'Freakonomics':

There is a great little book out there called Freakonomics which can introduce the initiated into the thought processes of economists as well as entertain and educate all of us. The book is called Freakonomics. Below I have include my review for Audible.com and a link to the Review in the New York Times.

Here is my review for Audible:

This book is a great introduction to modern microeconomic analytical thinking. Despite the title and the (self-?) aggrandizement of a smart economist, the book offers a collection of windows into the often murky working of modern-day academic economics. I would not take the conclusions about crime or parenting or cheating as the final chapter in the analysis of those topics. That is not what this book is about. The heart of this book is how the authors strip out pedantic writing and academic jargon to lay bare the thought processes of a mainstream (despite the claims of the book) economist.

Take care before you read it. If you can not take an objective look at some difficult issues and question your own beliefs and unproven presumptions, this book is not for you. If you held your knee-jerk condemnation of Larry Summers' comments on women in science until you could form your own opinion from the actual text of his speech, then this book is for you.

Besides these deeper points, the book is also informative, challenging, entertaining and well-written. Read it!

Here is the NYTimes Review:

BOOKS / SUNDAY BOOK REVIEW | May 15, 2005
'Freakonomics': Everything He Always Wanted to Know
By JIM HOLT
Steven Levitt has claimed a host of everyday riddles as fair game for the economist.

'Freakonomics': Everything He Always Wanted to Know - New York Times