Shelfology Book Pairing

by Milton Friedman

"First published in 1962 and based on a series of lectures from 1956, Milton Friedman's Capitalism and Freedom provides the definitive statement of an immensely influential economic philosophy-one in which competitive capitalism serves as both a device for achieving economic freedom and a necessary condition for political freedom. In short, the book asks: how can we benefit from the promise of government while avoiding the threat it poses to individual freedom? The result is an accessible text that was selected by the Times Literary Supplement as one of the "hundred most influential books since the war." Enduring in its impact and esteem, the book has sold well over half a million copies in English, has been translated into eighteen languages, and continues to profoundly inform economic thinking and policymaking. This edition includes prefaces written by Friedman for both the 1982 and 2002 reissues of the book, as well as a new foreword by Binyamin Appelbaum, economics editor for the New York Times and author of The Economists' Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society (Little, Brown, 2019)"--

by Adam Smith

Adam Smith’s masterpiece, first published in 1776, is the foundation of modern economic thought and remains the single most important account of the rise of, and the principles behind, modern capitalism. Written in clear and incisive prose, The Wealth of Nations articulates the concepts indispensable to an understanding of contemporary society; and Robert Reich’s Introduction both clarifies Smith’s analyses and illuminates his overall relevance to the world in which we live. As Reich writes, “Smith’s mind ranged over issues as fresh and topical today as they were in the late eighteenth century—jobs, wages, politics, government, trade, education, business, and ethics.” Introduction by Robert Reich • Commentary by R. H. Campbell and A. S. Skinner • Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide