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RR 2010/63 The Princeton Encyclopedia of the World Economy Editors-in-Chief Kenneth A. Reinert and Ramkishen S. Rajan Princeton University Press Princeton, NJ and Oxford 2009 2 vols ISBN 978 0 691 12812 2 £150/$250
Keywords Encyclopaedias, World economy
Review DOI 10.1108/09504121011021724
There is no better time than now to study the world economy. Interest in things economic, and globally economic, has understandably diffused in recent years to us all: it is no longer the exclusive domain of specialists. Even so, we continue to need experts to explain and interpret the many complex concepts and models, institutions and agreements, policies and instruments, analytical tools and sectoral issues, do this in a clear historical context, and highlight why they are important and where the future might go. This new encyclopaedia fulfils these aims very well indeed, and is targeted mainly at the school and college and academic/research library market, and in particular students, teachers and lecturers.
Physically, it is a two-volume work measuring eight inches by ten (some 20 by 26 centimetres), sturdily bound, text in two-columns clearly displayed on good white paper, text interspersed with occasional graphs and diagrams. The introductory material in volume I includes the editors' introduction (which picks out international trade, finance, production, and economic development as major lines of attack), and alphabetical and a topical list of entries, and a list of contributors (specialists from around the world, from universities and organizations like the International Monetary Fund). Volume II reproduces the prelims but not the editors' introduction, allowing use of each volume independently. However, only volume I contains the index (a fine piece of work extending from page 1203 to page 1246). Reinert and Rajan are both professors of...