# Think Tank > Austrian Economics / Economic Theory >  Best books/articles to read to understand Classical Liberalism and Austrian Economics?

## NOVALibertarian

Hey all.  

As the thread title suggests, what are the best books/articles to read in an attempt to fully understand Classical Liberalism and Austrian Economics?  While I've been a Ron Paul supporter for the last year or so, I don't feel I have a good grasp on Classical Liberalism and Austrian Economics outside of the basic points.  I know of people like Mises, Rothbard, and Hayek, but I was wondering what actual books by them would help be better understand these two things.  Also, outside of these authors, what are some other books that are worth reading that deals with these things?  

Also, I assume it's better to purchase these writings off of Mises.org and not Amazon, correct?

EDIT- Is Milton Friedman's works worth reading as well?  As well as Thomas Sowell?

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## matt0611

Have you read Liberalism: In the Classical Tradition by Mises ?



Also read Economics in One Lesson  by Hazlitt and The Law by Bastiat.

Not a bad place to start either: http://www.libertyclassroom.com/lear...ian-economics/

I would say Friedman's "Capitalism and Freedom" is worth a read. 
I like Thomas Sowell as well. Though they are not Austrians. 

Friedman has a strange view of money and central banking.

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## FrancisMarion

> "Freedom of thought and expression were principal concerns of nineteenth century liberals.  The classic defense of intellectual freedom is _On Liberty_ (1859), written by John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), a prominent British philosopher.  Mill argued that no individual government has a monopoly on truth, for all human beings are fallible.  Therefore, the government and the majority have no legitimate authority to suppress views, however unpopular; they have no right to interfere with a person's liberty so long as that person's actions do no injury to others.  Nothing is more absolute, contended Mill, than the inviolable right of adults to think and live as they please so long as they respect the rights of others.  For Mill, the toleration of opposing and unpopular viewpoints is a necessary trait in order for a person to become rational, moral, and civilized."


From one of the few textbooks I decided to keep from my liberal arts days.  Its a collection of primary sources from the Renaissance on.

Perry.  _Sources of the Western Tradition_. 1999

and a link to Mill's _On Liberty_

http://www.constitution.org/jsm/liberty.htm

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## erowe1

> EDIT- Is Milton Friedman's works worth reading as well?  As well as Thomas Sowell?


Absolutely yes, for both.

For Friedman, I also recommend watching his video series, "Free to Choose."
http://www.freetochoose.tv/

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## VoluntaryAmerican

> Have you read Liberalism: In the Classical Tradition by Mises ?
> 
> 
> 
> Also read *Economics in One Lesson*  by Hazlitt and The Law by Bastiat.
> 
> Not a bad place to start either: http://www.libertyclassroom.com/lear...ian-economics/
> 
> I would say Friedman's "Capitalism and Freedom" is worth a read. 
> ...


Great book I recommend it. It's a life changer.

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## RabbitMan

Since it sounds like you were where I was a few years ago, here is a list of free-to-download ebooks from the Mises website that I used to learn more about Austrian economics.  

_A quick comment:  My picks were chosen because of their ease of reading, clarity, and gradual increase in difficulty.  I hate walls of text dense with ideas and lacking good writing or lucidity.  I use a Barnes and Noble Nook Touch (highly recommend) and downloaded all of these free-of-charge from the wonderful Mises website.  I would recommend doing this and donating some money or taking classes rather than buying that physical copy of The Bastiat Collection that you will never open._

_And if you do have an eReader, I definitely recommend reading while on an elliptical.  It's almost too easy.  
You maintain a pretty steady height, exercise, and it helps keep you focused, alert, and engaged in the reading._

*So here is what I would recommend to ease you in and also serve as a great primer:*



Economic Policy - Mises, Ludwig -  A collection of brief lectures that he gave before students in Buenos Aires in the 50s.  It's all written in very clear exposition, is very entertaining, and covers a WIDE range of topics.  It also won't break your brain like when I took a quick gander at Human Action.  Highly recommend to get you interested and also gives you a few quick one-liners during a discussion.  Go ahead and get this NOW.



The Bastiat Collection - A collection (surprise!) of essays from Bastiat, practically everything important he ever wrote.  The first essay 'That Which is Seen, and That Which is not Seen' explains the Broken Window fallacy for which he is famous.   I found it to be the weakest entry in the book, and if you can make it past that the rest is pure gold!   You get the classic 'The Law', the comedic 'Government', the pretend-discussion 'What is Money?' which is AMAZING, and the stimulating 'Capital & Interest'.  I haven't gotten around to reading his 'economic sophisms' which make up the 2nd half of the book, but the first half make a perfect expansion upon the ideas Mises touches in my first recommendation here.  It's all clearly written despite some anachronisms that are mildly humorous after a while.  I swear, by the end of it you will just be screaming _"What's with the plow fetish!?"_



Economics for Real People - This is going to be your first chunky book, where core ideas are discussed, and it is a beginner's guide to Austrian Economics.  About 90% of it is brilliantly written so that the layman, you and I, can just fly through it.  Very, very clear writing(seeing a pattern here?), pretty funny at times, and starts you off as if you know nothing while slowly building up logical principals of economics.  If you are at the point I think you are at, this will give you a lot of 'Ah Ha!' moments and you'll feel reasonably confident when people ask you questions regarding the economy once finished.



Mises: The Last Knight of Liberalism - I'm not a big fan of Rothbard, so I decided to try and venture straight into the original kings o' Austrian Economics.  I ran into a brick wall with Hayek, and ran off a cliff with trying to start Mises, before I found this gym.  As a history dork with interests in politics and economics, I was very impressed with how much of a hybrid this book was.  It goes from easy-reading biography to stare-at-the-page economic philosophy to thought-provoking geo-political and historical text almost effortlessly, which while creating an uneven reading experience keeps you on your toes and devouring the information.  I'm 1/4 through it so far and I've learned so much about Austrian history, the beginnings and founders of Austrian Economics, the difference between business-cycle economics vs. its competition, the politics of academic communities, and life as an Austrian bourgeois.  I personally like knowing the frame around the ideas you want to study so that you know the context, and this book does that wonderfully whilst taking time to explain the evolution of those ideas in question.  Highly recommend.

After this I hope to tackle some lesser work of Mises, and then maybe Human Action.  I hope this list helps you out so you don't fly face-first into a word wall and give up.

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## matt0611

Rabbitman, I've heard Man, Economy, and State is great before reading Human Action. 

I know you don't like Rothbard (wonder why? which books of his have you tried to read?) but its much easier to understand and starts off by putting Human Action into simple terms, it reads more like an economics textbook that doesn't assume you have much knowledge of economics like Human Action does.

Then after that Human Action would probably make more sense.

Also, look into The Man Economy and State, and Human Action study guides by Robert Murphy. They're free to download and will probably help a lot.

Speaking of Rothbard I also highly highly recommend reading What Has Government Done to Our Money? by Rothbard. Its really really short and goes over the basics of how money works, how it came about through the market, the gold standard, how the government has screwed it up along with central banking etc. Its very clear and concise.

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## messana

Check out Robert Wenzel's "30 Day Reading List that will Lead You to Becoming a Knowledgeable Libertarian"

http://www.economicpolicyjournal.com...-lead-you.html

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## PierzStyx

I can't believe this hasn't been mentioned yet, considering who this forum has in its header, but Ron Paul's "End The Fed." Its a great beginning text not only on how screwed up the Federal Reserve is, but on Austrian economic theory and why every reason you can concieve of should logically lead to you supportting Austrian Economics. It has a nice bonus at the end of a fairly extensive and exhasutive list of economic books to study ranging from beginner to advanced.

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