The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World | Tim Harford

The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World | Tim Harford | Best of the bunch

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The Logic of Life:...

	The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World Tim Harford Random House, 2008 - 272 pages average customer review:based on 32 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

How small, rational decisions can produce big problems

This book works because it takes a simple concept,that rational choice underlies much of human behavior, and that many of our seemingly intractable problems have been produced by fairly mild and even rational individual decisions. I urge you to begin the book by reading the section on "rational racism," which I found in many ways the most compelling (and disturbing) part of the book. Harford actually begins the book with a discussion of apparently worrying teenage sexuality that turns out to be more encouraging than you might think possible. In doing so he reminds us that many of the things about which we worry,and about which commentators with big audiences shout shrilly, can be explained in a much clearer way by looking carefully at the rational decisions that produce them.

A great book and a fun read.

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Best of the bunch

I think that I have read all of the recent "economics of everything" (Harford's phrase) books and this one is, in my view, the best. I also try to keep up with recent research in applied economics and found some gems in these pages that I had missed. The author alludes to about 200 papers and books from recent economics research and presents them in the most reader-friendly way, all in about 200 pages. I call that very efficient.

Harford's summary is also a useful antidote to all the "behavioral economics" that the popular press has picked up. The idea that some of us depart from rational choice on occasion is hardly news. The point of this book, that the rational choice model, has amazing power range is worth reiterating.

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The very best of the field: superb storytelling, serious analysis

I have read and enjoyed most of the pop-econ genre, including Harford's earlier book "The Undercover Economist: Exposing Why the Rich Are Rich, Why the Poor Are Poor--And Why You Can Never Buy a Decent Used Car!", and this is the best of the lot. The author has grown up since that book and developed into a superb storyteller. "The Logic of Life" is peppered with a cast of remarkable characters (a poker champion, a cold-war strategist who saved the world from a nuclear war, a pair of economists who spied on thousands of speed dates), and the result is a book that you can open on almost any page and immediately you're hooked.
That said, there is a lot of serious stuff here. I think the book will be compared to "Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking" and "Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" more than to "The Undercover Economist", but it ranges more widely than Blink and - a few cute anecdotes aside - it is aimed at more serious social problems than most of Freakonomics.
Not everyone will agree with all the research presented here. Harford usually relies on the very best research out there, but once or twice he presents work by young economists that has not yet been published in serious journals. That work may not stand the test of time, but perhaps that is a price worth paying for a glimpse at the bleeding edge of economics.
In an exciting field, this book is a huge step forward. Unreservedly recommended.

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Fascinating reading: wonderfully clever in an everyday style

This is a cracking fun read for anyone who wants a new angle on familiar problems. It's stimulating and challenging but Harford carries off this trip with a reassuringly everyday style. Very easy to pick up, very readable and ideal for a busy person - you can pick up again after a real-life interruption thanks to Harford's clear but very humorous way of explaining things. A wide range of people would enjoy this. Perfect present material!

A Good Read

Tim Harford's latest is very readable, a worthy progeny of the line that includes "The Tipping Point", "Blink" and of course, Freakanomics.

The book, written in a pleasant, chatty manner, very much like the FT column is based on a very simple premise: that human beings respond to incenitives. He then discusses instances where humans appear to deviate from that basic principle; a bit of probing and analysis invariably shows that the original conclusion was far too simplistic, and that humans, whether its prostitutes having unprotected sex, or humans living in cities that are far too expensive for the wage premuim there (NYC, anyone?) are still responding to clear incentives, just as Smith would have predicted.

Highly recommended for entertainment; those looking for indepth economic analysis would be better advised to go elsewhere.

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reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, page 6, 7

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