Jason, a loyal MR reader, asks me in an email:
What is a good economic history of commerce and trade? I’m looking for a book, preferably recent, with lots of historical examples of what trade policies can do. It would be a bonus if it integrated theory in with the examples, but that isn’t necessary. I’d also prefer a book written by an economist rather than a historian, since historians tend to get their theory wrong. Rosenberg’s How the West Grew Rich comes to mind, but I wonder about other examples.
I say "Ask and ye shall receive." You could try William J. Bernstein’s new A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World. Readers, do you have other suggestions?
The book on trade and commerce that can simply mesmerize you is Fernand Braudel’s “The Perspective of the World: Civilization and Capitalism 15Th-18th Century”. Volume 2 “The Wheels of Commerce” is certainly fully packed with “lots of historical examples” and clear explanations of what “trade policies can do”. The only thing that this examples and explanations are related to 15-th – 18th century world. But I guess it’s a great thing to start with.
Braudel’s work is interesting as history but not very impressive theoretically. When he ventures too far from history and tries for analysis, things go downhill fast. I would guess it is exactly the kind of work by a non-economist that Jason finds wanting.
Institutions and the Path to the Modern Economy: Lessons from Medieval Trade, by Avner Greif.
Great theory integration, though if you’re looking for modern trade policies then it only lays the foundation.
Douglas Irwin’s Against the Tide: an Intellectual History of Free Trade examines the historical evolution of the idea of free trade alongside the expansion of trade in the wake of the industrial revolution. Highly recommended.
Excuse me, I should have used “theories” instead of “assumptions.” The idea that there are “facts” without “theory” is absurd.
Correction: The author of the T-shirt book is Pietra Rivoli, not Rizzoli. Sorry.
I’ve worked in a library for over a decade and the only title about the history of trade that comes in mind is “The History of a Temptation” by Tom Standage. I don’t know if it will fully serve his purpose but I could provide more advice about selling textbooks rather than their content.
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