Praise for The Economists’ Hour:
"A marvel of popular historical writing." -- The New York Times
A Wall Street Journal Business Bestseller • A New York Times Editor's Choice • Narrative and Biography Book of the Year, Porchlight Business Book Awards • Best Economics Book of 2019, Strategy + Business • One of Oprah Magazine's Best Political Books to Read Ahead of the 2020 Election • One of Book Riot's 50 Best Books to Read this Fall • One of Five Books' Best Political Books of 2019
“Lively and entertaining...The Economists' Hour is a reminder of the power of ideas to shape the course of history.” ―Liaquat Ahamed, The New Yorker
“It is, I will tell you — and this is not just me, a Marketplace geek, saying this — it’s fascinating. It’s totally, totally fascinating.” ―Kai Ryssdal, Marketplace
"His book is a marvel of popular historical writing, propelled by anecdotes and just the right amount of explanation but also impressively well grounded in the latest academic research by historians, sociologists and others. Much of the territory it covers was familiar to me, but I was constantly learning new twists and nuances."―Justin Fox, The New York Times
A “must-read book for our moment.” ―E.J. Dionne, The Washington Post
“A kind of ur-text, revealing the destructive role of centering economists in shaping public policy. It's not that we don't need economists and economic theory, but The Economist's Hour patiently reveals the many times and multiple ways they've had an outsized influence at key times and have steered us wrong. It's a fascinating analysis.” —John Warner, The Chicago Tribune
"Appelbaum has written not just an engaging but an important book. If you want to better understand our current malaise, the election of Donald Trump, the stakes for 2020, and the future of the country, this book will give you both useful perspective and an enjoyable ride along the way." ―Isabelle Sawhill, Democracy
“The Economists' Hour is a work of journalism rather than polemic. It is a well reported and researched history of the ways in which plucky economists helped rewrite policy in America and Europe and across emerging markets.” ―The Economist
"At present, neither economics nor the global economy seems in fine fettle. In the year’s most compelling economics book, Binyamin Appelbaum, an economics columnist at the New York Times, explains why. The Economists’ Hour is a sweeping indictment of the intellectual contributions and policy victories of the eld of economics over the past half century." ―Ryan Avent, Strategy+Business
“Appelbaum paints a lavish group portrait.” —Hamilton Cain, Barnes and Noble Review
“Filled with lively accounts of personalities, ideas and events.” —Edward Hadas, Reuters
“Highly readable biography of big economic personalities.” ―Axios
“A marvelous ride through the evolution of free-market ideas.” ―Chris Johns, Irish Times
“Appelbaum, a New York Times editorialist and former economics beat reporter, writes lucidly about a number of connected subjects: the content of economics scholarship during the postwar era, the highly interpersonal and institution-specific story of how particular ideas and individuals came to have influence with those in power, and, most strikingly, how economists came to enter policymaking and insinuate themselves into the governing class—a distinction among academic disciplines. The result is a convincing historical interpretation that shows both the origins and consequences of economists’ most self-serving myths… No one has told this whole story, operating over multiple economic subfields, as well as Appelbaum.” —Marshall Steinbaum, Boston Review
“Highly informative, provocative and passionate.”—Cass Sunstein
"A thoughtful history of the role of economists in U.S. government and public policy debates...This work offers an intelligent assessment of free-market thought in modern times and the resultant policies and should prove of interest to those interested in public policy."―Library Journal
"This thoroughly researched, comprehensive, and critical account of the economic philosophies that have reigned for the past half century powerfully indicts them."―Publisher Weekly (starred)
"Writing in accessible language of thorny fiscal matters, the author ventures into oddly fascinating corners of recent economic history...Anyone who wonders why government officials still take the Laffer curve seriously need go no further than this lucid book."―Kirkus