I’m interested in picking up a couple of books for the summer to read along with Rothbard’s mammouth MES and I’ve singled out a few interesting ones. So if you’ve read them it would be nice if you could review my choices before I go ahead and pick them up.
Walter Block’s Privatization of Roads and Highways
Also, I’ve noticed that several of Dilorenzos books are noteworthy as well. The collection offer at the store is tempting, but I don’t know if I’m ever going to get through them all in the summer. Is there any must read by him?
Also, at this moment I’m avoiding Human Action, because I need to get through MES first.
I’m open to other suggestions as well, so I will list what I’ve read so far (in no particular order):
America’s Great Depression
Economics in One Lesson
Chaos Theory
For a New Liberty
Against Intellectual Property
Mystery of Banking
Economic Thought Before Adam Smith Volume 1
Our Enemy, The State
Defending the Undefendable
What Has Government Done to Our Money?
Anti-Capitalistic Mentality
Bureaucracy
End the Fed
Meltdown
I’m probably missing a book or so and a few short essays (I didn’t count audio lectures here though), but that pretty much sums up what I’ve read thus far (I basically started reading these books around Christmas time. I’ve been reading the site however since early August, but never got around to reading the books until a bit later unfortunately).
Meltdown is a quick and easy read. Although frankly if you’ve listened to any econmic history lectures by Woods you won’t gain much more by reading the book. I started n Defending the Undefendable a while back, need t pick it back up; it’s available free online in pdf form I believe. Block is a decent and straightforward writer.
I would seriously suggest Zinn’s People’s History. If only to know how not to write history. It also makes for a decent read if you don’t treat it like a history book.
The last book, a justification for slavery, might seem odd. But the arguments that FitzHugh presents are decidedly anti-market and it could be argued are the intellectual ancestors of many of today’s anti-capitalist notions. Book is still relevant.
I know some Austrians had positive things to say about Zinn, but I wouldn’t read it for economics either. The premise of the book is nice, but for some reason pg 192 sticks in my head as where I set it down for some economically ignorant statements.
AFAIK, all of these are free online except Meltdown and RP’s book. I found an End the Fed audio DL though.
These books are kind of all over the map. I would figure out what specifically interests you the most then read a bunch of shorter pieces related before any of them, or just concentrate on finishing MES/HA.
Yes, I do like to jump around a bit. I like to switch around the writing styles and language every so often often., it helps keep you focused. Also, I know most of these are free, but I enjoy having a collection in my library as well.
Here’s my order:
Hamilton’s Curse (Dilorenzo)
Privatization of Roads and Highways (Block)
Education: Free and Compulsory (Rothbard)
Place of Economics in Learning (hopefully to help interest my dad further, I recently got him more interested in Schiff)
After I’m done with these books and MES, I will be moving on to tackle HA.
You should consider Money, Bank Credit, and Economic Cycles by Jesus Heurta de Soto. It’s so very good, and would be a wonderful book to read along with MES.
Dilorenzo is more history then economics, so it depends on what you want to read.
I’ve read 2 of his books. Not that into Lincoln right now, so I pass on his 2 Lincoln books. Frankly, I seen enough interview with him on that topic to cover me right now.
“How Capitalism Saved America” is a good history book on the benefits of capitalism/free enterprise. It will give you a good overview of things.
“Hamilton’s Curse” is more political history. It shows the two ‘strands’ of politics in America: Jeffersonian & Hamiltonian. So it gives you a good idea for the political background on what’s going on. Also, it shows the real origins of the 2 major parties. I find it funny that the Democratic party started out as a Jeffersonian/Jacksonian party (talk about betraying your roots), whereas the Republican party started off as a Hamiltonian/mercantist/crony capitalist party (which is why I find it funny that people speak of “getting the republican party back to its constitutionalist roots” when it never had them).
Some other good overview books are some of the “Politically Incorrect Guides” to Capitalism, American History, New Deal/Depression.