Edible Economics: A Hungry Economist Explains the World

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The only book I’ve ever read that made me laugh, salivate and re-evaluate my thoughts about economics – all at the same time. A funny, profound and appetizing volume.” So, in a capitalist society, democracy is meaningless unless every citizen knows at least some economics. Otherwise, voting in elections becomes like voting in a talent show. I remember a lot of Americans voting for George W. Bush in the 2000 presidential election, saying that he “looks like a guy I could have a beer with.” What a criterion to elect someone for the most powerful political office in the world! My two greatest passions are food and economics, and I thought that this book was a natural pairing of two things that I dearly love. For one reason or another, I never got to write this book until couple of years ago. Edible Economics brings the sort of creative fusion that spices up a great kitchen to the often too-disciplined subject of economics For decades, a single, free-market philosophy has dominated global economics. But this intellectual monoculture is bland and unhealthy. Bestselling author and economist Ha-Joon Chang makes challenging economic ideas delicious by plating them alongside stories about food from around the world, using the diverse histories behind familiar food items to explore economic theory. For Chang, chocolate is a lifelong addiction, but more exciting are the insights it offers into postindustrial knowledge economies; and while okra makes Southern gumbo heart-meltingly smooth, it also speaks of capitalism’s entangled relationship with freedom. Myth-busting, witty, and thought-provoking, Edible Economics serves up a feast of bold ideas about globalization, climate change, immigration, austerity, automation, and why carrots need not be orange. It shows that getting to grips with the economy is like learning a recipe: when we understand it, we can adapt and improve it–and better understand our world. Edible Economics: A Hungry Economist Explains the World by Ha-Joon Chang – eBook Details Edible Economics brings the sort of creative fusion that spices up a great kitchen to the often too-disciplined subject of economics For decades, a single, free-market philosophy has dominated global economics. But this intellectual monoculture is bland and unhealthy. Bestselling author and economist Ha-Joon Chang makes challenging economic ideas delicious by plating them alongside stories about food from around the world, using the diverse histories behind familiar food items to explore economic theory. For Chang, chocolate is a lifelong addiction, but more exciting are the insights it offers

Ha-Joon Chang has done it again. His prose delights and nourishes in equal measure. Somehow he manages to smuggle an urgent discussion of the relevance of economics to our daily lives into stories about food and cooking that are charming, funny and sweet (but never sour). In taking on the economic establishment, Chang is like a teddy bear savaging a rottweiler. David Pilling Economic thinking - about globalisation, climate change, immigration, austerity, automation and much more - in its most digestible formHa-Joon Chang has done it again. His prose delights and nourishes in equal measure. Somehow he manages to smuggle an urgent discussion of the relevance of economics to our daily lives into stories about food and cooking that are charming, funny and sweet (but never sour). In taking on the economic establishment, Chang is like a teddy bear savaging a rottweiler."— David Pilling Myth-busting, witty, and thought-provoking, Edible Economics serves up a feast of bold ideas about globalization, climate change, immigration, austerity, automation, and why carrots need not be orange. It shows that getting to grips with the economy is like learning a recipe: when we understand it, we can adapt and improve it—and better understand our world.

The food stories in the book are diverse. Sometimes they are about the origin and the spreading of the food item in question, often through economic processes, like global trade, migration, slavery, and colonialism. Sometimes these stories are about the significance of the food item in some culture or historical events. Or they could even be about my personal relationship with that food item. I almost bribe my reader to get interested in economics. Almost everyone is interested in food, but many people find that economics are too dry, difficult, and technical. So I’m trying to lure my readers into the book by telling them interesting stories about food and then making that transition into economic arguments. Ha-Joon Chang has done it again. His prose delights and nourishes in equal measure. Somehow he manages to smuggle an urgent discussion of the relevance of economics to our daily lives into stories about food and cooking that are charming, funny and sweet (but never sour). In taking on the economic establishment, Chang is like a teddy bear savaging a rottweiler.” However user-friendly the explanations are, many people don’t feel motivated to learn about economics because they find the subject rather dull. Un libro escrito con sentido del humor, rigurosidad argumentativa, con alcances literarios y culturales interesantísimos.

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Of course his conclusion says he hopes this book gives us deplorables an appreciation for the variety of economic viewpoints. This is just a cover that he can use when his real agenda is exposed. This is an in-person event, and the RSVP is only for the internal use of the co-sponsoring organizations: Center for Economic and Policy Research, Public Citizen, and the Institute for Policy Studies' Global Economy Project. We look forward to seeing you at Busboys and Poets. Edible Economics brings the sort of creative fusion that spices up a great kitchen to the often too-disciplined subject of economics. I have devoted my entire academic career to the study of industrial policy. When I first started doing research on this as a graduate student in the late 1980s, industrial policy for many people was a four letter word—it was something that you didn’t mention in polite company. Today, a lot of countries that used to denounce industrial policy are now very keen to do it. The US is the best example, with the Green New Deal and reindustrialization momentum.