The Reading Group in Economics is a one-credit-hour opportunity for sophomores, juniors, and seniors of any major to read and discuss a book in economics each semester. Students receive the book for free thanks to a grant from the Institute for Humane Studies. Each week students read a chapter, submit two discussion questions, and discuss the book.
Discussion is primarily student-led. My own role is mainly as a moderator to keep the queue and keep the discussion going from the cache of questions sent during the week. The goal of the Reading Group is to be a safe place to explore ideas. No topic or idea is strictly off-limits, though I will steer the discussion back to the reading if it gets too off-topic. You are always welcome to challenge an idea, but never to attack a participant. By the same token, don’t take offense if your ideas are challenged by another participant.
In many years the book author has joined us via Zoom on the final meeting for a Q&A with the Reading Group.
Selected Titles
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William Easterly – The Elusive Quest for Growth: Economists’ Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics
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Berg, Allen, Davidson, Lane, & Potts – Unfreeze: How to Create a High Growth Economy After the Pandemic
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Scott Sumner – The Money Illusion: Market Monetarism, the Great Recession, and the Future of Monetary Policy
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Gregory Clark – A Farewell to Alms: A Brief Economic History of the World
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Kyle Harper – Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History
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Bart Wilson – The Property Species: Mine, Yours, and the Human Mind
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Ken Binmore – Natural Justice