A Couple More Book Picks

Fletcher’s Summer School ended a few weeks back so nearly everyone who walks through the building is a member of the staff. Besides the occasional professor, the exceptions are several small groups of students in special programs — one for women from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, one for Critical National Infrastructure Authority officials from UAE, and the third for Armenian Lawyers from Yerevan. I see the students in the library, but there’s not the same level of activity in the Hall of Flags as I’d expect on a normal fall, spring, or winter day. (Check out this newspaper report on the program for Saudi women, and this Fletcher account of last summer’s programs.)

I’ve been keeping an eye out for professors who haven’t yet provided book recommendations. At a reception last week for the special summer students, I thought I had my golden opportunity — but then I saw that all the attending professors had previously provided suggestions. Must remember, next summer, to ask them before they scatter in June! Meanwhile, though, I have a few books to add to your list. (Once again, I’ll mention that these are not required reading. Just suggestions in case you’re looking for a Fletcher-ish book to take to the beach.)

The first pick comes from Prof. Block, who offers several suggestions in his field of development economics: Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet, by Jeffrey D. Sachs; and One Economics, Many Recipes: Globalization, Institutions, and Economic Growth by Dani Rodrik. He also mentioned The Bottom Billion, by Paul Collier, which Prof. Uvin had previously picked. Now we know that economists would agree with Prof. Uvin’s assessment.

While I was searching high and low for professors to provide book choices, Prof. Aucoin had the poor fortune to cross my path. After I aggressively demanded his recommendation, he suggested Jane Stromseth’s Can Might Make Rights: Building the Rule of Law After Military Interventions.

And, I actually have a few books to suggest from the business faculty. If you are entering the MIB program this fall, you already received these suggestions. For everyone else with an international business interest, besides other more specialized books, the professors recommend Billions of Entrepreneurs: How China and India Are Reshaping Their Futures–and Yours, by Tarun Khanna, and The Panic of 1907: Lessons Learned from the Market’s Perfect Storm by Robert F. Bruner and Sean D. Carr, which sounds like it could be valuable reading for anyone watching the economy right now.