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chucke8338's review against another edition
4.0
I couldn't finish the final section: Philosophical Dictionary: enough of the jokes I'm done.
But I really liked this book. It showed that Adam Smith was not a pure freemarketeer, BUT also that he was flawed. "The Wealth of Nations" seems to be a great tome BUT ALSO a stream of thought.
But I really liked this book. It showed that Adam Smith was not a pure freemarketeer, BUT also that he was flawed. "The Wealth of Nations" seems to be a great tome BUT ALSO a stream of thought.
carolina75011's review against another edition
3.0
A causual, easy read and probably not a terrible choice if you want to know what Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations is all about without having to read it yourself. I came away feeling like I still need to read Wealth of Nations myself though. It's not a scholarly work, and I wondered what things O'Rourke left out or overly-editorialized. P.J. O'Rourke is not at his funniest here though, and often comes off flat or glib. Entertaining, but hardly a must-read.
markrz's review against another edition
3.0
Thought it would be funnier, but it is a pretty good introduction to Smith.
skylarh's review against another edition
3.0
This is certainly not P.J. O'Rourke at his funniest, although it does have flashes of laugh out loud humor. That's because On the Wealth of Nations is an actual introduction to and overview of The Wealth of Nations. It is vastly preferable to reading Adam Smith's tome.
oconnorkim15's review against another edition
2.0
Usually PJ O'Rourke has more humor in his writings. This was still rather dry and was challanging for me to finish.
aront's review against another edition
4.0
While I found O’Rourke’s “wit and humor” to be mostly at a third grade level, I do think (unlike other reviewers) that he manages to give a decent Sparknotes intro to Smith’s Moral Sentiments and Wealth of Nations. I read the former in University but like many others I never got around to the latter.
I give the book four stars because O’Rourke did whet my appetite to read the original. Moreover, Smith is such a brilliant thinker and there are many quotes of his in the text, which are fun, enlightening and interesting to read.
I give the book four stars because O’Rourke did whet my appetite to read the original. Moreover, Smith is such a brilliant thinker and there are many quotes of his in the text, which are fun, enlightening and interesting to read.
lordcheez's review against another edition
4.0
Witty and clever, shows PJ’s sense of humor well, but limits the comedy. Actually a good summary of the Wealth of Nations.
bloodravenlib's review against another edition
2.0
After moving from Houston to Tyler, I finally got a new public library card. While I was browsing around, I came across this book in a small display the library had on books about current affairs. I have read O'Rourke's books in the past; I enjoyed his Parliament of Whores very much, so I figured this might be a good bet. If nothing else, it would be a nice way to get exposure to Adam Smith's big book with some sense of humor thrown in. We'll see how it goes.
* * * *
Well, now that I finished reading it, I was not too impressed. On the one hand, it does give a decent overview of Smith's work. On the other hand, the book is mostly a way for O'Rourke to expose his conservative and capitalist views. Smith was by no means perfect, so to speak, so in a way, O'Rourke is doing a bit of a PR job. There is some humor throughout the book, but if you want to get an example of O'Rourke's humor, this book is really not it. Having said that, if you have not read Smith's work, and you likely won't, this is a pretty easy way to get an idea of the book's content and significance. The last chapter has a nice biographical note of Smith that puts the book in context.
* * * *
Well, now that I finished reading it, I was not too impressed. On the one hand, it does give a decent overview of Smith's work. On the other hand, the book is mostly a way for O'Rourke to expose his conservative and capitalist views. Smith was by no means perfect, so to speak, so in a way, O'Rourke is doing a bit of a PR job. There is some humor throughout the book, but if you want to get an example of O'Rourke's humor, this book is really not it. Having said that, if you have not read Smith's work, and you likely won't, this is a pretty easy way to get an idea of the book's content and significance. The last chapter has a nice biographical note of Smith that puts the book in context.
tornadical's review against another edition
4.0
To quote Tom Townsend in Metropolitan, "I don't read novels. I prefer good literary criticism. That way you get both the novelists' ideas as well as the critics' thinking."
I am not a fan of economics; especially economic writings. I will never read Adam Smith. P.J. O'Rourke gives me the ability to somewhat grasp some of Smith's ideas, and he does it in a humorous not too condescending way.
I am not a fan of economics; especially economic writings. I will never read Adam Smith. P.J. O'Rourke gives me the ability to somewhat grasp some of Smith's ideas, and he does it in a humorous not too condescending way.
valkyriejmu's review against another edition
1.0
I think this was the moment where I realized I just didn't have the tolerance for P.J. that I once did.