HISTORY OF ECONOMICS
7/
Dirk Struik (1894 - 2000) obtained his doctorate in mathematics from the University of Leiden in 1922, before going on to spend his academic career at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, until his retirement in 1960.
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In his book, A Concise History of Mathematics, Struik begins by taking the reader back thousands of years to the origins of mathematics with simple counting and arithmetic. Struik then explores mathematics in Ancient Greece, the Ancient Orient, early Europe, and then focuses on the development of mathematics from the 17th to the first half of the 20th century.
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Struik does a good job of exploring both the historical aspects of mathematics and how this contributed to mathematics today. It's an insightful book for anyone that is developing a greater interest in mathematics through studying economics/ finance. However, the book does get relatively technical towards the end as the author explores more recent developments in mathematics, which may not suit all readers.
A Concise History of Mathematics
by Dirk J. Struik
6/
William Barber (1925 - 2016) was the Andrews Professor of Economics at Wesleyan University, where he taught from 1957 to 1993.
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In his book, A History of Economic Thought, Barber explores four fundamental periods of economic thought: Classical Economics, Marxian Economics, Neo-Classical Economics, and Keynesian Economics. Exploring the background and key ideas of influential thinkers during these periods, including Adam Smith, John Stuart Mill, Karl Marx, Alfred Marshall, John Maynard Keynes, and more.
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This is a great book for anyone that wants an introduction to key economic thinkers and the development of economic ideas that still influence economics today.
A History of Economic Thought
by William J. Barber
5/
Perhaps slightly different from the other books on this list, Paul Krugman's The Return of Depression Economics was published in 2008, in response to the 2007-08 Financial Crisis. Although a relatively recent event in the history of economics/ finance, I'm confident that this book will be an important read for years to come, as it shows the author's thoughts and ideas at the time of the 2007-08 Financial Crisis. Thus, giving the reader valuable insight into the mind of a Nobel Laureate at the time of one of history's worst financial crises.
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Krugman explores a variety of themes from previous financial crises and highlights the similarities between them and the 2007-08 Financial Crisis. Moreover, Krugman examines the pivotal factors that led to the Crisis and potential remedies to resolve what, at the time, appeared to be the downfall of capitalism. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in economics, and particularly interested in the economics of financial crisis.
The Return of Depression Economics
by Paul Krugman
4/
John Kenneth Galbraith (1908 - 2006) was a Canadian-American economist, diplomat, and public intellectual. Living a very accomplished life, Galbraith was awarded around 50 Honorary Degrees from universities around the world; furthermore, he is one of the few individuals to receive both the Medal of Freedom (in 1946 from President Truman) and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (in 2000 from President Clinton).
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Although Galbraith leaned towards the Keynesian school of thought (after being influenced by Keynes during a year-long fellowship at the University of Cambridge in 1937), which is made very clear in his writing, he was critical of the path that economics was taking towards an ever-greater reliance on mathematics and modelling, believing this approach was too far removed from reality.
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His book, The Great Crash 1929, is arguably the definitive book on The Great Depression. Galbraith had a particular academic interest in economic/ financial extremes (bubbles and recessions) and his particular interest in the Great Depression is evident in his writing, perhaps because he lived through it. Accordingly, the book is very well researched and contains primary sources from the time that are mostly forgotten or ignored now. In particular, Galbraith does a fantastic job of capturing the mood of public opinion in the build-up to and following the stock market collapse.
The Great Crash 1929
by John Kenneth Galbraith
3/
Although The Great Crash 1929, is a more in-depth book and is arguably the work that Galbraith is better known for, I prefer A Short History of Financial Euphoria for several reasons.
First, Galbraith gives a brief overview of speculative episodes dating back to Tulipmania, in Holland, in the 1630s, to what has become known as Black Monday on 19 October 1987, while covering numerous other speculative events along the way. This highlights the fact that periods of intense speculation are not one-off events, as some may believe. Second, by covering historical examples of speculation, Galbraith highlights the commonalities that exist between speculative episodes, as well as the unique characteristics of each.
Galbraith argues that the key factors that give rise to periods of financial euphoria are:
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Some seemingly new development or artefact (exempli gratia, the internet during Dot Com Bubble or the rediscovery of the joint-stock company leading to the bubble in the stock of the South Sea Company).
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What Galbraith calls, "the extreme brevity of financial memory". Meaning, financial crashes are quickly forgotten, and he argues that there is no other human endeavour in which history counts for so little, as it does in the world of finance.
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Moreover, Galbraith argues that all financial innovation involves the creation of greater leverage (for instance, CDOs contributing to the 2007-08 Financial Crisis).
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And, lastly, the combination of human nature and the self-fulfilling prophecy that financial bubbles temporarily create.
A Short History of Financial Euphoria
by John Kenneth Galbraith
2/
Niall Ferguson earned his undergraduate and Doctorate in Modern History from the University of Oxford in 1989, before beginning his academic career and ultimately becoming a Professor at Harvard University, from 2004 to 2016. Currently, Ferguson is a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution.
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His book, The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World, is an interesting, in-depth, and thought-provoking book on finance and money. Ferguson traces modern finance back to the 1600s via early forms of banks and goes on to explore the evolution of the modern financial system from there. Every aspect of the book is very detailed and the author has completed incredibly broad research to contribute to all aspects of the book. Accordingly, there is something interesting on almost every page.
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Overall, I highly recommend this book for anyone that is interested in finance, money, economics, or history in general, as Ferguson does a great job making the book a compelling and insightful read.
The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World
by Niall Ferguson
1/
Although Kishtainy is one of the lesser-known authors on this list, I believe A Little History of Economics, is a great book that should be read by anyone interested in economics.
The book is written in a very clear and concise way. It doesn't start with the birth of modern economics (around the late-1700s with Adam Smith); instead, the author begins before Ancient Greece and Rome to explore the roots of economics. The book progresses chronologically, with each chapter focusing on a different thinker/ economist that influenced the study of the subject: from renowned economists such as Adam Smith and John Maynard Keynes to more obscure economists that many readers would not previously have been aware of.
The book details the development of key ideas and themes in economics, and it also highlights, I would argue, just how primitive/ recent economics is as an academic subject in comparison to mathematics, for example. Overall, it is a book that I would highly recommend to anyone, regardless of their understanding of economics, that is interested in seeing the development of the key events and people that led to the development of economic ideas over time.
A Little History of Economics
by Nial Kishtainy
