Knowledge that Transforms

Anat R. Admati of Stanford University reviews “Unjust Debts: How Our Bankruptcy System Makes America More Unequal” by Melissa B. Jacoby. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Explores the impact of the bankruptcy system, promoting the argument that the present structure of reorganization cases has compromised policy objectives distant from bankruptcy's intended domain.”

Dania V. Francis of University of Massachusetts Boston reviews “The Black Tax: 150 Years of Theft, Exploitation, and Dispossession in America” by Andrew W. Kahrl. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Discusses the history of racialized tax structures and the predatory practices that flourished within them in the United States, tracing these structures and practices from the Reconstruction through the first two decades of the twenty-first century.”

Saumitra Jha of Stanford University reviews “Pax Economica: Left-Wing Visions of a Free Trade World” by Marc-William Palen. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Examines the anti-imperialist dissent that accompanied the global spread of imperialism, focusing in particular on how free-trade cosmopolitanism facilitated the international peace and anti-imperialist movements that occurred from the mid-nineteenth century to the present.”

The categories listed below are used to classify books, book reviews, journal articles, and dissertations indexed in JEL and 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.”

Farley Grubb of University of Delaware reviews “The Forgotten Financiers of the Louisiana Purchase: European Bankers, the US, and the Rise of International Finance” by Larry Neal. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Examines the financial details of the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, focusing on the role played by key actors and companies in bringing about financial innovation and facilitating a transaction that doubled the size of the original United States and helped set the country on a path to global power.”

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.

Jishnu Das of Georgetown University reviews “Accelerating India’s Development: A State-Led Roadmap for Effective Governance” by Karthik Muralidharan. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Explores ways of improving the functioning of Indian governance and accelerating its development, focusing on state-level governance and the delivery of public services.”

Marc F. Bellemare of University of Minnesota reviews “The New Breadline: Hunger and Hope in the Twenty-First Century” by Jean-Martin Bauer. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Examines the societal causes of and solutions to hunger, highlighting the systems of racism, classism, and sexism that prevail in hunger-prone countries.”

The categories listed below are used to classify books, book reviews, journal articles, and dissertations indexed in JEL and 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.”

Ricardo Nunes of University of Surrey, CIMS, and CfM reviews “The Fiscal Theory of the Price Level” by John H. Cochrane. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Considers ways to make fiscal theory accessible, developing stories and intuition for how it can help facilitate an understanding of the world. Explores a simple two-period fiscal theory model with perfectly flexible prices, constant interest rates, short-term debt, and no risk premiums, in addition to a simple intertemporal model.”