Economics and Finance

For Luck or Merit: On Jessi Streib’s “The Accidental Equalizer”
Johann Neem reviews Jessi Streib’s new book, “The Accidental Equalizer: How Luck Determines Pay After College.”...
Johann N. NeemNov 18
- Education
The Hollywood Strikes: How Storytelling Won the Day for Writers
Alessandro Camon discusses the role storytelling played in the success of the WGA/SAG-AFTRA strike in Hollywood....
Alessandro CamonOct 15
Crony Capitalism, 16th-Century Style: On Philip J. Stern’s “Empire, Incorporated”
Dinyar Patel reviews Philip J. Stern’s “Empire, Incorporated: The Corporations That Built British Colonialism.”...
Dinyar PatelOct 7
- History
The New Scarcity Studies: On Two New Socioeconomic Histories
Scott R. MacKenzie reviews two new books on the theory of socioeconomic scarcity....
Scott R. MacKenzieSep 25
- Politics and Economics
The Chinese Restaurant on Main Street, USA: On Zai Liang’s “From Chinatown to Every Town”
Weiling Deng considers Zai Liang’s “From Chinatown to Every Town: How Chinese Immigrants Have Expanded the Restaurant Business in the United States.”...
Weiling DengSep 23
Weaponized Plumbing: On Henry Farrell and Abraham L. Newman’s “Underground Empire”
Krzysztof Pelc mostly agrees with Henry Farrell and Abraham L. Newman’s “Underground Empire: How America Weaponized the World Economy” but quibbles that it’s hard to draw the line between the peculiarly 21st-century type of influence they describe—which flows from fiber-optic cables, data centers, and dollar clearinghouses—and more conventional types of power....
Krzysztof PelcSep 13
You Can Always Get What You Want: On “The Big Chill” and American Politics
Henry M. J. Tonks explains how Lawrence Kasdan’s “The Big Chill” gets generational politics all wrong—and why we still need to watch it....
Henry M. J. TonksSep 7
- Film
- Television
How to Destroy a Creative Industry (And How to Save It)
Alessandro Camon discusses the WGA/SAG strike as a turning point for Hollywood....
Alessandro CamonSep 3
- Film
- Politics and Economics
Illicit, Offshore, Shadow, Invisible: Financial Thrillers and Global Capital
In a preview of LARB Quarterly, no. 38: Earth, Editor-in-Chief Michelle Chihara explores the opaque world of global finance....
Michelle ChiharaJul 24
- LARB Quarterly
The Future of Futures: On Kalshi and Prediction Markets
Addis Goldman and Max Hancock trace the genealogy of Kalshi, a prediction market that trades in a range of futures....
Addis Goldman, Max HancockJul 9
Contraction: When Hollywood Gets Smaller
J. D. Connor writes about the writers’ demands in the WGA strike in Hollywood, and about how movies about contracts relate to a downturn in production. Are we entering an era of contraction?...
J. D. ConnorJun 28
- Film
Rigged Capitalism and the Rise of Pluto-populism: On Martin Wolf’s “The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism”
Jonathan Kirshner reviews Martin Wolf’s “The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism.”...
Jonathan KirshnerMay 14
Economies of Human Trafficking: A Conversation with Melissa Hope Ditmore
Eleanor J. Bader speaks with Melissa Hope Ditmore about her new book “Unbroken Chains: The Hidden Role of Human Trafficking in the American Economy.”...
Eleanor J. BaderMay 8
The Professional Utopians: On J. Bradford DeLong’s “Slouching Towards Utopia”
Andrew Koppelman reviews J. Bradford DeLong’s “Slouching Towards Utopia: An Economic History of the Twentieth Century.”...
Andrew KoppelmanMar 27
How to Be a Poverty Abolitionist: On Matthew Desmond’s “Poverty, by America”
Paul W. Gleason reviews Matthew Desmond’s “Poverty, by America.”...
Paul W. GleasonMar 21
How We Learned to Love “Free” Markets
Rebecca L. Spang reviews Jacob Soll’s “Free Market: The History of an Idea” and Stefan Eich’s “The Currency of Politics: The Political Theory of Money from Aristotle to Keynes.”...
Rebecca L. SpangMar 11
A Revolutionary Hate to Salvage Utopian Love: On China Miéville’s “A Spectre, Haunting”
Hugh Charles O’Connell reviews China Miéville’s “A Spectre, Haunting: On the Communist Manifesto.”...
Hugh Charles O’ConnellFeb 18
- Speculative Fiction
Eat, Pray, Know When to Hold ’Em: A Profile of Annie Duke
LARB’s editor-in-chief, Michelle Chihara, profiles the elusive pokergenius–turned-author Annie Duke....
Michelle ChiharaJan 26
The Funnel and the Horn: On Reinventing James Cameron’s “Avatar”
J. D. Connor analyzes how cultural shifts in the relationship between movies and money made James Cameron’s initial record-breaking blockbuster “Avatar” somewhat forgettable while the Disney marketing machine is now going to try to reinvent the franchise...
J. D. ConnorDec 16, 2022
- Film
Green Capitalism Is a Scam: A Conversation with Adrienne Buller
Writer Cal Turner and Sara Van Horn interview Adrienne Buller, author of “The Value of a Whale.”...
Cal Turner, Sara Van HornOct 27, 2022
What Comes After the Bailout State?
Martijn Konings discusses implications of government bailouts within the neoliberal order and potential futures for the post-bailout state....
Martijn KoningsOct 14, 2022
- Philosophy
Visible Faultlines: A Conversation with the Authors of “Unprecedented? How COVID-19 Revealed the Politics of Our Economy”
In “Unprecedented? How COVID-19 Revealed the Politics of Our Economy,” a group of political economists use a single and precise metaphor — photosynthesis — to bring the broad social consequences of the pandemic into focus....
Michelle ChiharaOct 6, 2022
- Science & Technology
Silver Screen Diplomacy: On Erich Schwartzel’s “Red Carpet” and Karen Ma's “China’s Millennial Digital Generation”
Susan Blumberg-Kason puts into conversation two books about the intertwined US-Chinese film industries, Erich Schwartzel’s “Red Carpet” and Karen Ma’s “China’s Millennial Digital Generation.”...
Susan Blumberg-KasonSep 26, 2022
- Film
- Translation
Ruling Class in Session: On Charlie Eaton’s “Bankers in the Ivory Tower”
Dennis Hogan considers Charlie Eaton’s “Bankers in the Ivory Tower”...
Dennis M. HoganAug 5, 2022
- Politics and Economics