Jason Furman's Reviews > Great Escape Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality

A generally balanced, thorough, and readable survey of the literature on global development, poverty, inequality and health. It charts "The Great Escape" as country's go into self-sustaining growth, mortality greatly improves, and living standards rise. But it also discusses the many way those links can get broken, how income does not always translate into health and how inequality can break some of the link between growth and the typical family. The book is largely data based and contains thoughtful discussions of some of the complexities in, for example, global poverty comparisons or PPP comparisons.

The place where the book takes the strongest stance is against foreign aid. Angus Deaton grounds his argument more in Peter Bauer than his modern successors like Bill Easterly, but overall thinks the empirical connection between aid and growth is non-existent and that politically aid is distributed poorly, props up corrupt regimes, and gets in the way of growth. Overall he subscribes to the view that if you have all the materials for growth then you can attract capital and grow without aid. Instead he prescribes policies that include research into tropical diseases/agriculture and fewer distortions from the West--so more free trade, less agriculture subsidies, etc.

Overall, the book did not have a lot of breakthrough new ideas or original insights but overall was a worthwhile read.