The most recommended books about economists

Who picked these books? Meet our 22 experts.

22 authors created a book list connected to economists, and here are their favorite economist books.
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Book cover of John Kenneth Galbraith: His Life, His Politics, His Economics

Roger E. Backhouse Author Of Founder of Modern Economics: Paul A. Samuelson: Volume 1: Becoming Samuelson, 1915-1948

From my list on 20th century economists.

Why am I passionate about this?

Roger E. Backhouse has been a Professor of Economics and the University of Birmingham (in the UK) for many years, specializing in the history of economic ideas, and has written several books on contemporary economics and where the ideas came from. Knowing that many people lose interest when economics gets technical, he has picked biographies of modern economists who have led interesting lives as well as contributing to the development of their discipline, defining “modern” economists as ones who were active during his own lifetime, a criterion that excludes John Maynard Keynes, on whom several outstanding biographies have been written.

Roger's book list on 20th century economists

Roger E. Backhouse Why did Roger love this book?

In the 1950s and 1960s, J. K. Galbraith was probably America’s most famous economist. A Canadian, whose career began as an agricultural economist, Galbraith achieved notoriety in the United States as Director of the wartime Office of Price Administration, until he was forced to resign. He was one of the economists responsible for spreading Keynesian ideas in America, and became active in the Democratic Party, and a close friend and adviser to President John F. Kennedy. He was the author of a string of best-sellers: American Capitalism, The Great Crash:1929, The Affluent Society, and The New Industrial State, as well as a talented essayist and speech-writer, coining phrases that have become well known, including “the conventional wisdom” and “private wealth and public squalor.” Holding radical political views, he became an outsider to an economics profession that increasingly turned away from his non-technical literary style. Parker has…

By Richard Parker,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked John Kenneth Galbraith as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Higher education is a strange beast. Teaching is a critical skill for scientists in academia, yet one that is barely touched upon in their professional training-despite being a substantial part of their career. This book is a practical guide for anyone teaching STEM-related academic disciplines at the college level, from graduate students teaching lab sections and newly appointed faculty to well-seasoned professors in want of fresh ideas. Terry McGlynn's straightforward, no-nonsense approach avoids off-putting pedagogical jargon and enables instructors to become true ambassadors for science.

For years, McGlynn has been addressing the need for practical and accessible advice for college…


Book cover of John Kenneth Galbraith: His Life, His Politics, His Economics

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