Heroes or Villains?
The Blair Government reconsidered
Reviewer: Mario Pisani
Tony Blair was the political colossus in Britain for thirteen years, winning three elections in a row for New Labour, two of them by huge majorities. However, since leaving office he has been disowned by many in his own party, with the term 'Blairite' becoming an insult. The election of Jeremy Corbyn as Labour Party leader in 2015 seemed to be, if not an equal, at least an opposite reaction to Blair's long dominance of the centre and left of British politics.
Financial Models and Society:
Villains or Scapegoats?
Reviewer: Lavan Mahadeva, Research Director, CRU International Ltd
Ekaterina Svetlova analyses the various patterns of the application of models in asset management, risk management and financial engineering to demonstrate that their power is far more fragile than widespread criticism would indicate. This unique and stimulating book furthers our understanding of the influence of financial models on markets and society more broadly.
The Technology Trap:
Capital, labour and power in the age of automation
Reviewer: Rosemary Connell
From the Industrial Revolution to the age of artificial intelligence, The Technology Trap takes a sweeping look at the history of technological progress and how it has radically shifted the distribution of economic and political power among society’s members.
Crashed: how a Decade of Financial Crisis changed the World
Reviewer: Ian Harwood
Crashed is a brilliantly original and assured analysis of what happened and how we were rescued from something even worse - but at a price which continues to undermine democracy across Europe and the United States.
People, Power and Profits:
Progressive Capitalism for an age of Discontent
Reviewer: Rosemary Connell
From Nobel Prize-winning economist and bestselling author Joseph Stiglitz, this account of the dangers of free market fundamentalism reveals what has gone so wrong, but also shows us a way out.
Inequalities in the UK:
New Discourses, Evolutions and Actions
Reviewer: Kevin Gardiner, member, Cardiff Capital Region City Deal Growth Partnership
The Bank of England and the Government Debt:
Operations in the Gilt‑Edged Market, 1928‑1972
Reviewer: John Shepperd, previously Economist, Mullens & Co
Drawing heavily on archival research, William A. Allen sheds light on little-known aspects of central-banking and monetary policy.
Currency, Credit and Crisis:
Central Banking in Ireland and Europe
Reviewer: William A Allen, NIESR
Drawing on his experiences as Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland and in research and policy work at the World Bank, Patrick Honohan offers a detailed analytical narrative of the origins of the crisis and of policy makers' conduct during its most fraught moments.
Are Chief Executives Overpaid?
Reviewer: Dame Kate Barker, Chairman, British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme
In this hard-hitting book, Deborah Hargreaves explains why pay for the top 0.1% has sky-rocketed in the past 20 years.
The Art of Statistics:
Learning from Data
Reviewer: Bridget Rosewell, Volterra Partners
In The Art of Statistics, David Spiegelhalter guides the reader through the essential principles we need in order to derive knowledge from data.
