I review the economist’s new book on the main NR site.

He addressed a Manhattan Institute luncheon last week — I attended, and one of the things I don’t mention in the review is how he came to do the kind of research he does now. Upon securing tenure, he asked himself if the work he was doing made a difference. The answer he came to was “no,” and now he’s published a book on charity, and the new one on happiness, for the general public.

Of course, technical economic work is important, but it’s also much appreciated when an academic uses his skills to show regular people how to live better.