503-785-3485
bill@conerlyconsulting.com
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin
Conerly Consulting Conerly Consulting
  • Consulting
    • Approach/Philosophy
    • Sounding Board
    • Economics and Business Strategy
    • Assessment
    • Case Studies
    • Testimonials
  • Speaking
    • The Package
    • Topics
    • Testimonials
  • Writing
    • Businomics Newsletter
    • Businomics
    • The Flexible Stance
    • Blog
  • Industries
    • Banking/Finance
    • Manufacturing
    • Other Industries
  • Video
    • Speaking
    • Event Promotion
    • Business Planning
  • About
    • News Coverage
  • Contact
  • Consulting
    • Approach/Philosophy
    • Sounding Board
    • Economics and Business Strategy
    • Assessment
    • Case Studies
    • Testimonials
  • Speaking
    • The Package
    • Topics
    • Testimonials
  • Writing
    • Businomics Newsletter
    • Businomics
    • The Flexible Stance
    • Blog
  • Industries
    • Banking/Finance
    • Manufacturing
    • Other Industries
  • Video
    • Speaking
    • Event Promotion
    • Business Planning
  • About
    • News Coverage
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Books
  • Good Readings in Economics

Books

31 Aug 2009

Good Readings in Economics

  • By Bill Conerly
  • In Books

Harvard Professor Greg Mankiw has posted his reading list of economics books for a freshman seminar. (Hat tip to Cafe Hayek.)  Here it is:

  • The Worldly Philosophers, by Robert Heilbroner
  • Spin-Free Economics, by Nariman Behravesh
  • Capitalism and Freedom, by Milton Friedman
  • Equality and Efficiency: The Big Tradeoff, by Arthur Okun
  • Nudge, by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein
  • The Return of Depression Economics, by Paul Krugman
  • Animal Spirits, by George Akerlof and Robert Shiller
  • The Myth of the Rational Voter, by Bryan Caplan
  • Economic Gangsters, by Raymond Fisman and Edward Miguel
  • The Price of Everything, by Russell Roberts

I confess that I have not read all of these; I tend to do little reading of economics aimed at a general audience.  (Most of the ideas in these books I saw in the economics journals before the books came out.) 

Capitalism and Freedom:  I'll always remember how thrilled I was reading this my freshman year of college.  Highly recommended.  Some topics are a bit dated, but you'll learn a lot from them nonetheless.  And some of the topics are as timely today as they were in the 1970s.
The Worldly Philsophers: A good book, which helped reinforce my decision to study economics.
Spin-Free Economics: I haven't seen this book, but I was surprised by the Amazon reviews which said it was right-wing. I've known Nariman for years, during which time we've mostly discussed the short-term economic outlook.  I always thought he was an excellent mainstream economist, perhaps too Keynesian for my tastes, but first-rate all the way.

If Mankiw's class were focused on economics for business leaders, I'm sure he would assign Businomics.

  • Share:
Bill Conerly

Search

Sign Up For Our Newsletter!

View Latest Issue

RSS Bill’s Forbes Articles

  • Useful Economics—The Business Insights Not Being Taught In Colleges April 9, 2021
    College economics courses usually teach theory as a springboard to talk about policy: fiscal policy, monetary policy and regulatory policy. Yet few students end up in the Federal Reserve or Congress. Instead of policy, college grads should know a few key economics concepts.

Testimonials

Bill Conerly has been an invaluable resource to our executive team and ownership by delivering superior, well-founded ideas that are critical to navigating the current economic climate within the construction industry. Bill assisted O.B. Williams Company with developing a strong business plan that we implemented 18 months ago. As a result and together with Bill, we are improving our position within our highly competitive market segment. We understand that navigating this current economy is indee…
David Wick, CEO, O.B. Williams Company
AgFirst Farm Credit Bank has benefitted from Bill Conerly’s unique insights and perspectives several times over the past five years…his materials consistently cover the points that we agree on…he has been very well-received by our groups, and we look forward to having Bill with us again in the future.
Ronnie Hucks, AgFirst Farm Credit, Columbia
You are a master at your craft and a favorite of our audience.
Jim Parker, UBS Financial Services
We asked Bill Conerly to look at one of the major factors limiting the growth of our business. He pulled together data from a wide range of sources, as well as his own extensive business knowledge, to give us an insight into when conditions would improve and how we could be ready to capitalize on better times. He did so in a straight forward, easy to understand manner. A year later it was clear that things had evolved just as he had forecast. Ever since then he’s been my go-to guy on how the e…
Len Ludwig, former CEO, Vencore Capital LLC
Thank you for a wonderful presentation. Everyone who heard your presentation was impressed with your analysis, and strong command of facts and theory. More importantly, your ability to weave together substance with humor, in a very dynamic way, meant our attendees learned and retained more information than we would have typically expected. You made economics fun and you left our members with powerful insights on trends and issues to consider as they prepare for the future.
John Aguirre, Oregon Association of Nurseries
Dr. Bill Conerly opened our Ace Hardware Platinum Retailer Conference by helping our independent small business owners understand the current state of the economy in a straight forward and humorous manner that connected very well with the retailers I spoke with. Dr. Conerly provided information our retailers can use to lead their businesses. He connected with the audience and made a complicated topic understandable.
Mike Berschauer, Ace Hardware Corp
You made a complicated global picture understandable. I have received many favorable comments from those in attendance. I frequently heard comments like ‘Now I understand’ or ‘Wow, now I get it’ and ‘He was great to listen to. Thanks for bringing Bill to our meeting.’
Pete Van Sickle, Idaho Department of Lands
Bill is a delight and easy to work with. The client thought he was great and delivered value to their group. I would definitely recommend Bill.
Andrea Gold, Gold Stars Speakers Bureau
Bill did a great job. We look forward to a continuing relationship.
John Hamburger, Franchise Times
The ratings you received from our banker evaluations were among the highest I’ve seen, which matched my impressions exactly. Your presentation style is quite engaging, you bring interesting and valuable content, and our ability to interact in a stimulating way during “Q&A” sessions makes you a valuable addition to any meeting agenda. As a bonus, you are a genuinely enjoyable participant in conference activities beyond your presentation.
Steve Yeakel, Montana Independent Bankers

Get in touch

(503) 785-3485

bill@conerlyconsulting.com

PO Box 2188
Lake Oswego, OR 97035

Useful Links

  • Consulting
  • Speaking
  • Videos
  • Blog
  • Press
  • Contact

Social Links

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin

Newsletters

Copyright 2020 Conerly Consulting LLC