Customer Reviews

Charting Twentieth-Century Monetary Policy: Herbert Hoover and Benjamin Strong, 1917-1927 (Contributions in Economics and Economic History)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This book is without structure or conceptualization. Monetary policy is an important topic, but the author has not addressed it in a worthy manner. Too many questions are left unanswered. How was monetary policy approached by Strong and Hoover? What were the economic traditions which provided the background for the ideas of each. What are the facts and figures describing what actually was going on in the American economy during the early days of the Fed? The author provides no conceptual framework for the poor reader who has to plow through endless quotations unlinked to any rational argument. This book was totally disorganized.

This book is without structure or conceptualization. Monetary policy is an important topic, but the author has not addressed it in a worthy manner. Too many questions are left unanswered. How was monetary policy approached by Strong and Hoover? What were the economic traditions which provided the background for the ideas of each. What are the facts and figures describing what actually was going on in the American economy during the early days of the Fed? The author provides no conceptual framework for the poor reader who has to plow through endless quotations unlinked to any rational argument. This book was totally disorganized.

Like many books of this genre, this book has lots of details, many of which would be important in an economic context. Unfortunately, the book provides no economic context in which to understand the details. The reader looks in vain for a coherent structure to make sense of the facts presented. One gets the impression that the author is unfamiliar with basic economic theory. The reader is left with a sense of unconnectedness and wondering why he spent the time to read the book. Most of the information is available from other sources.

Without any rational structure of analysis, this book piles high the trivia. Please, all "academic" authors out there, don't just list facts. Give the reader who has paid for the book some degree of intellectually complex analysis. One gets the impression that books are generated to credential promotions, not the enhance knowledge.

Like many books of this genre, this book has lots of details, many of which would be important in an economic context. Unfortunately, the book provides no economic context in which to understand the details. The reader looks in vain for a coherent structure to make sense of the facts presented. One gets the impression that the author is unfamiliar with basic economic theory. The reader is left with a sense of unconnectedness and wondering why he spent the time to read the book. Most of the information is available from other sources.

Wueschner's study of the creation of Federal Reserve monetary policy early in the twentieth century is a carefully thought-out and written exegesis. It is placed in the essential economic context for general readers. Wueschner did not write exclusively for professional economists or professional historians. His work has been widely reviewed in the academic literature. The reviews, as might be expected for a controversial book on a controversial topic, have included both positive and negative comments with nearly every reviewer concluding that Wueschner's work is a contribution to the discipline of monetary history worthy of reading and evaluation by a wide audience. This work has been cited in recent studies that include articles published by the Federal Reserve System. Wueschner's book does not fit into the categories offered by the nameless reviewers who have offered evaluations for Amazon.com to date. It is not the book of the century. Nevertheless, it is not a weakly-written and poorly researched product. The book will stand on its merits and I think it will be part of the monetary history literature when most of what is being published today has been discarded.

Wueschner's study of the creation of Federal Reserve monetary policy early in the twentieth century is a carefully thoughtout and written exegesis. It is placed in the essential economic context for general readers. Wueschner did not write exclusively for professional economists or professional historians. His work has been widely reviewed in the academic literature. The reviews, as might be expected for a controversial book on a controversial topic, have been included both positive and negative comments with nearly every reviewer concluding that Wueschner's work is a contribution to the discipline of monetary history worthy of reading and evaluation by a wide range of readers. This work has been cited in recent studies that include articles published by the Federal Reserve System.. It is not the book of the century. Nevertheless, it is not a weakly-written and poorly researched product. The book will stand on its merits and I think it will be part of the monetary history literature when most of what is being published today has been discarded.

Dearest Reader, do not let the negativity of the previous reviews deter you from giving this wonderful tome a fighting chance. Dr. Wueschner's account of the gripping struggle of early economists to accomplish the things that economists should be expected to accomplish is an enlightening tale for all eight people who are interested in the history of monetary policy. Although he may look exactly like Andy Sippowitz from TV's "NYPD Blue," Wueschner is no boorish dunce, and his works are worthy of careful consideration.

This book is an excellent example of clear, decisive writing at his peak. For those familiar with Doctor W's style, you will appretiate the continued use of his writing techniques.

Lord of the Rings: Best book of the century? No! This is it, Man! Dr. W has really outdone himself with this one. Once you start reading, you won't be able to stop! Hats off to Silvano.