Xenophon’s Science of Political Economy

Xenophon’s Science of Political Economy

The Shorter Writings by Xenophon, edited by Gregory A. McBrayer. Cornell University Press, 2018. Paperback, 414 pages, $25. Reviewed by Pedro L. Gonzalez The fires of the Social War that brought the imperial power of Athens to its knees had not yet been slaked when...
The Cost of Cultural Free-Riders

The Cost of Cultural Free-Riders

Why Culture Matters Most by David C. Rose. Oxford University Press, 2019. Hardcover, 197 pages, $35. Reviewed by J. Daniel Hammond David Rose’s Why Culture Matters Most tackles a question that economists have been loath to take on—the connection between morals and...
The Six Communal Institutions and the Modern Economy

The Six Communal Institutions and the Modern Economy

Hired: Six Months Undercover in Low-Wage Britain by James Bloodworth. Atlantic Books, 2019. paperback, 288 pages, $16. By Gerard T. Mundy Communal institutions keep the classical liberal–free market state from implosion. As the strength of what this essay identifies...
Hayek and the Liberty of Knowledge

Hayek and the Liberty of Knowledge

F. A. Hayek: Economics, Political Economy, and Social Philosophy by Peter J. Boettke. Palgrave Macmillan, 2018. Hardcover, 323 pages, $120. Reviewed by Erik W. Matson In his 1960 book The Constitution of Liberty, F. A. Hayek (1899–1992) said, If old truths...
Surviving the Robot-Barons

Surviving the Robot-Barons

The Human Advantage: The Future of American Work in an Age of Smart Machines by Jay W. Richards. Crown Forum, 2018. Hardcover, 209 pages, $23. Reviewed by Jacob Bruggeman College graduates, young professionals, and people making mid-career transitions to other...