For a fairly short book, Sowell packs in a lot (quite a bit like his sentence-as-paragraphs in essays). What is refreshing about Sowell's work is that it is quite accessible for those uneasy with equations and graphs, and he uses a diversity of example to illustrate the concepts. Too often in this type of writing, there is a U.S.-centric and current-day bias. I had thought to wish for an updated version of the book (I bought my copy back in 2005, so it was pre-financial crisis), but given Sowell's examples reach back not only hundreds of years but sometimes thousands of years, that's really irrelevant.

My favorite aspects was learning some history (I went to look up the history of Indian migration to Fiji after reading) as well as geography. The way Sowell writes about economics for the general public places the topic firmly in the humanities, where it belongs.

The good thing about this book is that after the first few chapters, you can start from any chapter and follow/understand the application of a particular economic principle. The bad thing about this book is that for anyone who is familiar with economics, most of these principles have been nailed into their brains over the course of time. If you like these kind of books, I would recommend Freakonomics instead of this book!

I think this is a great book, and I think it was probably even better when it was written. BUT it has not aged well because of its very premise (which is ultimately that one needs to think about powerfdul distant effects as well as weak immediate effects) has weakened the case studies. This isn't surprising, given that the book is like 15 years old now, but it does point out that economists, like anyone else, really don't have a clue as to what the future holds.

Sowell's basic argument: when thinking about a piece of legislation (say, minimum wage laws) one needs to consider distant reasoning as well. Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour will give workers raises. It will also render some jobs unemployable and will also stimulate a "legal" secondary labor market that seeks a below-15 equilibrium (such as unpaid internships and the rise of the microtransactive economy). Makes sense, and in the 90s it made a lot of sense.

Sowell is a conservative, laissez-faire economist, the kind I got a lot of exposure to in undergrad (and, to a lesser extent, grad school), the kind that preached that a rising tide moves all boats upward, that states that try to push equality over efficiency end up being more equal but also overall more poor, and that restricting free trade necessarily means less consumer surplus. All things which I believe remain true. The problem is that no one in the 90s, not even leftists like Krugman, were taking seriously how much a rising inequality gap, which necessarily arose from that, would change the entire socioeconomic dynamic, and in today's worldview it's almost impossible to go back to this ability to speak in terms of comparative advantage and deadweight loss as ends in and of themselves the way people did 20 years ago.

Citizens of Tsarist Russia ate more beef in 1917 than Soviet citizens ever did, as the author notes, and that on the whole they lived better than they did in the Soviet Union for many years to come. But the Revolution came, even in that country that was growing the fastest.

Not as good as Sowell's Basic Economics but a decent companion to it. This book is basically a collection of more real-life examples and data demonstrating the concepts described in Basic Economics. But Sowell only addresses a small handful of issues like healthcare, housing, and so on. The scope of the book is more limited than Basic Economics. I don't recommend reading this if you haven't read Basic Economics.

Fantastic eye-opening read. Economic theory in modern day politics.

I read this book on the heels of Hazlitt's Economics in One Lesson. While the basic lessons covered in both are similar, Sowell gets a lot more creative with his application, covering topics as outside the box as discrimination, geography, climate and navigation. While I've not read Sowell's Basic Economics, I'd imagine most of his lessons therein bleed through in a read of Applied Economics. For that reason, and for the fascinating subject matter, I highly recommend this book to novice and expert alike, especially those looking for a casual introduction to Sowell. In these complex and overly political times, going back to the basics is as refreshing as it is enlightening, particularly as today's politicians head full steam into many of the same pitfalls Sowell and Co. have forewarned about.

I agree with the other reviewers that Sowell's writing simplifies economic principles into easy examples across a variety of topics. He breaks down incentives and constraints for things like incarceration, insurance, mortgage, price controls, cultural assimilation, discrimination, and vaccines. I found it a bit slow at first. The entire book reads as a bit of a rant against policies which neglected future consequences of short term thinking. He mustve used the phrase "think beyond stage 1" about 50 times. It would've been nice to have some examples of policies that effectively planned for the future instead of complaints against all the times that didn't. As Sowell states, economics cannot provide solutions. It can only provide tradeoffs and important questions to pring to policy makers. While he warns against short term thinking, he doesn't provide a framework for how to effectively think for the future. Obviously, hindsight is 20/20.

An enlightening book that dispels the common tropes bandied about the media and political spectrum these days. Even if you have a hard time agreeing with his research and conclusions, his analysis of 'political action' not thinking beyond stage 1, with respect to long term consequences, is an appropriate critique of all political parties.

Yes, this is an economic book, similar to 'Freakinomics' but more brainy.

I have read two Thomas Sowell books and found both to be incredibly enlightening, he is one of the Giants of our age.

A fascinating reminder of the need to think about the (unintended) consequences of policies and well-meaning activists' efforts toward social change. This should be required reading for political leaders, policymakers, and people in general.

However, some of Sowell's arguments may be guilty of oversimplification. His discussion of drug approvals comes to mind. He fails to realize the ethics and science behind the careful progress of clinical trials. Harming someone by offering a weakly proven drug may be worse ethically -- and economically -- than enduring the regulations surrounding drug approval. It is in drug companies' best interests to develop and sell safe and effective medications. Dead patients and lawsuits don't make for high sales, let alone good public relations. "Right-to-try" laws may be a decent middle ground, but the authenticity of patient consent could be questioned since a terminally ill patient may be making a decision that he or she would not normally make. The circumstances could press the decision.

Great follow up to Basic Economics. The last two chapters provide a little more information compared to Basic Economics. The "stage one" mindset is what really stands out in the book. It's something that is visible and relevant and always will be. I recommend this book.

After the reading the first chapter itself I knew I was going to like this book, in fact, Love this book. This book just puts into perspective various things that you have been thinking about throughout your life time. Things that you knew are true but whose affect you couldn't see the in a bigger picture (in political, economical and other socio-economical systems around you). I thought the first few chapters were very powerful and they really did help me in understanding why we cannot just keep asking government to solve our problems without understanding the bigger picture, Why charity is not always a good thing, How someone somewhere will eventually pay the cost of lack of multi-stage thinking.

There is a topic in this book for everyone. Whether Immigration, Discrimination, Housing or Business - just take your pick. Sowell truly was very objective in giving details about how people and systems around us fail to think beyond stage one and are always after the immediate benefits. He gives powerful reasoning and interesting insights describing why we as a society fail to apply multi-stage thinking.

You must remember that this book is just an introductory extended essay on the topic. The Author never tries to force his thoughts over you unlike many other popular books out there. This is a great book especially because many of the things mentioned in it will stick with you for a long time. A must read.

A great one to recommend as it covers multiple topics in a pretty general way. Many issues people care about are covered and not a ton of previous economic knowledge necessary. The organ transplant chapter was my favorite.