Stanley Engerman and Kenneth Sokoloff: Economic Development in the Americas since 1500: Endowments and Institutions: The Economic History Research Frontier: A Great Recent Books Approach
Reading: Robert Gordon: The Rise and Fall of American Growth: The U.S. Standard of Living Since the Civil War: The Economic History Research Frontier: A Great Recent Books Approach

Robert Allen: From Farm to Factory: A Reinterpretation of the Soviet Industrialization Experience: The Economic History Research Frontier: A Great Recent Books Approach

Robert Allen: From Farm to Factory: A Reinterpretation of the Soviet Industrialization Experience http://amzn.to/29lo36h

Supplementary:

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Five Orienting Questions:

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This course will provide students with an introduction to the research frontier in economic history by studying a carefully curated list of recent books in the field. We will undertake a critical reading of these books, focusing on both their strengths and weaknesses. General questions will include the following. Does the topic justify a book-length treatment? Does the author successfully sustain his/her argument throughout the book? What is the role of books, as opposed to articles, in research in economic history (and in economics more generally)? Supplementary readings are provided to point up this last question. Most sessions will be student led, in that students will take charge of presenting the author’s argument and stimulating classroom discussion.

Course template and architecture by Barry J. Eichengreen...


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