The Evolution of Money
Reviewer: Bridget Rosewell, Volterra Partners
The sharing economy’s unique customer to company exchange is possible because of the evolution of money. These transactions haven’t always been as fluid as they are today, but they are likely to become even more so in the future. It is therefore critical that we learn to appreciate money’s elastic nature as deeply as do Uber, Airbnb, Kickstarter, and other leading innovators, and that we better comprehend money’s transition from hard currencies to cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, to access their cooperative potential. The Evolution of Money illuminates this fascinating reality, focusing on the tension between currency’s real and abstract properties and advancing a vital theory of money rooted in this dual exchange.
Finding Time: the economics of work‑life conflict
Reviewer: David Lancefield, Global Leader of Economics and Policy, PwC
Employers today are demanding more and more of employees time. And from campaign barbecues to the blogosphere, workers across the United States are raising the same worried question: How can I get ahead at my job while making sure my family doesn t fall behind?Heather Boushey argues that resolving work-life conflicts is as vital for individuals and families as it is essential for realizing the country s productive potential.
The New Case for Gold
Reviewer: Jill Leyland, Formerly Economic Adviser, World Gold Council
In The New Case for Gold, James Rickards explains why gold is one of the safest assets for investors in times of political instability and market volatility, and how every investor should look to add gold to his or her portfolio.
Policy Stability and Economic Growth
Reviewer: Vicky Pryce, Former Joint Head of the Government Economic Service
The End of Alchemy
Money, Banking, and the Future of the Global Economy
Reviewer: Andrew Sentance, Senior Economic Adviser, PwC
Something is wrong with our banking system. We all sense that, but Mervyn King knows it firsthand; his ten years at the helm of the Bank of England, including at the height of the financial crisis, revealed profound truths about the mechanisms of our capitalist society. In The End of Alchemy he offers us an essential work about the history and future of money and banking, the keys to modern finance.
Progress and Confusion
The State of Macroeconomic Policy
Reviewer: Vicky Pryce, Former Joint Head of the Government Economic Service
What will economic policy look like once the global financial crisis is finally over? Will it resume the pre-crisis consensus, or will it be forced to contend with a post-crisis "new normal"? Have we made progress in addressing these issues, or does confusion remain? In April of 2015, the International Monetary Fund gathered leading economists, both academics and policymakers, to address the shape of future macroeconomic policy. This book is the result, with prominent figures – including Ben Bernanke, Lawrence Summers, and Paul Volcker – offering essays that address topics that range from the measurement of systemic risk to foreign exchange intervention.
The Rise and Fall of American Growth
Reviewer: Ian Stewart, Chief Economist, Deloitte
In the century after the Civil War, an economic revolution improved the American standard of living in ways previously unimaginable. Electric lighting, indoor plumbing, home appliances, motor vehicles, air travel, air conditioning, and television transformed households and workplaces. With medical advances, life expectancy between 1870 and 1970 grew from forty-five to seventy-two years. Weaving together a vivid narrative, historical anecdotes, and economic analysis, The Rise and Fall of American Growth provides an in-depth account of this momentous era. But has that era of unprecedented growth come to an end?
Why Minsky Matters
An Introduction to the Work of a Maverick Economist
Reviewer: Ian Harwood, Independent Consultant
Perhaps no economist was more vindicated by the global financial crisis than Hyman P. Minsky (1919-96). Although a handful of economists raised alarms as early as 2000, Minsky's warnings began a half-century earlier, with writings that set out a compelling theory of financial instability. In Why Minsky Matters, L. Randall Wray shows that by understanding Minsky we will not only see the next crisis coming but we might be able to act quickly enough to prevent it.
The power and independence of the Federal Reserve
Reviewer: Bill Allen, Economic Consultant
The independence of the Federal Reserve is considered a cornerstone of its identity, crucial for keeping monetary policy decisions free of electoral politics. But do we really understand what is meant by "Federal Reserve independence"? Using scores of examples from the Fed's rich history, The Power and Independence of the Federal Reserve shows that much common wisdom about the nation's central bank is inaccurate.
Lehman Brothers: A Crisis of Value
Reviewer: Rosemary Connell, Consultant
Using extensive documentary evidence and interviews with former Lehman employees, Oonagh McDonald reveals the decisions that led to Lehman's collapse, investigates why the government refused a bail-out and whether the implications of this refusal were fully understood. In clear and accessible language she demonstrates both the short and long term effects of Lehman's collapse.