The political economy of inequality /

This collection of summaries of previously published articles provides a broad survey of the literature analyzing income inequality. The focus is largely on income distribution in the US, although some essays treat other nations and therefore allow comparative analysis. Summaries are organized into ten groupings that deal with topics such as income inequality, wealth and power distribution, winner-take-all markets, corporate power, household dynamics, technological change, categorical inequality, global inequality, and the welfare state. Each section begins with an overview by one of the volume's editors (all affiliated with the Global Development and Environment Institute, Tufts Univ.), followed by summaries of articles that bear on the theme. The summaries are good, but they are not the same as having the original articles to read. This "Readers' Digest" approach, however, allows for a diverse set of readings (more than 60) in a compact paperback format and is a good way to introduce undergraduates to the range of issues and ideas regarding the study of inequality today. Still, one must hope that readers will use this volume as a springboard to the original works and not rely entirely on summaries, however good they might be. Undergraduate collections. M. Veseth; University of Puget Sound