Book reviews
Book notes: The Man Who Knew: The Life & Times of Alan Greenspan, by Sebastian Mallaby
An extensive account of Greenspan's life and achievements, but would have benefited from a closer analysis of his relationships with comrades at the Fed
Book notes: Shadow banking in China, by Andrew Sheng and Ng Chow Soon
The authors dispel many myths about shadow banking in China
Book notes: On central banking, by Jan Qvigstad
The book reflects Norway’s intellectual history, as well as the history of Norges Bank
Book notes: The curse of cash, by Kenneth S Rogoff
A well-written book, but weak in its analysis and historical perspective
Book notes: Achieving financial stability and growth in Africa, edited by Stephany Griffith-Jones and Ricardo Gottschalk
Chown praises this comprehensive review into achieving ‘the impossible’ in low-income Africa
Book notes: Connectedness and contagion, by Hal Scott
Scott’s argument on the dangers of contagion has many appealing features
Book notes: And the weak suffer what they must?, by Yanis Varoufakis
A persuasively written book that is likely to elicit strong opinions
Book notes: The power of a single number, by Philipp Lepenies
Lepenies offers a brief but very readable treatment of GDP's political history
Book notes: Priests of prosperity: how central bankers transformed the postcommunist world
An insight into how central banking excellence was built in Eastern Europe and beyond
Book notes: The euro and the battle of ideas, by Markus K Brunnermeier, Harold James and Jean-Pierre Landau
A fascinating and informative book that offers suggestions on how differences in beliefs can be overcome
Book notes: A few hares to chase, by Alan Bollard
An interesting account of the life of engineer-turned-economist Bill Phillips
Book notes: The power and independence of the Federal Reserve, by Peter Conti-Brown
Conti-Brown offers a call to action to fix the legitimacy of the Federal Reserve System
Book notes: Lehman Brothers: a crisis of value, by Oonagh McDonald
A useful synopsis that nevertheless fails to add significantly to what was already known
Book notes: Bretton Woods: the next 70 years
A book that raises more problems than solutions
Book notes: The end of alchemy, by Mervyn King
King’s radical proposals deserve serious consideration
Book notes: Stabilising capitalism: a greater role for central banks, by Pierluigi Ciocca
A crisp account of the main issues facing central banks today
Book notes: Between debt and the devil, by Adair Turner
Turner suggests a radical overhaul of the financial sector
Book notes: Debtonator, by Andrew McNally
A lucid book questioning society’s bias towards debt and against equity
Book notes: Phishing for phools, by George Akerlof and Robert Shiller
A study of the traps markets create for unwitting consumers
Book notes: Civic Capitalism, by Colin Hay and Anthony Payne
A book that espouses redesigning capitalism into 'civic capitalism'
Book notes: Europe’s orphan, by Martin Sandbu
an excellent analysis, full of good ideas
Book notes: The challenge of economic rebalancing in Europe, perspectives for CESEE countries, edited by Ewald Nowotny et al
A useful book on the failure of the European economy to recover from the 2008 recession
Book notes: Banking Reform in Nigeria, by Yomi Makanjuola
A gripping read, starting with Sanusi Lamido Sanusi's leadership of the central bank
Book notes: The Great Divide, by Joseph E Stiglitz
This book argues that deregulation was an important cause of the recent banking crisis