Introductory book suggestions?

CIS · February 18, 2016, 08:31:28 PM

Perhaps this doesn't belong in Serious but I was wondering if any of you had suggestions for good introductory books on the subjects of microeconomics and economic history.

More Than Mortal · February 18, 2016, 09:27:15 PM

Coming right up.

More Than Mortal · February 18, 2016, 09:35:06 PM

In terms of economic history, the book I'd recommend starting with is Deaton's The Great Escape: Health, Wealth and the Origins of Inequality. It's a nice introduction to how economic development has played out over the course of human history. Guns, Germs and Steel, while not explicitly a book about economics, is a must. Acemoglu's Why Nations Fail is also worth reading.

If you want to know more about U.S. economic history--specifically regarding business cycles--then check out Milton Friedman and Anna Schwartz's A Monetary History of the United States. I also have some papers on specific periods of U.S. history, if you're interested just let me know and I'll post a bunch.

EDIT: Niall Ferguson's The Ascent of Money is a very good look at the history of the financial system, and one of its main selling points is that Ferguson managed to win a $98,000 bet with a hedge fund manager by predicting in early 2007 that there would be a recession within five years thanks to the research he did for the book. His other book, Civilization, is also one I like but it's less well-accepted academically.

In terms of micro you're probably best off just picking up a textbook and working your way through. Mankiw's is the go-to. I have a lot of papers on the microeconomic role of government--things like pensions, healthcare, infrastructure, regulation, etc. If you're interested let me know.

CIS · February 18, 2016, 10:01:40 PM

Quote from: Meta Cognition on February 18, 2016, 09:35:06 PM

In terms of economic history, the book I'd recommend starting with is Deaton's The Great Escape: Health, Wealth and the Origins of Inequality. It's a nice introduction to how economic development has played out over the course of human history. Guns, Germs and Steel, while not explicitly a book about economics, is a must. Acemoglu's Why Nations Fail is also worth reading.

If you want to know more about U.S. economic history--specifically regarding business cycles--then check out Milton Friedman and Anna Schwartz's A Monetary History of the United States. I also have some papers on specific periods of U.S. history, if you're interested just let me know and I'll post a bunch.

EDIT: Niall Ferguson's The Ascent of Money is a very good look at the history of the financial system, and one of its main selling points is that Ferguson managed to win a $98,000 bet with a hedge fund manager by predicting in early 2007 that there would be a recession within five years because of the research he did for the book. His other book, Civilization, is also one I like but it's less well-accepted academically.

In terms of micro you're probably best off just picking up a textbook and working your way through. Mankiw's is the go-to. I have a lot of papers on the microeconomic role of government--things like pensions, healthca

I'll definitely check out Deaton's work and especially Friedman's since I'm already somewhat aware of who he is. Also, I'd love to read some of the papers you have on US economic history. Do you know of some good guides that can introduce a laymen to the language of economics? I figure I should have a working knowledge of this subject since it pertains to everyday life.

More Than Mortal · February 18, 2016, 10:19:34 PM

Quote from: CIS on February 18, 2016, 10:01:40 PM

I'd love to read some of the papers you have on US economic history.

The four I'd recommend for U.S. history are:

- Davis, "An Annual Index of US Industrial Production, 1790-1915", 2004.
- Romer, "The Nation in Depression", 1993.
- DeLong, "America's Only Peacetime Inflation: the 1970s", 1997.
- Davis and Kahn, "Interpreting the Great Moderation", 2008.

Reading academic papers can be a massive turn-off for people new to the subject. I still grumble at the thought of having to read through one, so my main advice would be to approach it slowly and allocate at least a few days for each one to churn through it properly. Even if you don't really manage to translate the jargon or pick up on the mathematics, you should still be able to glean the substantive facts.

I'd also recommend Alan Greenspan's paper on the 2008 financial crisis, although that's not really 'history' it will almost certainly be on a level with the Great Depression in terms of how much it will be studied in the future.

Quote

Do you know of some good guides that can introduce a laymen to the language of economics?

Best bet there really is an introductory textbook. Mankiw's is more about macro than micro though, so shop around. If you read specific terms that keep cropping up in books and papers that you can't really figure out, chances are a site like Investopedia will have a good definition of it.

Mad Max · February 18, 2016, 10:28:30 PM

I don't want this to come off the wrong way, but...

...are there any books on economics that aren't boring as fuck? My only exposure to economic literature were my college textbooks, which weren't exactly overflowing with literary style.

More Than Mortal · February 18, 2016, 10:57:32 PM

Quote from: Mad Max on February 18, 2016, 10:28:30 PM

...are there any books on economics that aren't boring as fuck?

No. . .

In all seriousness, it depends on where your interests lie. At least with books aimed at more of a layman audience, more often than not they will be framed in a way which is more political or historical than explicitly economic. Popular/layman books which are explicitly about econ (like Greg Ip's Little Book of Economics) tend to be even drier than academic papers, at least in my own experience.

challengerX · February 19, 2016, 02:00:54 AM

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