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Book reviews

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Mission Economy

A Moonshot Guide to Changing Capitalism

Reviewer: Bridget Rosewell

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, capitalism was stuck. It had no answers to a host of problems, including disease, inequality, the digital divide and, perhaps most blatantly, the environmental crisis. Taking her inspiration from the 'moonshot' programmes which successfully co-ordinated public and private sectors on a massive scale, Mariana Mazzucato calls for the same level of boldness and experimentation to be applied to the biggest problems of our time.

1 comment

Central banking before 1800

Reviewer: William A Allen

Central Banking Before 1800 rehabilitates pre-1800 central banking, including the role of numerous other institutions, on the European continent. It argues that issuing central bank money is a natural monopoly, and therefore central banks were always based on public charters regulating them and giving them a unique role in a sovereign territorial entity.

The Classical School:

The Turbulent Birth of Economics in Twenty Extraordinary Lives

Reviewer: Rosemary Connell

This book covers the works of twenty economic thinkers spanning about three centuries (1600-1900). Few of us, though, have read their works. Fewer still realise that the economies that many of them were analysing were quite unlike our modern one, or the extent to which they were indebted to one another. So join the Economist's Callum Williams to join the dots.

Austerity:

When It Works And When It Doesn’t

Reviewer: James Smith, Resolution Foundation

In this masterful book, three of today's leading policy experts cut through the political noise to demonstrate that there is not one type of austerity but many. Looking at thousands of fiscal measures adopted by sixteen advanced economies since the late 1970s, Austerity assesses the relative effectiveness of tax increases and spending cuts at reducing debt.

Understanding Affordability:

The Economics of Housing Markets

Reviewer: Dame Kate Barker, British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme

Written by two distinguished housing economists, this ambitious book tackles one of the most important socio-economic issues facing households today. Drawing from theoretical and empirical frameworks, the authors challenge conventional wisdoms in housing economics and policy and offer innovative recommendations to improve housing affordability.

Greed is Dead:

Politics after Individualism

Reviewer: Bridget Rosewell, Volterra Partners

Collier and Kay show how a reaffirmation of the values of mutuality could refresh and restore politics, business and the environments in which people live. Politics could reverse the moves to extremism and tribalism; businesses could replace the greed that has degraded corporate culture; the communities and decaying places that are home to many could overcome despondency and again be prosperous and purposeful.

How to Make the World Add Up

Ten Rules for Thinking Differently About Numbers

Reviewer: Mario Pisani, HM Treasury

In How to Make the World Add Up, Tim Harford draws on his experience as both an economist and presenter of the BBC's radio show 'More or Less'. He takes us deep into the world of disinformation and obfuscation, bad research and misplaced motivation to find those priceless jewels of data and analysis that make communicating with numbers worthwhile.

China:

The Bubble That Never Pops

Reviewer: Andrew Peaple

Tom Orlik, a veteran of more than a decade on the ground in Beijing and Shanghai, turns the spotlight on China's fragile fundamentals, and resources for resilience. Drawing on discussions with the Communist cadres planning China's rise, the bankers providing the financing, and the laborers sweating the construction sites, Orlik pieces together a unique perspective on China's past, present, and possible futures.

Quantitative Easing:

The Great Central Bank Experiment

Reviewer: Dean Turner

This book offers a thorough and perspicacious analysis of QE, which has become a recovery method of last resort. Whilst it was successful in averting another Great Depression and stimulating growth, it remains controversial and continues to promote widespread debate in economics, financial, and political-economy circles. This book is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand central banking in the national economy.

Dynamism:

The Values That Drive Innovation, Job Satisfaction, and Economic Growth

Reviewer: Kevin Gardiner, Rothschild & Co/Cardiff Capital Region Economic Growth Partnership

Phelps, Raicho Bojilov, Hian Teck Hoon, and Gylfi Zoega find evidence that differences in nations’ values matter—and quite a lot. It is no accident that the most innovative countries in the West were rich in values fueling dynamism. Nor is it an accident that economic dynamism in the United States, Britain, and France has suffered as state-centered and communitarian values have moved to the fore.

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Articles reflect the authors’ views which are not necessarily shared by the Society or the Editors. The Editors welcome comments, ideas and articles on a wide range of applied economics topics and related issues of more general interest.

For Books and Reviews contact:
Ian Harwood
Book Reviews Editor, The Society of Professional Economists
harwoodfive@btinternet.com

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