas?

Ardentfrost · 05-05-2008, 04:49 PM

The Law by Bastiatt (it's free online, you can print it out.. or it's cheap on amazon).

Economics in One Easy Lesson by Henry Hazlitt. Also an inexpensive one but an awesome one.

WickedLou9 · 05-05-2008, 04:54 PM

Originally Posted by Ardentfrost

The Law by Bastiatt (it's free online, you can print it out.. or it's cheap on amazon).

Economics in One Easy Lesson by Henry Hazlitt. Also an inexpensive one but an awesome one.

How about stuff about Keynes?
like: "The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money "
is that outdated or is it still important?

WickedLou9 · 05-05-2008, 04:57 PM

God I keep getting shit about the Ron Paul revolution whenever I search for anything on Amazon.
God damn ron paul sackrdiers screwing up the searching logic everywhere.

Fed Up · 05-05-2008, 07:03 PM

Originally Posted by Ardentfrost

Economics in One Easy Lesson by Henry Hazlitt. Also an inexpensive one but an awesome one.

Ditto that...just get the latest version. I'm pretty sure it's 1996. Easy read. Less than 200 pages.

Fed Up

Fed Up · 05-05-2008, 07:14 PM

"Economics In One Lesson" is free here:

Economics in One Lesson

Fed Up

Ardentfrost · 05-05-2008, 10:21 PM

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

How about stuff about Keynes?
like: "The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money "
is that outdated or is it still important?

Sure, get that or Capital by Marx if you can get through them. They're both full of rubbish that has long been shown as such. That's the reason kids should read The Communist Manifesto, not to indoctrinate, but to make them be critical of a political philosophy based around the hive mind (which we, as humans, are incapable of as a whole)

A_C_E · 05-06-2008, 11:28 PM

If you're looking for something enjoyable, check out Freakonomics by Steven Levitt if you haven't already. It's a great read; more about data mining and popular culture and mathematical economics, but it's really fun.

Kapital by Marx is a good read with good analysis, as are his 1844 Paris Manuscripts. Utilitarianism by Mill, The Wealth of Nations by Smith, Keynes' work already mentioned, and Economic Freedom and Representative Government by Hayek are good reads if you're interested in tracing the development of Macroeconomic theory.

thewise1 · 05-07-2008, 01:03 PM

I read a lot of Rothbard growing up, but I'm guessing you're not open to that

Phantom · 05-09-2008, 08:22 AM

"Eat the Rich" by PJ O'Rourke. Besides being a great primer on economics the book is hilarious. This is much more on the lighter side - there are no equations, statistics etc., just anecdotes of various economies analyzed [humorously] in the framework of economic thought.

Amazon.com: Eat the Rich: A Treatise on Economics (O'Rourke, P. J.): P. J. O'Rourke: Books

WickedLou9 · 05-09-2008, 09:32 AM

I appreaciate all the suggestions. I don't think I will be able to read all of them this summer, but I'll do my best