isbn0324319169

Reader' Reviews

Good guide to eco 100 / / 2010-07-25
This is a very good introduction to ECO 100. The author, a Harvard professor, is a conservative, but he does not let his ideology interfere with teaching basic principles of economics. It's now available for $2 used, so why not get a copy, even if you're not in school? You'll learn a lot.

For what it's worth, I once contacted the author by e-mail and he responded quickly (faster than my actual ECO 100 teacher).

Review #2 / / 2010-07-12
Great transaction. Book was in excellent shape. Shipped quickly and was received two days ahead of my expectation.

It was great, got here fast as well / / 2010-07-09
The book was everything I needed in more. My teacher told us that we could use this book for class instead of the new edition because it is the same book.

not what I expected / / 2010-06-14
I was looking for a 5TH edition and I received a 3rd. In addition, I paid for a faster delivery and it still was shipped one week after the expected arrival date. I will not order a text book off this site again.

This book is a joke as a college textbook / / 2010-06-05
I ordered this book because it was a requirement for one of my classes and as of so far, have been severely disappointed in my colleges choice in teaching out of this book. I have only read three chapters and with every passing chapter, my incredulity at this book increases. Below you can see a small list of issues that I have with this book.

"Assumptions:"
Under one section, the author claims that economics is a science of 'assumptions.' That is a laugh. Of course, assumptions do have to be made at points, but any sort of reliable science --including the science of economics-- is based on facts. If I stretch my imagination, I can understand Mankiw's point, but someone needs to give him a lesson in grammar and the meaning of words. A quote from the section goes as follows: "Assumptions can make the world easier to understand." I'll leave you to your own devices to decide what you will about that statement.

Differences in judgement:
The book spends nearly the whole second chapter telling us why economists face differences in judgement. Why? Everyone faces differences in judgement, in every train of thought possible. Can someone please tell me how this teaches me anything useful about macroeconomics? As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't. It just wastes my valuable time.

Persuading beliefs???
This has been one of the biggest jokes in the book yet. Am I wrong in thinking that a college book should be as unbiased as possible to let the reader use the faculties he/she posses to draw his/her own conclusions? Isn't one of the main points in attending college to teach you to use critical thinking skills? This books reeks of opinions --poorly veiled opinions at that. Here is another quote directly from the book, and once again, I'll leave you to form your own opinion: "One purpose of
this book is to make you understand the economist's view of these and other subjects and, perhaps, to persuade you that it is the right one.


If you are buying this book for your own personal pleasure I suggest against it as, if you are new to the world of economics, you are digressing in knowledge instead of progressing by reading this. If you are buying this book for college, I know you have little or no choice, but I feel sorry for you (just as I feel sorry for myself) for your loss of time.