The economics of good and evil

In the Footsteps of Human Enquiry from Gilgamesh to the Financial Crisis

Economic Book of the Year - 1st place at the Frankfurt International Book Fair (Wirtschaftsbuchpreis).

The second, revised edition of the bestselling book by economist Tomáš Sedláček shows how colourfully our ancestors were able to think about property, personal utility, social welfare, and everything else related to economics. The author takes the reader on an adventurous journey to the beginnings of civilisation and, using the examples of the ancient Sumerians, Jews, and ancient thinkers, demonstrates how inspiring it is to follow the transformations of human inquiry through the eyes of an economist. The book has already sold more than 50,000 copies.

"Tomáš Sedláček has shaken the study of economics like few others. The wisdom of philosophers and poets takes precedence in his work over strict mathematical models, which makes his book a groundbreaking work. "
- Oxford University Press

"A beautifully written and compelling book. For at least two-thirds of it, I couldn't put it down or think of anything else. "
- Samuel Brittan, Financial Times

"Fascinating and provocative… A book of such ambitious scope and depth is rarely seen in economics. "
- Robert Nelson, Economic History Association

"Czech culture has always had a certain moral 'drive' and an effort to grasp humanity in the broadest possible sense, where all sorts of obstacles must be set aside. This is also true of Tomáš Sedláček, whose book forces us to look at economics with much more imagination and in a much broader context than we have been used to for generations. "
- Michael Novak, American economist and philosopher