Recently Mentioned Books

That is from the quite interesting Why is That So Funny?: A Practical Exploration of Physical Comedy , by John Wright.  The book discusses how improv comedy "models" human behavior, and where else will you find a discussion of how the "Principles of Simple Clown" differ from the "Principles of Pathetic Clown"?

That’s the title of Laurie Viera Rigler’s new and fun book .  The basic premise is that a pouty L.A. girl "wakes up" in the body of a character in a Jane Austen novel; here is the book’s website .  She also finds herself courted by an ardent suitor, Edgeworth, who wants an answer to his marriage proposal and soon.  My wonderings were skewed as usual:

That is from Charles Karelis’s truly intriguing The Persistence of Poverty: Why the Economics of the Well-Off Can’t Help the Poor .

That is from Twinkie, Deconstructed: My Journey to Discover How the Ingredients Found in Processed Foods Are Grown, Mined (Yes, Mined), and Manipulated Into What America Eats , by Steve Ettlinger.  So far this is my pick for the best food book of the year.

It is also claimed that: "Paper bags cause more global warming than plastic."  Here is the book , I’ve ordered it and will report in due time.  In the meantime, here is Ezra’s coverage .

You may recall that we are having the first MarginalRevolution BookForum on Greg Clark’s A Farewell to Alms: A Brief Economic History of the World .  Here is my previous post on the book and how the forum will work.  It’s a great book and I recommend it highly.

Yes my book is out today (B&N here ) but you don’t need to buy it.  You can get it here for free.

I read Darfur: The Ambiguous Genocide , by Gerard Prunier, and was quite impressed.  I thought "what a smart and unbiased introduction to such a difficult topic."  But why was I impressed?  I don’t know nearly enough about the topic to judge the material.

That is from the new Ocean of Air: Why the Wind Blows and other Mysteries of the Atmosphere , by Gabrielle Walker.

That is from the excellent Baboon Metaphysics: The Evolution of a Social Mind , by Dorothy L. Cheney and Robert M. Seyfarth.

Here is one obituary , here is Wikipedia .  His six-hour Scenes from a Marriage is probably my favorite movie, ever (in the more common abridged version only the first installment makes sense, but it is still a knockout). The Seventh Seal is his most overrated movie; Wild Strawberries and Fanny and Alexander are also famous but not his best stuff.  The dreamy Persona is the next one to try, or at 83 minutes probably the best introduction to his work. Winter Light is splendid on a big screen. Smi...

Here is one obituary , here is Wikipedia .  His six-hour Scenes from a Marriage is probably my favorite movie, ever (in the more common abridged version only the first installment makes sense, but it is still a knockout). The Seventh Seal is his most overrated movie; Wild Strawberries and Fanny and Alexander are also famous but not his best stuff.  The dreamy Persona is the next one to try, or at 83 minutes probably the best introduction to his work. Winter Light is splendid on a big screen. Smi...

Here is one obituary , here is Wikipedia .  His six-hour Scenes from a Marriage is probably my favorite movie, ever (in the more common abridged version only the first installment makes sense, but it is still a knockout). The Seventh Seal is his most overrated movie; Wild Strawberries and Fanny and Alexander are also famous but not his best stuff.  The dreamy Persona is the next one to try, or at 83 minutes probably the best introduction to his work. Winter Light is splendid on a big screen. Smi...

Here is one obituary , here is Wikipedia .  His six-hour Scenes from a Marriage is probably my favorite movie, ever (in the more common abridged version only the first installment makes sense, but it is still a knockout). The Seventh Seal is his most overrated movie; Wild Strawberries and Fanny and Alexander are also famous but not his best stuff.  The dreamy Persona is the next one to try, or at 83 minutes probably the best introduction to his work. Winter Light is splendid on a big screen. Smi...

Here is one obituary , here is Wikipedia .  His six-hour Scenes from a Marriage is probably my favorite movie, ever (in the more common abridged version only the first installment makes sense, but it is still a knockout). The Seventh Seal is his most overrated movie; Wild Strawberries and Fanny and Alexander are also famous but not his best stuff.  The dreamy Persona is the next one to try, or at 83 minutes probably the best introduction to his work. Winter Light is splendid on a big screen. Smi...

For any published capital gains rate, it seems there are two or more (and possibly wildly disparate) real rates de facto.  Again, I’m no tax lawyer, but it seems any capital gains tax hike falls disproportionately on the non-diversified (if you hold only one asset and it is a huge winner, where can you get a loss offset from? The quality of your tax accountant probably matters too.  Any other factors?).

That is from Tim Blanning’s The Pursuit of Glory, Europe 1648-1815 ; here is my previous post on the book .

These are from the new and noteworthy Thanks!: How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier , by Robert Emmons:

That is from Medicare Matters: What Geriatric Medicine Can Teach American Health Care , by Christine K. Cassel.  It should be noted that a) Cassel is much more positive about Medicare than that quotation alone would indicate, and b) this is an honest book which recognizes the weight behind many different points of view.

5. The First Word: The Search for the Origins of Language , by Christine Kenneally.  The early chapters have excellent material on the contributions of Chomsky and Pinker, but after that it bored me.

4. Elizabeth Currid, The Warhol Economy: How Fashion Art & Music Drive New York City .  The title says it all.

3. Gunther Grass, Peeling the Onion .  Why oh why oh why do I let myself be fooled.  There is only one author I find flat out too obnoxious to read, and it is this guy.  And that was before I learned of the whole SS business.  I had heard this one is different, but it isn’t.  Or it is, but he’s still too far over the line for that to matter.

2. John Lanchester, A Family Romance .  Imagine finding out your mother was once a nun and then that she led a life of lies.  I would have liked this book much better had it not been fiction.  It felt so real and even has good photos but I am disappointed to keep on thinking it is only a story.

1. Falling Behind: How Rising Inequality Harms the Middle Class , by Robert Frank (the economist Robert Frank).  The best statement of the Frankian world view; every book of his is full of ideas and there are very few authors you can say that about.

That is from new and excellent The Pursuit of Glory, Europe 1648-1815 , by historian Tim Blanning.  The best parts of this book — which are very good indeed — are the early sections on the economic history of transportation.