The new classics: Most influential economics tomes

The Freakonomics guys are back with a new book (When to Rob a Bank). Here are some of the past decade’s most influential economics tomes:

The Black Swanby Nassim Nicholas TalebRandom House, 2007Taleb published Swan—warning of the potentially catastrophic effects of unforeseen events—in April 2007. Months later came the panic of 2008. Good timing.

Capital in the Twenty-First Centuryby Thomas Piketty Belknap Press, 2014Sure, Piketty is a French socialist whose numbers might be un peu fuzzy, but no econ text in decades made such an impact.

Freakonomicsby Steven D Levitt and Stephen J Dubner William Morrow, 2005 Out-Gladwelling Malcolm Gladwell, this pop-econ sensation examined abortion, the corporate structure of drug gangs and more through an economic lens.Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the Worldby Liaquat Ahamed Penguin Books, 2009What we’ve learnt (and haven’t) from the Great Depression—and how US banks and slow-growth Europe pose a repeat threat.

Predictably Irrationalby Dan Ariely Harper Collins, 2008In this behavioural-econ treatise, Ariely argues that humans’ irrationality is among the most important aspects of economics.