Read any good books lately?

Matthew Lynn

When the distinguished economist John Kenneth Galbraith died last month, the obituaries made much of...

When the distinguished economist John Kenneth Galbraith died last month, the obituaries made much of the fact that he spoke to a mass audience in language easy to understand - a trick that might have passed with him. They missed a point, however. As Galbraith died, a whole crop of successors is taking his place. The bestseller lists are suddenly crammed with popular books about economics. In the jargon that economists would understand best, what kind of signal is the market sending us? It is telling us that although old economic issues may have faded away, new questions have arisen. Econ...