The Ultimate Field Guide to the US Economy: A Compact and Irreverent Guide to Economic Life in America, New Updated Edition [Paperback]

James Heintz (Author), Nancy Folbre (Author), The Center for Popular Economics (Author), United For a Fair Economy (Author), National Priorities Project (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1565845781 | ISBN-13: 978-1565845787 | Publication Date: April 2000

Updated for the millennium, the latest version of "the best and . . . least solemn guide to the dismal science you are likely soon to encounter" (John Kenneth Galbraith). Revised and expanded with the most recent data, The Ultimate Field Guide to the U.S. Economy is an all-new edition of the classic primer on American economics that Noam Chomsky has called "an invaluable resource" and Juliet Schor has called "essential." As in the past, this highly illustrated guide brings key policy issues to life, reflecting the collective wit and wisdom of the best economic literacy activists in the country. Ten chapters tell you what you need to know about owners, workers, women, people of color, welfare and education, government spending, health, environment, macroeconomics, and the global economy. A glossary and conceptual tool kit help make sense of the facts.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The authors, who are affiliated with the Center for Popular Economics at Amherst, state at the outset that "this book compiles useful information for non-economists (as well as students and teachers) who want to know more about the U.S. economy." Even more reader-friendly than the previous versions, this edition combines easy-to-read charts, graphs, and statistical compilations with short, pithy explanations and cartoons to make each section understandable. The explanation of how interest rates work is especially illuminating. The text, broken into ten chapters with headings like "Owners," "Workers," and "Macroeconomics," offers a wealth of statistical data. Unfortunately, the sources are all at the back, forcing the reader to flip back and forth. Still, this is a small quibble for such a helpful primer. Highly recommended for all school libraries (elementary through college) and public libraries.
-Richard S. Drezen, Washington Post News Research Ctr., Washington, DC
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

A treasure trove of information. Essential for teachers, students, and just about anyone who cares to know how the US economy really operates. There's nothing else like it! -- Juliet Schor, author of The Overworked American

An invaluable resource . . . and, more important, a guide for those who hope to find a way to a future that is more humane and free and just. -- Noam Chomsky

Both more interesting and more disturbing than it sounds. -- Los Angeles Times

Fair, informative, and enjoyable to browse. -- Business Week

This book belongs on the shelf of everyone who wants to be more than just a passive bystander in America's economic future. -- Robert Heilbroner, author of The Worldly Philosophers

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: New Press, The (April 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565845781
• ISBN-13: 978-1565845787
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #555,645 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Top Notch!, September 3, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Ultimate Field Guide to the US Economy: A Compact and Irreverent Guide to Economic Life in America, New Updated Edition (Paperback)

The Field Guide is a pointed critique of the US economy, and in fact IS well referenced with clear citations for all its statistics (see pages 213-222). Most of the information is culled either from government sources or from the corporations themselves, as printed in publications like Business Week, Fortune, and the New York Times. And when there are comparisons made they're relevant; for example, comparing industrialized nations and developing countries exclusively.

What's best about the Field Guide is that it's a clever resource for fighting off all those people who would tell you "I don't believe it." As the title would suggest, The Field Guide provides you with the tools so you too can find and understand economic information yourself. From pages 194-212 you'll find the 'Toolkit', which has neat things like explanations of how to collect your own information and make graphs. Fun stuff.

The Field Guide helps fight the obfuscation of corporate shills.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great handbook for leftists, June 30, 2000

By 

Thomas D. Harrington "archie_leech" (Somerville, MA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Ultimate Field Guide to the US Economy: A Compact and Irreverent Guide to Economic Life in America, New Updated Edition (Paperback)

This is a fun and often surprising look at the U.S. and world economies done in a fun USA TODAY graph style. The range it covers is so wide that I'm often left with further questions about the stats, but that's to be expected. This is a great handbook and jumping off point. Who would think a book on economics would be a page turner?

Most damning statistic: our country's per person spending on health care is higher than all those with socialized health care, yet our life expectancy is one of the lowest of industrialized countries.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just the Most Telling Facts, July 19, 2003

By 

Dana Garrett - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Ultimate Field Guide to the US Economy: A Compact and Irreverent Guide to Economic Life in America, New Updated Edition (Paperback)

Readers seeking an introduction to capitalistic theory and its relationship to the U.S. economy can find better works elsewhere. This book doesn't purport to provide that kind of analysis.

But if readers want a book that provides facts on how capitalism effects individuals in the U.S. across a variety of racial, gender and class lines, then it is hard to imagine a better book than this one. The book is an easy read, but it is by no means simplistic. It is easy because capitalism isn't nearly as successful at providing a fair and equitable standard of living as is commonly held. The book proves that point quite well. Readers might be surprised to discover facts in this book about the U.S. economy that they've never read before. It's a real eye-opener.