Customer Reviews

The Joy of Freedom: An Economist's Odyssey

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a professional economist who is constantly looking for better ways to communicate the essence of economics to non economists, I couldn't be more enthusiastic about Henderson's The Joy of Freedom. Without mind numbing diagrams and equations, Henderson conveys more economic understanding than any of the standard text books I know--and I know a lot of them, having written a few myself. And it is not just economic concepts and the standard perspective on economic efficiency that he communicates so compellingly. With a personal story beautifully woven into the narrative, Henderson shows how humane and socially concerned economists can be (and generally are). Read this book and find out that economists can be passionate in wanting to make this world a better place, and have real guide posts in going about it, guide posts that elevate the ideal of freedom to the central organizing principle. The next time I teach a principles courses I'm going to do my students a tremendous favor by using David Henderson's The Joy of Freedom: An Economists Odyssey as the main text.

In the mid-80s, I took a casual poll of free market leaders:
What are the top-five free-market books for a novice to read?

Every one of them put Henry Hazlitt's "Economics in One
Lesson" on his or her list, typically at the top.

If I were to repeat the poll now, I suspect Hazlitt's classic
will have a contender for first place, my friend David
Henderson's "The Joy of Freedom."

Henderson seduces the reader with his personal stories,
like why as a college kid in Canada he resigned from
a great summer job measuring trees. His stories are
so much fun to read that learning economics kinda
sneaks up on you.

Indeed, it's Henderson's charm that is the anti-dote
for what von Mises called the "Anti-Capitalist Mentality."
(BTW, Mises' book of that title was on many 'top-five'
lists, and Bastiat's "The Law" was on every list.)

You'll want an extra copy or two of "Joy of Freedom"
for lending to friends who do not share your love of
freedom, especially those who will even argue about its
meaning.

David Henderson is my friend and I helped him with this book, so I suppose I'm biased. But my familiarity can help you decide whether to buy this book or not.

The Joy of Freedom is the work of an exceptional teacher who has a skill for communicating economic concepts. It is the result of his lifelong desire to understand the world, to better himself, and to help others. As the reader, we walk side by side with David as he struggles to understand complex and important issues. He tells us stories from his life, from childhood through his successful career as an economist. The result is an interesting, easy-to-read, understandable, and enjoyable book about some of the more pressing problems of our time. How many other books can make that claim?

If you care about your personal retirement assets, your ability to get good health care, the education of yourself or your children, your rights and security, the inner workings of the government, the laws of economics, discrimination, or the environment, this book has something for you. You don't have to agree with everything Dr. Henderson says. In fact, because he is such a good thinker and communicator, his path of discovery should help you on your own, whatever course it may take.

Charles L. Hooper, coauthor Making Great Decisions in Business and Life

I spend a large amount of time searching for books that explain economics in compelling, non-jargony language. There are distressingly few such good books. This book by David Henderson, though, is certainly one of these few.

The reader need not have ever studied economics to enjoy this book. And even the reader who holds a PhD in the subject will not only enjoy this book, but will also learn from it -- learn how to communicate better as well gain even deeper insights into the ways markets and politics work.

One reason why economics is such an enduring subject is that continued reflection on its principles never stops deepening our understanding of the world. David Henderson is among the very finest guides to the fascinating subject of economics. I sincerely hope that all citizens will read this book -- and that all economists will read it twice.

There is a saying that people don't care what you know until they know that you care. In "The Joy of Freedom," Dr. Henderson not only articulates what he knows, he demonstrates that he cares.

I've been an advocate of freedom for many years and the last thing I need to read is another primer on why the free market is better than the heavy hand of government intervention. This intellectual argument has been won many times over, but we still live in a world dominated by pro-interventionist view points. Why is this? Because trying to win people's minds without also winning their hearts is futile. This is where we as freedom advocates have so often failed. We have been so busy concentrating on the intellectual arguments that we have forgotten that we are trying to appeal to people. Human beings that need to be reassured that we have values that they share and that we care about the same things that they care about.

This is where "The Joy of Freedom" is so wonderful. We don't just see into the author's mind, we also see into his heart. This book is not just an intellectual argument for freedom, but is also David Henderson's personal story and that is what sets the book apart from and clearly above other books that cover similar material.

I'm certain that there isn't a single economic explanation in this book that I've haven't heard before (as I said, I've been around this topic for awhile), but I still loved this book because it touched me on a personal level. I think it will also personally touch many readers for whom the intellectual arguments are new territory.

To David Henderson I can only say, "Thank you for sharing."

This is an enjoyable book. It is part autobiography and part political philosophy and, perhaps best of all, it provides well supported and practical solutions to many of our country's biggest problems -- including the environment, public schools, social security and medicare, health care, etc. I rarely read a book where I feel, as I did with this one, that I would love to meet the author and discuss these issues. A very clear and intelligent writer who doesn't pretend to know all the answers. He clearly has a great deal of experience with these issues but has none of the ego or arrogance that we so often see these days. This is an excellent book.

Henderson is one of the few economists who can cogently communicate the "Joy of Freedom" passionately to an audience new to the magic of markets without getting sidetracked. Too often, when one reads introductory economics texts they cast the science as boring, impassionate, and overly analytical. Most other introductory books I've read begin by prematurely stating that economists must be value neutral and going on to immediately talking about supply, demand, elasticity, and trying to use a graph of supply and demand with an extra line and some shading to convince new, reluctant minds that policies such as price controls and the minimum wage are inefficient. This runs in sharp contrast to the introductory texts of other sciences, such as sociology and psychology, which openly begin with sometimes corny lines about the relevance of their thoughts and feelings to society. Although I believe that the authors in these other sciences often lack a solid background in critical thought and data analysis, they generally are more effective in getting new people to think about their fields.

Henderson is the welcome and notable exception that tactfully extends the "invisible hand" to readers who might hold very biased prejudices against economics and economists to guide them to a whole new world of thought and analysis. Through a collection of personal experiences backed by a reasonable and digestible amount of economics in each chapter, he is effective in his goal of doing what most economists cannot -- explaining the most relevant aspects of economics to the most important audience. Ultimately the effectiveness of the highlighting the implications of public policy for the lives of common people is more influental in changing the world than any article in the American Economic Review. While adding to existing knowledge is vital, attracting new thinkers and altering the biased beliefs of the Median Voter is at least equally as important.

This book is one of the most spiritually emancipating books I've read in a while. In it the author removes the concept of freedom from the tired sepia tones of historic context and reveals a living, breathing, relevant freedom with joyous implications. In well reasoned, objective and palatable terms, supported by personal experience and scholarly research, he guides the reader through an expanded definition of freedom as it relates to self worth, education, economics, income, community, taxes, health care, the environment and other areas. In virtually every facet of society the evidence builds toward a quite natural conclusion. The greater the level of freedom in society the more the citizenry can join in the "pursuit of happiness" intended by our forefathers.

Professor Henderson does not disappoint with this book. During the early 1990s, I had the pleasure of taking a class from Professor Henderson at the Naval Postgraduate School. Professor Henderson was then, and I expect he still is, one of the most popular teachers at the school. That isn't because he's an easy grader or that he has an incredible grasp of economics. It is because he possesses an innate ability to communicate the most difficult of subjects with ease and clarity. He is an engaging advocate for liberty. In fact, economics is not the dismal science when he instructs.

He explains, in a sometimes-personal way, how markets work and many of the issues that we face today with a pointed lucidity. The arguments put forward are not new. In fact, I'd be surprised if many readers have not heard them already. What makes this book different and so enjoyable is how Professor Henderson's optimistic outlook and perspective pervades his explanation of issues so critical to our understanding of the world and our personal freedom. More importantly, Professor Henderson is an advocate for liberty. In a world that is increasingly controlled by government, this is a must read.

Buy this engaging book if for no other reason than to read the author's lucid explanation of the federal health care cost mess. Before reading it, I thought that health care economics was incredibly complicated, "solved" only by policy wonks with piles of regulations. However, David Henderson shines the light of free-market thinking onto the issue, illustrating how we can be "free and healthy at half the cost". He is especially compelling answering fears that deregulation will lead to a two-tier health care system, one for the rich and another for the poor. In fact, I am now convinced that getting the government out of this business will increase access to doctors, medicines, and good care by consumers at all income levels.