Lionel Shriver

Shriver’s oh-so-plausible dystopian novel follows four generations of the Mandible family. From the incredibly wealthy great-grandfather to his granddaughter and great grandson ( barely scraping by), the family fortunes run the gamut of the economic ladder. But all are soon falling, and fast.

What makes this novel both …

All the Money in the WorldLaura Vanderkam

What people do with their money is a choice, and these choices reflect our priorities. If we sport diamond rings but claim we don’t have money for date night, we are essentially saying that jewelry it worth more time to us than spending time with our spouse. If

The Moneyless ManMark Boyle

With our current economy a mess, the growing realization that we as a society buy and waste a ton of stuff and the desire for a simpler lifestyle, Boyle’s book and site have garnered immense amounts of attention.  By slowly paring down his life, Boyle becomes focused on …

Call of the MallPaco Underhill

What is wrong with the mall? Well, everything, according to consumer behavior specialist Underhill. And, he adds, the rise and fall of the mall has been almost entirely avoidable. Going through a standard mall visit, Underhill points out the numerous ways malls fail to satisfy the consumer. From …

Maxed OutJames Scurlock

Wowza, talk about a 21st century Cassandra! Written as a companion to his movie, Maxed Out, Scurlock includes the stories and data too complex for the big screen. Published in 2007 the book was written in ’05 and ’06. Scurlock saw the storm clouds of predatory lending, easy …

Money Changes EverythingEdited by Jenny Offill and Elissa Shappell

Offill and Shappell edited another book I started a few years ago, The Friend Who Got Away, a collection of stories by women who had “broken up” with a best friend and which I found too depressing to finish. Money Changes Everything