Among the ten greatest books ever written in economics is
University Economics. First published in 1972, this textbook that is co-authored by Armen A. Alchian and William R. Allen is a marvel. If you read it and grasp even no more than one-third of its lessons you will gain keener insights into economic forces at work than are had by some Nobel laureates in economics. If you grasp most of the lessons of this book, you will possess economic insight that is rivaled by very few people indeed.
Alchian (1914-1913) died almost eight years ago. I learned just this evening, from Jerry Jordan, that Bill Allen (1924-2021) – Alchian’s co-author and long-time colleague at UCLA Econ – died today. Prof. Allen would have turned 97 in April. So sad.