Knowledge that Transforms

Eric Chaney of University of Oxford reviews “Conquests and Rents: A Political Economy of Dictatorship and Violence in Muslim Societies” by Faisal Z. Ahmed. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Examines how the institutional legacy of Muslim conquest is a robust determinant of less cohesive institutions in contemporary Muslim societies, detailing how variation in economic rents explain ebbs and flows of dictatorship and propensity for civil wars in these societies.”

Editor's Note Our policy is to annotate all English-language books on economics and related subjects that are sent to us. A very small number of foreign-language books are called to our attention and annotated by our consulting editors or others. Our staff does not monitor and order books published; therefore, if an annotation of a book does not appear six months after the publication date, please write to us or the publisher concerning the book.

The list below specifies doctoral degrees conferred by U.S. and Canadian universities during academic year July 2022 to June 2023. Lists of degree recipients and subject classifications are provided by the university. Note: Dissertations without classifications may be found under “Y Miscellaneous Categories.”

Kelly Vosters of University of North Carolina at Charlotte reviews “The Myth That Made Us: How False Beliefs about Racism and Meritocracy Broke Our Economy (and How to Fix It)” by Jeff Fuhrer. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Examines the ways that false narratives concerning race, poverty, and the sources of success in the United States negatively affect the economy, detailing how those with wealth and power have used such narratives to maintain the status quo in a system that slants outcomes toward the already successful.”

The categories listed below are used to classify books, book reviews, journal articles, and dissertations indexed in JEL, JEL on CD, EconLit. New changes to the classification system appear as soon as possible on www.econlit.org . The JEL classification system may be used freely for scholarly purposes. We suggest the following format: “JEL: A10, B10, etc.”

Rachel M. McCleary of Harvard University reviews “The Economics of Religion” edited by Robert M. Sauer. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Twelve papers examine the interconnection between religiosity and economic principles, highlighting future directions for research in the emerging field of the economics of religion.”

Neil Fligstein of Department of Sociology, University of California reviews “The Ends of Freedom: Reclaiming America’s Lost Promise of Economic Rights” by Mark Paul. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Explores the role of the state in structuring and limiting the reach of markets, promoting the view that the United States can eradicate poverty and build an economy that works for everyone by adopting social and economic rights.”

Editor's Note Our policy is to annotate all English-language books on economics and related subjects that are sent to us. A very small number of foreign-language books are called to our attention and annotated by our consulting editors or others. Our staff does not monitor and order books published; therefore, if an annotation of a book does not appear six months after the publication date, please write to us or the publisher concerning the book.