GDP: A Brief but Affectionate History
"[A] little charmer of a book . . .GDP: A Brief but Affectionate Historyis just what the title promises. . . . Cowperthwaite himself would nod in agreement over Ms. Coyle's informed discussion of what the GDP misses and how it misfires. . . . Ms. Coyle--a graceful and witty writer, by the way--recounts familiar problems and adds some new ones. . . . [E]xcellent."--James Grant,Wall Street Journal"Anyone who wants to know how GDP and the SNA have come to play such important roles in economic policy-making will gain from reading Coyle's book. As will anyone who wants to gain more understanding of the concept's strengths and weaknesses."--Nicholas Oulton,Science"Diane Coyle's new book,GDP: A Brief But Affectionate History, is a timely contribution to discussions of modern economic performance."--Arnold Kling,American"[E]xcellent."--Adam Creighton,The Australian"Diane Coyle's book is as good a simple guide as we are likely to see."--Samuel Brittan,Financial Times"Coyle does good work explicating a topic that few understand, even if it affects each of us daily. A pleasure for facts-and-numbers geeks, though accessibly written and full of meaningful real-world examples."--Kirkus Reviews"[S]mart and lucid. . . . [S]hort but masterful."--Todd G. Buchholz,Finance & Development"[G]reat (and well-timed) new book."--Uri Friedman,The Atlantic"In a charming and accessible new book, Diane Coyle untangles the history, assumptions, challenges and shortcomings of this popular rhetorical device, which has become so central to policy debates around the world. . . . Coyle's book is a good primer for the average citizen as well as the seasoned economist."--Adam Gurri,Ümlaut"[I]t is interesting and important, particularly when it comes to the emphasis now given to GDP, and the inadequacies of this now time-honoured measurement of how our economies are doing. . . . With clarity and precision, she explains its strengths and weaknesses."--Peter Day,BBC News Business"Diane Coyle has bravely attempted in a recent book to make the subject once more accessible, and even interesting."--John Kay,Financial Times"[T]his is as engaging a book about GDP as you could ever hope to read. It falls into that genre of books that are 'biographies of things'--be they histories of longitude, the number zero or the potato--and is both enlightening and entertaining."--Andrew Sawers,FS Focus