When a collection of essays on economics is subtitled "And Other Dispatches From The Dismal Science" you can be forgiven for hoping there will be the odd laugh along the way and economist Paul Krugman does not disappoint. His mission is to make the "dismal science" less dismal and The Accidental Theorist is a lively gallop around a range of issues - downsizing, globalisation, George Soros, Japan, technology, the future.
Believing you cannot write seriously about economics unless you are willing to be playful, he points out that an economic system which treats people as objects is inexcusable. But paraphrasing Winston Churchill on democracy, he says capitalism is the worst system known except all the others that have been tried.
Krugman succeeds in balancing punchy argument in his essays with playing to the gallery, taking plenty of pot-shots along the way. It is not so much what is said in The Accidental Theorist that separates it from other books on economics, it is the way it is said.
Some of the style of his essays can be seen in the chapter headings. The chapter on the case for a return to the gold standard is headed "Gold Bug Variations: Understanding the Right-Wing Gilt Trip".
Krugman's attack on what he sees as regulation-loving French policy-makers is called "Unmitigated Gauls: Liberte, Egalite, Inanite". "France's policies have produced nice work if you can get it. But many people, especially the young, can't get it. And, given the generosity of unemployment benefits, many don't even try."
There is an unmistakable American tone here - blunt but a little simplistic.
There is also the pitfall of generalisation, a la the French blame everything for their problems except the obvious.
On the technology revolution he says we are not enjoying what we were promised in the 1968 movie 2001: A Space Odyssey which looked at life 33 years in the future. He is not so impressed with how fast and small computers have become but worries about what they still cannot do.
Krugman sets out to make economics less boring and by and large he succeeds. If substance loses out to style, well . . . we all need a little fun in our lives, don't we?
