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Good Economics for Hard Times

Better Answers to Our Biggest Problems

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Brought to you by Penguin.

Two prize-winning economists show how economics, when done right, can help us solve the thorniest social and political problems of our day.

Figuring out how to deal with today's critical economic problems is perhaps the great challenge of our time. Much greater than space travel or perhaps even the next revolutionary medical breakthrough, what is at stake is the whole idea of the good life as we have known it.

Immigration and inequality, globalisation and technological disruption, slowing growth and accelerating climate change - these are sources of great anxiety across the world, from New Delhi and Dakar to Paris and Washington, DC. The resources to address these challenges are there - what we lack are ideas that will help us jump the wall of disagreement and distrust that divides us. If we succeed, history will remember our era with gratitude; if we fail, the potential losses are incalculable.

In this revolutionary audiobook, renowned MIT economists Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo take on this challenge, building on cutting-edge research in economics explained with lucidity and grace. Original, provocative, and urgent, Good Economics for Hard Times, read by James Lurie, makes a persuasive case for an intelligent interventionism and a society built on compassion and respect. It is an extraordinary achievement, one that shines a light to help us appreciate and understand our precariously balanced world.

© Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo 2019 (P) Penguin Audio 2019

Economics International Politics & Government Theory Africa Capitalism Thought-Provoking Economic disparity Economic Inequality Socialism Taxation Latin American US Economy Social justice Tariff Export

Critic reviews

Excellent, important, disarmingly down to earth . . . they seek to shed much-needed light upon the distortions that bad economics bring to public debates while methodically deconstructing their false assumptions.
Not all economists wear ties and think like bankers. In their wonderfully refreshing book, Banerjee and Duflo delve into impressive areas of new research questioning conventional views about issues ranging from trade to top income taxation and mobility, and offer their own powerful vision of how we can grapple with them. A must-read. (Thomas Piketty, author of Capital in the Twenty-First Century)
Compelling, useful, relevant ... Banerjee and Duflo use extensive data to zoom out and show us a wider view of these human dynamics (Bill Gates)
Excellent ... Few have grappled as energetically with the complexity of real life as Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee, or got their boots as dirty in the process ... Readers will be captivated
A canard-slaying, unconventional take on economics ... invigorating ... a treasure trove of facts and findings about the biggest economic issues of the day
A magnificent achievement, and the perfect book for our time. Banerjee and Duflo brilliantly illuminate the largest issues of the day, including immigration, trade, climate change, and inequality. (Cass R. Sunstein, author of How Change Happens)
Banerjee and Duflo are masters of this terrain . . . Their book is as stimulating as it gets
All stars
Most relevant
One must declare an irritation in my world view has been edited by reading this book. I mean, who knew? Economists seem to actually be aware that some other things like people exist. They can even show a feeling towards them. Totally amazed. Amazon recommended this book to me. I thought I’d maybe get 10 or 12 pages in before getting bored. But no. I read it all the way to the end and found very little in here I could argue with.

I guess my mythical preference will have to change. Or grow. But not very fast one assumes.

Thank you.

World view changed.

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I wish everyone in the world would read this book. An excellent assesment of where economic theory currently stands

A book everyone should read

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highly recommended, thought provoking and some, really interesting examples.i really enjoyed the book, Well worth a listen. would highly recommend it

superb, made economics really interesting

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I liked it, very well documented and well written. No surprise considering the authors. Very well read!

What I didn't fully enjoy was that some chapters are too long and sometimes the use of statistics/surveys seems exaggerated and you tend to miss the point and lose focus (or at least it happened to me).

Pretty good, definitely worth a listen

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This book explains complex and highly sensitive subjects in a straightforward, methodical way. would highly recommend.

An exceptional book

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