In its fourth edition, "Economics Explained" continues its announced purpose -- to explain that mysterious thing called economics. But there is a new urgency to the book. It is announced in the first sentence of the introduction: "Just in case the reader-to-be hasn't noticed, disturbing things are going on in the American economy these days."This new edition is about these disturbing things: a trend toward inequality of incomes, the appearance of a new "globalized" capitalism, the "specter" of inflation. As before, Robert Heilbroner and Lester Thurow treat these problems in language that seeks to make clear their causes and treatments. In this straightforward, highly accessible reference, Heilbroner and Thurow -- two of America's most respected and articulate economists -- offer all the economics essential for becoming an effective investor, a savvy business decision maker, or simply an informed member of society.

Heilbroner and Thurow are two of today's better-known economists, their commentary more likely to appear in the New Yorker or Newsweek than as a piece in the American Economic Review. This is the substantially revised and updated third edition of their primer on economics. Well written and readable, it successfully targets those with little or no background in the subject, clearly explaining concepts such as the GNP, deficit spending, and price systems. It also provides an overview of the history of economic thought by contrasting the theories of Adam Smith, Karl Marx, and John Maynard Keynes. While economic theories are often likely to be colored by political or moral values, the authors readily identify opinions or statements that may be controversial. David Rouse