Year 12s: what will be the first way you research your future options? >>

First Year Undergraduate Economics Textbook

Next weekend I'm going to Foyle's bookshop and I'm hoping to buy a first year undergraduate Economics textbook. I am currently studying in year 12 and I think it would be quite useful and interesting to see the kinds of things I will be studying when I get to University.

Can anyone offer any advice/thoughts as to particularly good one to buy? If it were to encompass both Micro and Macro that would be great but I presume that you generally buy separate textbooks for each branch? Hopefully the textbook should not be too difficult to understand if it's the starter one.

I have as much money as I need to spend but I would really be looking at one for £30-£50 (if this is reasonable).

If I have missed out anything in the above to help clarify what I want, please just ask.

Thanks for the help,

TheGenius31416

Edit: Also, any advice as to some other books I could buy that would be interesting/helpful is welcome.

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 1

Huskaris

Economics. Lipsey and Chrystal...

Good book.

Reply 2

W.H.T

Original post by Huskaris

Economics. Lipsey and Chrystal...

Good book.

This one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Economics-Richard-Lipsey/dp/0199286418/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292107260&sr=8-1

or this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Economics-Richard-G-Lipsey/dp/0199257841/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1292107260&sr=8-2

also, which universities use that book?

Reply 3

Huskaris

Original post by W.H.T

They are the same book. The top one is the 11th edition, more up to date.

Cass Business School (branch of City (****ty) University, which is exceptionally good when it comes to finances) I'm studying Investment and Financial Risk Management there and the book is pretty useful to those who haven't done loads of economics in the past.

Reply 4

LouboutinLove

We use this one for Economics modules, I find it fairly readable;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Economics-MyEconLab-Mr-John-Sloman/dp/0273721305/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1292107671&sr=1-1

Reply 5

MagicNMedicine

Both the books mentioned are good. I recommend Sloman, it's a big book but it is pretty comprehensive and its the type of book that is still useful as a reference point when you are beyond first year. It may feel a bit daunting when you get it.

I find it useful to get specialist Macro and Micro books, in which case for Macro, Blanchard or Mankiw would be the mainstream texts, and for Micro, Varian, Perloff or Katz & Rosen would be the mainstream texts.

The one thing which can be a bit confusing in Macro is that each book you find tends to use slightly different notation and you can get mixed up if you are trying to refer to two at a time, so when you are at uni I would recommend you get whichever Macro book your course is based on, and just stick to that. When you have mastered it you will be able to understand the different notation style in different books.

Reply 6

yoyo462001

Getting a first year book could just confuse you to be honest, especially since you've probably done nothing more than simple supply and demand diagrams. I would advise against it unless you are prepared to put the effort in. At ~ £50 getting some of these books isn't cheap so just make sure you know what you're getting into. Apart from that I'd recommend sloman.

Reply 7

facetious

John Sloman: Economics.

Reply 8

MagicNMedicine

Principles of Economics by Greg Mankiw is a good starter book, its mainly A level standard with a bit of cross over to 1st year uni, but being Mankiw it has clear explanations and good discussion. You might not find it in a bookshop here but if you can find a second hand version on amazon its worth it.

Reply 9

thegenius31416

Sloman it is. Sounds good.

Any other books (whether cheaper textbooks or any non-mainstream non-textbook) that anyone would recommend?

I found 'Puzzles and Paradoxes in Economics' to be quite a good book, anything like that (something with diagrams and some 'actual' economics). Please, nothing to do with the recent financial crisis.

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 10

MagicNMedicine

The Accidental Theorist, Paul Krugman

Reply 11

thegenius31416

Original post by MagicNMedicine

The Accidental Theorist, Paul Krugman

Thanks.

You currently studying Economics at University?

What kind of economics books do you read in your spare time?

Reply 12

MagicNMedicine

No I graduated a while back. In my spare time I generally read the blogs, like Paul Krugman http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/ , Greg Mankiw http://gregmankiw.blogspot.com/, and the economic articles in the broadsheet newspapers (online).

In terms of books, I read stuff like this:

The Chancellors Tales (Howard Davies) - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chancellors-Tales-Managing-British-Economy/dp/0745638856

Keynes - Return of the Master (Robert Skidelsky) -
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chancellors-Tales-Managing-British-Economy/dp/0745638856

Memoirs of a Tory Radical (Nigel Lawson) -
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Memoirs-Tory-Radical-Nigel-Lawson/dp/1849540470/ref=sr_1_9?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1292197350&sr=1-9

All of those I would recommend as reading if you get a book token etc for Christmas, they are all suitable for the A level student. The Nigel Lawson book isn't an autobiography of his life, its him basically describing the economic issues that came up during his time as Chancellor, him discussing the problems, and explaining why he took the economic policies that he did. There's a lot of discussion in there about fixed against floating exchange rates, and also why, although he's a free marketer by instinct, he opposed privatising the NHS on cost grounds.