Product Description

Who makes most money from the demand for cappuccinos early in the morning at Waterloo Station? Why is it impossible to get a foot on the property ladder? How do the Mafia make money from laundries when street gangs pushing drugs don't? Who really benefits from immigration? How can China, in just 50 years, go from the world's worst famine to one of the greatest economic revolutions of all time, lifting a million people out of poverty a month? Looking at familiar situations in unfamiliar ways, THE UNDERCOVER ECONOMIST is a fresh explanation of the fundamental principles of the modern economy, illuminated by examples from the streets of London to the booming skyscrapers of Shanghai to the sleepy canals of Bruges. Leaving behind textbook jargon and equations, Tim Harford will reveal the games of signals and negotiations, contests of strength and battles of wit that drive not only the economy at large but the everyday choices we make.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #199127 in Books
• Published on: 2006-04-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

THE TIMES
'As lively and witty an introduction to the supposedly 'dismal science' as you are likely to read'

About the Author
Tim Harford currently works for the World Bank in Washington. He writes the 'Dear Economist' column for the FT Saturday magazine. An award winning public speaker, Tim has been an economist for a major oil company and an economics tutor at Oxford University.

Customer Reviews

Not Dismal anymore
This is a really good introduction to Economics.
As someone who's picked up Economics mostly by reading the business pages of the Independent it's been very useful.
The chatty style belies the fact there's lots of information to be learned from this book.
His central two points are that scarcity dictates price (supply and demand) and that prices are set according to the information available to both buyer and seller.
Along the way you'll find out why your morning coffee is priced the way it is and why it's hard to get a decent second hand car.
Although it's hard to believe in a book about economics, I found this to be a bit of a page turner and finished it in a bank holiday weekend.

Worth the wait - fun and packed with insight
This book has been out in the USA for a couple of months so I am not sure why we have to wait so long for the British edition - but it is worth the wait. Harford manages to write a fun book with a very light touch and bags of everyday insight, while still packing it with serious economic ideas. If you're an interested reader looking to understand how economists see the world, you couldn't pick up a better book. If you are a student you will learn more from this book than any of the standard textbooks and you will enjoy it so much more.
Harford covers subjects which include: why there is a Starbucks on every corner; how supermarkets get the most out of you; why traffic jams exist and what we can do about it; healthcare and why it's so hard to make it work; the stock market bubble and how to spot the next one; globalisation and the environment; how China grew so quickly; why Africa is poor. Towards the end it is almost a piece of travel writing alongside all these economic ideas. No maths, no supply and demand curves, but good stories and even a few tips as to how to buy a better cup of coffee...

A lighter side of economics?
It is because of the success of Amazon that high street booksellers need to provide that little bit more to entice their customers. So we now have bookshops full of stationary, furniture and coffee. When you're next out shopping and want to grab a coffee, head over to the bookshop. Whilst you are there with your Lotsamoccacaféchino, take this book from the shelf and begin to read it. You will find it connects with you immediately.

I don't know much about economics, at least I didn't when I picked this up. But I have wondered what all the fuss is about, especially when I try to keep up with the Budget, camapigns against poverty, and what's happeneing to my pension. The Undercover Economist not only makes economics easier to understand but it is doesn't clutter my mind with macroeconomic theory, fiscal rules and all that stuff.

So as you read the book, soon you will find yourself ordering more coffee, but you'll have a much better understanding of the sophisticated system that you are engaging in, and how you're being ripped off.

The book covers economics in ten interesting chapters - each with a different theme through which it introduces the reader to new understandings of the world of economics. This book will unveil to you a host of neat little theories that explain how every day life works, from why bookshops sell coffee, to world poverty with plenty in between.

What really marks this book from the rest is its humour. There are very few funny economic books and the Undercover Economist is one of them. It reveals that the grey subject matter, so long understood as the dismal science, can really be a lot of fun - if only economics lecturers would be a little less serious about it.

So read this book whilst you enjoy your second coffee: this is OK for Amazon because you can still order the book online. It's a book you'll want to keep. Is there a sequel on the way? Because whilst I learnt alot, and was pleasently surprised at times when I laughed out loud, it didn't cover pensions.