Book Review - Economics in One Lesson

Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hazlitt's book is extremely simplistic and accessible for all people beginning their journey in economics. This book should be a recommended read for first year students of Economics and Business, and I would also argue that it would be ideal for young people that want to better understand America's capitalism system.

The thing that I love the most about "Economics in One Lesson," is that it points out the flaws of America's democratic and capitalism system. It highlights the hypocrisy of it all, the failings of the people that rely on the government for everything and the trust and integrity they have for them, but in the end it is the people's taxes that are literally being gambled with it by a reckless hand.

Hazlitt also stresses the importance of looking at the economy as a whole. He explains that new learners that enter the world of economy tend to look at it in small fragments, but he wants them to look at the bigger picture. This is apparent in his final lines of the book, where he states: "To see the problem as a whole, and not in fragments: that is the goal of economic science." Henceforth, he breaks the novels into sections to highlight the underlying issues that will crop up decades later if bureaucrats, government officials, and even economists dismiss the traditional monetary ideas and fixate on specific parts of the system instead of seeing it as a whole.

The topic of inflation felt so relevant to me, especially in today's economy. The real reason I picked up this book is because I started to see the "writing on the wall" and noticed that there is seriously something wrong with the economy as America slowly trudges its way out of the post-pandemic era. I picked up this book because I wanted Hazlitt to educate me further about economy. Without a doubt, I do not regret picking this book up. It is easily readable and the reason for that is Hazlitt's effortless style of writing as he uses picturesque analogies to further his ideas. Hazlitt is a natural storyteller; the topic of economics quickly becomes engaging for the reader, whether they are a novice or an experienced financial investor.

I will leave a quote down below since it really resonated with me this afternoon. I highly recommend this book for people that can see the writing on the wall and know an economic collapse or something close to the 2008 crisis is looming in the near future.

"Before we consider what the consequences of inflation are in specific cases, we should consider what its consequences are in general. Even prior to that, it seems desirable to ask why inflation has been constantly resorted to, why it has had an immemorial popular appeal, and why its siren music has tempted one nation after another down the path to economic disaster." - Hazlitt

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