Russell Roberts (1)

This book is one that made me think! I don’t necessarily agree with everything in it; Sam tends to be somewhat of an anarchist, and appears to believe that people will usually do what is right if they are left to go their own ways. However, I completely agreed with some statements, such as “I’m saying that it’s possible for safety to get too expensive.” Or, “My dad used to say ‘danger and delight grow on the same stalk.’” Read this book to get a different perspective, to show more see the world around us differently. show less

I've said before that the highest praise I can give any book is that it made me think. This is one such book. It is ostensibly the story of a romance that blossoms between two high school teachers, but underneath that sweet exterior it's one big lesson in economics. Sure, some of the conversations feel a bit forced in order to get the point across, but even so I found myself unable to put it down. It challenged my beliefs and made me ruminate on issues I'd never considered. I can't say I show more agree with all of the points made by the characters - on either side of the argument - but it definitely brought up some sticklers that will leave me pondering for quite some time. show less

I was thoroughly charmed by "The Invisible Heart," though I wasn't particularly expecting to be. While my economic sympathies are firmly in line with those of Russ Roberts and his hero, an economics teacher, an earlier experience reading Roberts's "The Choice" had left me feeling reluctant to deal with his prose again.

"The Invisible Heart," though, triumphantly address the numerous literary failings of "The Choice" while retaining the excellent economics lessons. This kind of show more pedagogical/didactic fiction is "damned hard writing" and can make for even harder reading. No one wants to pick up a novel and feel preached at--and a novel written for the express purpose of teaching a lesson cannot help but make the reader feel that way from time to time. But Roberts, here, does it elegantly and well, with a sense of humor and some lovely passages of writing.

And, as an English professor, I felt that he conveyed perfectly the way that we feel about poetry--and the way that we hope to make others feel about it as well.

As several friends have pointed out to me, I've been long overdue on reading this book. I'm sorry to have waited so long. It's a good solid read. Not great literature, but great economics, and a good solid piece of fiction to hold it all together. show less

This is pretty ambitious, and while it didn’t completely succeed, that it was attempted at all competently makes it a good book. Basically, it is a “nicer” or “better” form of an Ayn Rand book — a romance novel (so, aimed at young women?) with a free market/libertarian economics message at core. There are some areas where it was a bit heavy handed (Rand-esque) with extended monologues about economics, and some bad guys who were caricatures. However, it is still interesting.