A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

by Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner

I should have read this long ago, probably, as its been a bestseller for a couple of years now. But those of us who work in bookstores rarely read bestsellers. I know for me, if that many people are buying it and reading it, then I think something is wrong with it! Book snob.

I finally picked it up because one of the high schools in our area have it on their students’ summer reading list. And I thought, “I can’t have these high-schoolers reading an economics book that I haven’t!” Book snob.

This is not the type of stuff you covered in your university economics class. I felt it was more a sociology book with lots of supporting data. Topics covered include: why do drug dealers live with their mothers, does having an “ethnic” name affect your future station in life, how does legalizing abortion affect the crime rate. Very interesting stuff. I like random facts like this. But because I read it so late in the game, I’ve already heard a lot of these studies before.

Great book if you find the interconnectedness of random events intriguing.