Myth-busting, witty, and thought-provoking, Edible Economics serves up a feast of bold ideas about globalization, climate change, immigration, austerity, automation, and why carrots need not be orange. For Chang, chocolate is a lifelong addiction, but more exciting are the insights it offers into postindustrial knowledge economies; and while okra makes Southern gumbo heart-meltingly smooth, it also speaks of capitalism’s entangled relationship with freedom. I'm very used to Europeans and Europe-based gurus (the author is South Korean, but he's made his career in the UK, so I'm counting him in) being awful at analysing South America, save the Spaniards and Portuguese because language and historical ties that continue make them closer and more in touch, but it never ceases to bother me how ill-informed their commentary can be sometimes. Photograph: AsiaDreamPhoto/Alamy View image in fullscreen ‘In chapters with titles such as Noodle and Banana, Ha-Joon Chang sketches out the story of his home country’s rise. P 130: “ [re climate change, the government decides what you eat] “…changing our eating habits can have a big impact….

Ha-Joon Chang offers some unique perspectives on various economic theories, often presenting multiple differing opinions in the same chapter. Anyway, you won't only learn about economics, you'll get plenty of neat historical facts you didn't know about, too. Being a history reader, I knew about events like those told in the Anchovy chapter, the Banana chapter, etc.Government services: the IRS has ancient technology as do air traffic controllers - all thanks to our government leaders. This is the same egomania that underlined Stalin and Mao’s collectivization drives that killed millions. The definitive, behind-the-scenes look at why Pokémon's evolution from a single Japanese video game to global powerhouse captured the world's attention, and how the "gotta catch 'em all" mentality of its fanbase shaped pop culture—and continues to do so today. Chang dismisses alternative economic models – those based on commodity exports, or on services – rather quickly.

Part One is about overcoming prejudice through using the author's own experience overcoming his aversion to food like okra (I can relate, hate that thing), and the next is about becoming more productive, then the third is about doing better globally; and the fourth and last sections are about living together and thinking of the future. and had a basic understanding of some economic phenomena such as industrialisation overtaking raw-materials based economies in terms of income and prosperity. I was worried that this book would be similar to the Jungle and I'd be considering being a vegan after reading this book. So do bear in mind that the book is meant for the general public, the lay public, and not for specialists in economy or history, and that a lot of the things asserted here are the author's opinions and experiences, and tastes in food, which are always personal.But if you're already in the field, read it for the interesting stories on ingredients and gastronomy. Edible Economics is a moveable feast of alternative economic ideas wrapped up in witty stories about food from around the world. This is particularly obnoxious because the author recounts throughout the book his international diet.