Applied Economics: Thinking Beyond Stage One (Basic Books, 2003), the latest book by Hoover fellow Thomas Sowell, was awarded the Lysander Spooner Award for Advancing the Literature of Liberty.

Often described as the ideal companion to Basic Economics: A Citizen’s Guide to the Economy this is also a book that stands on it own. In Applied Economics Sowell moves beyond the pure economic principles that he explained in Basic Economics to focus on applying economic principles to real- world problems. He explains many points the reader may not be acquainted with and offers a fresh treatment of familiar points with an abundance of fascinating illustrations.

Publishers Weekly said, “the great achievement of Sowell's book is its simplicity. His writing is easy and lucid, an admirable trait considering the topic at hand.”

The Lysander Spooner Awards are presented by Laissez Faire Books to honor   those who continue to advocate freedom. This honor is awarded monthly to the most important contributions to the literature of liberty, followed by an annual award to the author of the best book on liberty for the year.

Sowell is the Rose and Milton Friedman Senior Fellow in Public Policy at the Hoover Institution.

He writes on economics, history, social policy, ethnicity, and the history of ideas. His books on economics include Classical Economics Reconsidered (1974), Say’s Law (1972), and Economics: Analysis and Issues (1971). On social policy he has written Knowledge and Decisions (1980), Preferential Policies (1989), Inside American Education (1993), and The Vision of the Anointed (1995). On the history of ideas he has written Marxism (1985) and Conflict of Vision (1987). His other recent books include Barbarians inside the Gates (1999) and The Quest for Cosmic Justice (1999). Sowell also wrote Late-Talking Children (1997), as well as a monograph on law titled Judicial Actism Reconsidered, published by the Hoover Institution Press. His writings also appear in scholarly journals in economics, law, and other fields.

The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, Stanford University, is a public policy research center devoted to advanced study of politics, economics, and political economyboth domestic and foreignas well as international affairs. With its world-renowned group of scholars and ongoing programs of policy-oriented research, the Hoover Institution puts its accumulated knowledge to work as a prominent contributor to the world marketplace of ideas defining a free society.

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