To understand what economics has got right-and to avoid repeating its mistakes-read this book.'-Simon Johnson, Professor at MIT Sloan and author of 13 Bankers'A deft, highly readable history of economics, full of humanity. Economics can help guide policy in a sensible direction but the misuse of economics has also left individuals, companies, and countries in ruin. easily digestible bites, Kishtainy leads readers through a history of how people have thought about and tried to understand how economic systems work.'-Choice'Those who refuse to learn from the past are doomed to repeat it.

A whistle-stop introduction to the great works and thinkers of each age, this is a clear and accessible primer.'-Laura Garmeson, Financial Times'A uniquely enjoyable volume that succeeds in illuminating the economic ideas and forces that shape our world.'-800-CEO-READ'A pleasurable and easy way to become familiar with important economic ideas such as comparative advantage, unemployment, aggregate demand, inflation, and income inequality.'-Foreign Affairs'In 40 short. Enter Niall Kishtainy, who in A Little History of Economics has condensed 2000 years of thought down to 250 highly readable pages. 'Economic theories count among the principal ideas that defined the modern world, yet the origins of the market forces that govern our lives can all too often seem distant and opaque. The result is a uniquely enjoyable volume that succeeds in illuminating the economic ideas and forces that shape our world. He recounts the contributions of key thinkers including Adam Smith, Ricardo, Marx, Keynes, and others, while examining topics ranging from the invention of money and the rise of agrarianism to the Great Depression, entrepreneurship, environmental destruction, inequality, and behavioral economics. This clear, accessible, and even humorous book is ideal for young readers new to economics and to all readers who seek a better understanding of the full sweep of economic history and ideas.Įconomic historian Niall Kishtainy organizes short, chronological chapters that center on big ideas and events. What causes poverty? Are economic crises inevitable under capitalism? Is government intervention in an economy a helpful approach or a disastrous idea? The answers to such basic economic questions matter to everyone yet the unfamiliar jargon and math of economics can seem daunting.

A lively, inviting account of the history of economics, told through events from ancient to modern times and the ideas of great thinkers in the field

The little history of economics