Editorial Review

Professor David S. Landes takes a historic approach to the analysis of the distribution of wealth in this landmark study of world economics. Landes argues that the key to today's disparity between the rich and poor nations of the world stems directly from the industrial revolution, in which some countries made the leap to industrialization and became fabulously rich, while other countries failed to adapt and remained poor. Why some countries were able to industrialize and others weren't has been the subject of much heated debate over the decades; climate, natural resources, and geography have all been put forward as explanations--and are all brushed aside by Landes in favor of his own controversial theory: that the ability to effect an industrial revolution is dependent on certain cultural traits, without which industrialization is impossible to sustain. Landes contrasts the characteristics of successfully industrialized nations--work, thrift, honesty, patience, and tenacity--with those of nonindustrial countries, arguing that until these values are internalized by all nations, the gulf between the rich and poor will continue to grow. ... Read more

Reviews (156)

Guns & Germs Meets Economics
If you have had the opportunity to read any of Jared Diamond's work, then I believe you will like and enjoy the similarities and explanations provided but on and from an economic point of view. The Wealth & Poverty of Nations is a straight talking expose as to many of the reasons to the economic rise of some Nations (and subsequent expansion) and why other Nations never did (or much later) though they had either resources or the political system to do so, but they just didn't overcome other obstacles.
A Bitter Pill
This is one of the most ill tempered and unfashionable books that I have read in a long time.Perhaps it could have only been written by a scholar in the waning days of his career (Landes has gone emeritus at Harvard).A young scholar could never get away with Landes's crankiness and his targeting of sacred cows.The book is so politically incorrect that it defies belief.Landes challenges nearly every tenet widely held among scholars about the principal motors of history in the past millenium.Moreover, this book is hopelessly Euro-Centric, a crime punishable by instant career termination among the untenured ranks of professors.
RACIST GARBAGE!!!!
This loser tries to hide his racism behind witty anecdotes, but it is so clear that he hates other races, nations and cultures and frankly feels that they get what they deserve. Prof. of History???? What a joke! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Development - Economic Development    5. Economic Conditions    6. Economic History    7. Economics - Theory    8. Europe    9. History    10. Poverty    11. Regional economic disparities    12. Wealth    13. Western Europe - General    14. International economics    15. Western Continental Europe   

Reviews (3)

Searching for theory behind praxis
Once I started reading this book I could not put it aside for long. Perhaps this is because so many of the insights that the author offers on what practioners of deliberative planning and rural development actually do resonates so much with the work I am involved with in Indonesia and the Philippines. Planning in a Pluralist World
As Forester explains in his Introduction makes, the title of his book is an intentional reference to Don Sch�n's path breaking The Reflective Practitioner. To use a trite clich�, that his book begins where Sch�n's book left off. There is, on the one hand, a remarkable similarity between the way Sch�n frames the situation the planner faces on the one hand, and Forester's description of the planner's world and his concept of deliberation on the other. The difference is in Forester's upfront, no-illusion understanding of the conflict-ridden nature of the world of planners and policy makers. Where Sch�n's reflection-in-action can, perhaps somewhat unfairly, be read as an improvement of the received view of professional knowledge as the sage expert who solves complex problems for clients in need, Forester has no illusions anymore about the moral and instrumental bankruptcy of the expert model. This becomes nowhere as clear as when we look at the examples each author uses. Where Sch�n uses one-on-one encounters between a psychotherapist and his supervisee, or an architect and his student, Forester examples include a bitter, entrenched fight over urban development in the Oslo harbour, a black home buyer counsellor in the overtly racist environment of a low income white settlement house, or housing improvement among poor campesinos in rural Venezuela. "Listen to Stories, Learn in Practice"
John Forester's latest book entitled "The Deliberative Practitioner encouraging Participatory Planning Process", (MIT press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, London, England, 1999) develops the key ideas of his earlier writings on participatory planning processes by examining the challenges and difficulties of planning in the midst of contested power relationships.Read more

Subjects:  1. Citizen participation    2. City planning    3. Development - Economic Development    4. Political Science    5. Political planning    6. Politics / Current Events    7. Politics/International Relations    8. Public Policy - City Planning & Urban Dev.    9. Public Policy - Regional Planning    10. Regional planning    11. Sociology - Urban    12. Science / Environmental Science    13. Urban & municipal planning   

Reviews (12)

Refreshing the tree of liberty with the blood of tyrants (T. Jefferson)
By analyzing the US policies behind the Iraq war, William R. Clark unveils the real reasons behind this illegal (R. Perle) invasion: maintain the US dollar as a world monopoly currency for oil and, in the era of Peak Oil, dominate the region with the world's largest remaining hydrocarbon reserves. The war in Iraq is also a currency war against the euro. S. Hussein's oil had to be paid in euros and a further momentum within OPEC for the euro had to be prevented at all costs.
Covers an important topic but lacks depth, originality and good editing
This book is an assemblage of material from other authors reiterating the reasons for attacking Iraq: both the stated deceptive reasons and the true motivations of the Bush administration.
Excellent perspective on oil crisis and politics overlap
Just because this author criticizes the peak oil problem as one brought on by political factors does not mean that he is a commie or traitor. The author primarily talks about how economics plays in with oil politics, specifically the role of the dollar as world reserve currency in the late 20th century. Nixon took us off the gold standard and Saudia Arabia and the US have since had a close relationship. The author's thesis is that the US will enevitably be faced against Iran and Venezuela because those independent countries threaten the hegemony of the dollar-backed international oil cartel--OPEC. He definitely makes the case and is very interesting. The last 20-30 pages (the conclusion) is repetative and summational, but the rest of the book holds your attention well with documented and standard historical facts. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Finance    2. General    3. Government - U.S. Government    4. History    5. History: American    6. Industries - Energy Industries    7. International finance    8. Petroleum industry and trade    9. Petroleum products    10. Political aspects    11. Politics - Current Events    12. Politics / Current Events    13. Prices    14. Public Policy - Economic Policy    15. United States - 20th Century    16. History / United States / 20th Century    17. International relations    18. Petroleum & oil industries    19. USA   

Reviews (2)

good overview
As a student of feminist theory and gender in development, this book came a little late for me - or some chapters did.
Good Overview of the Literature
"The Women, Gender and Development Reader" is a useful compilation of articles on the subject. It has five parts, each dealing with a different aspect of studies on women and development. It starts outwith a theoretical section that includes landmark articles, or excerptsfrom studies, by leading feminist scholars. Subsequent sections includearticles on women and the household economy, women in the global economy,women's situation under social transformation in different parts of theworld and finally women's movements in the developing world.This book isa welcome addition to publications on the subject of women and developmentand fills an important gap. It has both a broad theoretical and globalperspective and pieces on specific communities around the world. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Developing countries    2. Economic conditions    3. Gender Studies    4. History: World    5. Social Science    6. Social conditions    7. Sociology    8. Women    9. Women in development    10. Women's Studies - General    11. Development studies    12. Feminism   

Reviews (3)

Best Book on African Development for Many Years
The Politics of Permanent Crisis is simply one of the best books on contemporary Africa to come out for ages.The author, who has been writing sensibly on Africa, political reform, and foreign aid issues for many years, takes on a whole range of often contradictory academic work to help explain why Africa has been unable to grow faster despite increasingly levels of external financial assistance. Van de Walle argues coherently that local politics within many African countries have combined with donor practices to militate against the fundamental changes required for African economies to take-off.Seen in this light, the lack of reforms and disappointing outcomes from foreign aid in Africa are not mysteries, but rather the logical outcomes of the incentives under which the various players operate.This is a seminal contribution to our understanding of Africa's economic and political dilemmas -- and an excellent complement to Bill Easterly's "The Elusive Quest for Growth".If there is any shortcoming in the book, it is a minor quibble that van de Walle seems too dismissive of the role of individual leaders in sparking recovery (e.g., surely, Jerry Rawlings and Yoweri Museveni deserve some personal credit for turning Ghana and Uganda around).This book is a must-read for anyone interested in Africa's development challenges and the role of the international community.

The Puzzle of African Exceptionalism
Nicolas van de Walle's prize-winning book explains the puzzle of African exceptionalism with an intelligent and nuanced framework.Focusing on the politics behind the seemingly permanent crisis, van de Walle explains the pervasive rise of neopatrimonial rule on the continent -- a political system that depends on patronage and clientelism, and which is a feature of many low-income, largely subsistence-based polities around the world.Van de Walle's dual training in economics and political science, and his extensive experience living and working in many of the countries of the sub-continent, make this book deep, broad, and credible. I've recommended it to many who want to understand what is behind their t.v. screens: why has poverty grown in Africa? Why is this the region most troubled by small-scale political wars? Its scholarly but accessible style, complimented by extensive footnotes and references, also make this an excellent book for students.

A Plagiarized Monograph: How the Academy Fails Africa
This book represents Nicolas van de Walle's attempts to characterise Africa's political economy in the era of 'partial reform' in comparative perspective.Unfortunately, this book which could have fulfilled an important lacunae in the field is largely a poorly thought out academic hustle. The analysisis full of mutually contradictory statements, and given the author's evident lack of familiarity with the cases he is comparing with S.S.A. his comparative analysis lacks anybite or merit.Nowhere is this more clear than in his comparisons between Africa and Latin America. For example, according to van de Walle Argentina is a considered 'especially' a case of committed and extensive reform.
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Subjects:  1. 1960-    2. Africa    3. Development - Economic Development    4. Economic Conditions    5. Economic policy    6. General    7. Political Science    8. Politics / Current Events    9. Politics and government    10. Politics/International Relations    11. Africa--Economic conditions--1960-    12. African studies    13. Political Science / General    14. Political economy    15. Political science & theory   

Reviews (2)

Excellent analysis of currentissues in Latin America.
The is a most impressive analysis of economic, political, social and cultural life in Latin America. This excellent book offers an holistic approach to understanding these changes, relating them to the widerprocesses of modernization and globalization. An international group ofscholars with impressive credentials and from a wide range of disciplinesattempt to contextualize their different disciplinary foci within a broadpolitical economic approach that provides a critical yet balanced view anddetailed analysis of the neoliberal policies pursued by almost allcountries in the region.They contend that a new political economy isbeing contructed in Latin America, as national economies become radicallyreconstructed and transformed, democracy becomes the instituional norm, andnew social arrangements are being created. The constestation andalternatives to this new global modernity are also explored. In sum, thisexcellent book fulfills a much needed market niche for students, scholars,and the educated avid reader, who require an interdisciplinary andcontemporary approach to Latin American development. Complete, coherentpolitical-economicanalysis of Lat. Am.
Robert Gwynne and Cristobal Kay have put together an impressive and timely analysis of current trends in Latin American Development. The coverage of the countries of the region is excellent, as is that of their economic,political, and social trends...The range of issues raised and the qualityof their documentation make this an excellent text for teaching and forresearch. Prof. Bryan Roberts, University of Texas at Austin ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Development - Economic Development    2. Earth Sciences - Geography    3. Economic stabilization    4. Globalization    5. Latin America    6. Political Science    7. Politics / Current Events    8. Politics and government    9. Politics/International Relations    10. Public Policy - Economic Policy    11. Social aspects    12. Social conditions    13. American studies    14. Development studies    15. Political Science / Economic Policy    16. Politics | Comparative Politics | Latin America   

Features

• Illustrated

Subjects:  1. 1945-    2. Economic policy    3. Government - State & Provincial    4. International Relations - General    5. Japan    6. Political Science    7. Politics / Current Events    8. Politics and government    9. Politics/International Relations    10. Public Policy - Economic Policy    11. JAPAN_ECONOMIC POLICY    12. JAPAN_POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT    13. JAPAN_POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT_1945-    14. POLITICS & GOVERNMENT    15. Political Science / Economic Policy   

Reviews (1)

An Excellent Account of China's Development
Mao Zedong had shaped China's political system so that it would be responsive to him.Even though the Cultural Revolution actually pitted portions of the populace against his own bureaucracy, he was always in control of this deliberate class struggle and believed the new culture that would emerge from this struggle would still be under his control.Mao's politics during the Cultural Revolution left China in shambles, later referred to "the ten lost years" in Chinese history.By 1976, it faced lagging agricultural production, an inefficient industrial system, high unemployment, sub par standards of living, widespread apathy and cynicism, backwards technology, and a high rate of population increase.Read more

Subjects:  1. 1976-2000    2. 1976-2002    3. Asia - China    4. China    5. Congresses    6. Economic conditions    7. Economic policy    8. History - General History    9. Political Ideologies - Communism & Socialism    10. Political Science    11. Politics and government    12. Politics/International Relations    13. Public Policy - Economic Policy    14. Economics    15. Marxism & Communism    16. World history: from c 1900 -   

Reviews (6)

Sweeping case for Liberalism
Lal applies the concepts of Classical Liberalism across historical and cultural boundaries, applying its premises to trade, capital flows, monetary policy and morality. He is certainly an advocate of classical liberalism, but his propositions are presented academically and are backed up with facts and substantiveresearch.
Professor Lal needs to reread Smith's Wealth of Nations
Lal's project of reviving Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations approach to economic growth and its necessary prerequisites is certainly a worthy task.Unfortunately,Lal has forgotten and/or overlooked what Smith's system of Natural Liberty(Classical Liberalism )entails.
Useful read and core concepts sound but...
I found the book useful. Deepak Lal gives very good examples to support further liberalisation of trade. The historical analysis contains also a number of interesting points. However a few pages here and there are not well written and you need to read them several times to grasp the meaning. Also especially towards the end of the book it seems that the author has his own political agenda, which is not fully supported by his theory. Also his handling of how we should address the question of limited resources when there is a possibility of a problem of commons seems to be totally inadequate. There are cases where we do benefit from global regulations above those that Lal mentions. Totally dismissing the problem of climate change as harmless and giving the impression that DDT (and I guess other poisonous chemicals as well are implied) should be allowed are very weakly handled and if they should be taken as serious comments, there should have been other opposite examples. In the real world there certainly are things like the ozone layer that we need to take care of jointly. I also would have appreciated some theoretical handling of only reaching the local optima through independent agents in a free market that John Nash pointed out in his research. I hope liberal thinking could have more balanced supporters. This sort of omissions and misleading bylines lessen the case severely. And if these issues really create a problem to the theory, then the theory should be corrected. This requires a more balanced and scientific approach with best examples and arguments from all sides and not this kind of polemical approach. However, I did learn quite much and it is not uncommon in policy kind of books that the analysis part is good and the recommendations follow party lines and arguments are poor. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Capitalism    5. Development - Economic Development    6. Free Enterprise    7. Globalization    8. Liberalism    9. Political Ideologies - Conservatism & Liberalism    10. Business & Economics / Economic Development    11. Development economics    12. Economic theory & philosophy    13. Economics    14. Political Science and International Relations   

Reviews (1)

Good for "Beginners"
This book was chosen as a required reading for a course I took about Globalization and Development.Having no prior knowledge about this topic, I felt that the Rist book provided a good introduction to the topic for"beginners".However, the tone tends to offer a pessimistic viewof the situations presented. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Development - Business Development    5. Development - Economic Development    6. Economic History    7. Economic assistance    8. Economic development    9. History    10. Sustainable development    11. Business & Economics / Economic History    12. Development economics    13. Development studies   

Subjects:  1. Earth Sciences - Geography    2. International Relations - General    3. Political Science    4. Politics / Current Events    5. Politics/International Relations    6. Sociology - General    7. Development studies    8. Industrialized / developed countries    9. Political Science / International Relations   

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Development - Economic Development    5. Economic Conditions    6. Economic policy    7. Economics - Comparative    8. Europe, Western    9. Business & Economics / Economics / Comparative    10. Economics    11. POLITICS & GOVERNMENT   

Reviews (1)

What we always need to know about Sustainability
This book is a must for anyone that is interested in Sustainability. It takes the reader through all the history and tries to give as much neccessary background information as possible to get the big picture on each historical event and milestone. Allthough the author sometimes becomes a bit too subjective, he doesn't impose a view and tries more to inform. Definitely a book worth having for references on Sustainability events. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Development - Sustainable Development    5. Economic development    6. Environmental aspects    7. General    8. Sustainable development    9. Third World Development    10. Business & Economics / Sustainable Development    11. Development studies    12. Sustainability   

Reviews (3)

excellent book
this an excellent book, very comprehensive and clearly written, which could be read by both beginners and specialists. i recommend it highly.

A Good Reading
This is a good reading but it lacks reference to all the sources from which the ideological foundation of Islamic Economic System has been derived. If you are interested in a rational ideological background of Islamic Economics the following two books are also a must read: By far the best book on Islamic banking and finance
After the frustration of looking for a good book on the subject of Islamic banking and finance, I was glad I found 'Islamic finance in the global economy'. It is by far the best, most comprehensive and most readable book on the subject. The author has an encyclopedic knowledge of the subject in all its ramifications (religion, finance, economics, politics, history, etc.), yet his erudition does not stand in the way of clarity. Indeed, Warde is a superb writer, and the book can be read and enjoyed by a wide range of readers - bankers and other professionals, academics and researchers, students, etc. While the book's lucid and fluid style makes it accessible to those who are new to the subject, itwillbe equally valuable to those well versed in the subject: academics, experts, Shari'ah advisers (who will not doubt use it as a handy reference book). Indeed it is heavily footnoted and has a comprehensive index. As the title indicates, it is a book about Islamic finance 'in the global economy'. As such it provides a welcome departure from most books on the subject, which are really about theology, and not about the 'real world' of Islamic finance. One criticism of the book is its rather steep price. Although it is in my opinion worth every penny, the book will be out of the reach of most of its potential audience.The publisher may assume that bankers can afford it, but I feel that its potential audience is much larger: certainly all students of Islamic economics and finance will want to read it. (I assume however that there will be at some point a paperback edition.) M. Osman, London ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Development - Economic Development    5. Finance    6. Financial institutions    7. International - Economics    8. Islam    9. Islamic countries    10. Religious aspects    11. Business & Economics / Economics / International    12. International economics   

Subjects:  1. Description And Travel    2. History    3. History - General History    4. History - U.S.    5. Potomac River    6. Potomac River Valley    7. Travel    8. United States - State & Local - General    9. Business & Economics / Economic Development    10. Mid-Atlantic States    11. Reference, Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects   

Reviews (5)

not quite a textbook
This book is a treatise of the most recent works in endogenous growth theory, and so it may be inappropriate to be used as a textbook for a course.Although the exercises are explained, it seems that this book cannot be feasibly used for self-study because, as the reviewer below me pointed out, you need someone to fill in the gaps.Nevertheless, the authors do a great job in explaining the intuition behind the difficult technical papers that make up this book.I think this book would be useful for those masters/doctoral students who are preparing/writing their thesis.The explanations and the bibliography can guide them and enable them to get many ideas for their paper.

Good theory, Poor presentation
To read this book effectively, you really need to have the articles that the authors cited in the book, especially their own articles. One of the principal books about the modern economic growth
"Endogenous Growth Theory" by Philippe Aghion and Peter W. Howitt is one of the best book about economic growth theory who I've seen. This book together with "Advanced Macroeconomics" by David Romer and "Economic Growth" by Robert Barro and Xavier Sala-I-Martin are the principal books about all the modern economic growth theory. I recommend very much this book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Development - Economic Development    5. Economic Development    6. Economic aspects    7. Economics - General    8. Endogenous growth (Economics)    9. Sustainable development    10. Technological innovations    11. Business & Economics / Economics / General    12. Development economics    13. Economic theory & philosophy    14. Impact of science & technology on society    15. Industry & Industrial Studies   

Subjects:  1. Business & Financial    2. Economic aspects    3. Intellectual property    4. Legal Reference / Law Profession    5. Political Science    6. Politics/International Relations    7. Public Policy - Economic Policy   

Reviews (1)

A very nice first study !
This work asks the question if the world's financial markets and those who work in and around them are a force for sustainable human progress, or if they are against it. Related to this question two more further, fundamental questions are asked : Do the financial markets encourage a short-termist,profits-only mentality that ignores much human and environmental reality ? Or are they simply tools that reflect human concerns, and so will eventually reflect disquiet over poverty and the degradation of nature by rewarding companies that treat people and the environment in a responsible manner ?Read more

Subjects:  1. Banks & Banking    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Development - Economic Development    6. Economic Development    7. Environmental Economics    8. Finance    9. Management - General    10. Banking    11. Business & Economics / Management    12. Development economics    13. International economics    14. Sustainability   

Reviews (2)

Interesting Work
I had a love/hate relationship with this book. First, and this is purely a stylistic point, I believe it could have been far better edited. It was an avalanche of statistics, statistical analyses, and presented results without a lot of discussion of why relationships emerged. Their first goal -- showing development does not "cause" democratization is, I believe, a revamp of earlier published work. It is, nonetheless, an important finding that is worth repeating. Monumental Work!!!
Too many conjectures and too many theories have been addressed concerning the relationship between polities and material well-being in the world. But they have been raised without a proper test of them, without empirics. This book completely cleans all kinds of intellectual garbages, clarifies the existi