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BBQ Economics: How money works and why it matters
Should I fix or float? Is now a good time to buy — or sell? What do self-made billionaires know that you and I don’t? Why does cheese cost so much?
Veteran financial journalist Liam Dann has fielded as many money-related questions as he has enjoyed beers around the BBQ — and often at the same time.
In this book, he sets out to answer them all, sharing his decades of insight with stories and quotes from prominent politicians, financial experts and business moguls and loads of helpful graphs and illustrations in a super-informative, entertaining introduction to money, how it works, what we should do with it, and why it matters.
— What even is money? — Economic theory — Who’s left, who’s right, who’s wrong?: Money and politics — Bitcoin, NFTs and the future of money — Inflation and deflation — AI and the future of work — Migration — How to read an economic forecast — Good times, bad Growth, recessions and depressions — Work NZ’s productivity problem — Earthquakes, pandemics and market crashes — Investing — Safe as The Kiwi obsession with property — Bank profits — The Great Depression — Boomer Times — Muldoon’s shadow — GDP or not GDP — Taxing questions — Understanding risk — And so much more . . .
“Liam has managed to do the almost impossible — make the world of economics accessible, interesting and, dare I say it, even fun.” — Grant Robertson, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister
‘Who knew The Lorax, Biggie Smalls and Jim Bolger’s surf team could help explain economics? Dann nails why money matters. This is how to talk finance at the BBQ and still be invited back.” — Guyon Espiner, Investigative journalist
“Liam's a master at telling you what you didn't know you needed to know, while still making you laugh. If you want a shortcut to impressing your friends at the weekend, this is the book to help you do it.” — Frances Cook, Personal finance journalist and educator
“A guidebook to sounding smart next time someone asks about the economy. Dann easily translates complex jargon into simple, Kiwi examples.” — Brad Olsen, Chief Executive and Principal Economist, Infometrics
“A surprisingly fun and easy read - filled with characters, humour and Liam's personal stories - that gives us the how, why and who of money in New Zealand.” — Mary Holm, Personal finance writer and seminar presenter
“Liam has a remarkable way of making the complicated, uncomplicated. His insightful, considered, and plain-English explanation of economics is a must-read for anyone wanting to know just what makes our economy tick.” — Sir John Key, former Prime Minister of New Zealand
Veteran financial journalist Liam Dann has fielded as many money-related questions as he has enjoyed beers around the BBQ — and often at the same time.
In this book, he sets out to answer them all, sharing his decades of insight with stories and quotes from prominent politicians, financial experts and business moguls and loads of helpful graphs and illustrations in a super-informative, entertaining introduction to money, how it works, what we should do with it, and why it matters.
— What even is money? — Economic theory — Who’s left, who’s right, who’s wrong?: Money and politics — Bitcoin, NFTs and the future of money — Inflation and deflation — AI and the future of work — Migration — How to read an economic forecast — Good times, bad Growth, recessions and depressions — Work NZ’s productivity problem — Earthquakes, pandemics and market crashes — Investing — Safe as The Kiwi obsession with property — Bank profits — The Great Depression — Boomer Times — Muldoon’s shadow — GDP or not GDP — Taxing questions — Understanding risk — And so much more . . .
“Liam has managed to do the almost impossible — make the world of economics accessible, interesting and, dare I say it, even fun.” — Grant Robertson, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister
‘Who knew The Lorax, Biggie Smalls and Jim Bolger’s surf team could help explain economics? Dann nails why money matters. This is how to talk finance at the BBQ and still be invited back.” — Guyon Espiner, Investigative journalist
“Liam's a master at telling you what you didn't know you needed to know, while still making you laugh. If you want a shortcut to impressing your friends at the weekend, this is the book to help you do it.” — Frances Cook, Personal finance journalist and educator
“A guidebook to sounding smart next time someone asks about the economy. Dann easily translates complex jargon into simple, Kiwi examples.” — Brad Olsen, Chief Executive and Principal Economist, Infometrics
“A surprisingly fun and easy read - filled with characters, humour and Liam's personal stories - that gives us the how, why and who of money in New Zealand.” — Mary Holm, Personal finance writer and seminar presenter
“Liam has a remarkable way of making the complicated, uncomplicated. His insightful, considered, and plain-English explanation of economics is a must-read for anyone wanting to know just what makes our economy tick.” — Sir John Key, former Prime Minister of New Zealand
272 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 5, 2024
18 people are currently reading
117 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
September 28, 2024
The economy went into recession in 1988 (again) and, perhaps most damaging of all, a generation of investors — the baby boomers — turned away from capital markets and put their savings into property and property-focused finance companies.
While I stumbled upon this book rather than actively searching for an insight into the New Zealand economy, this is an excellent introduction at a comprehensible level, and hopefully improve readership of the business pages of Dann’s employer.
What is explained
Rudd, seemingly acting unilaterally, had put New Zealand in an impossible position. ‘At that point we were very worried that if the Aussies did that and we did nothing, there would be a loud sucking sound of capital going from New Zealand to Australia,’ Cullen said.
To me this is a financial literacy book placed in the context of the national economy. BBQ Economics provides are answers to questions New Zealanders ask about their money transplanted back and forth into a nationwide setting. Dann does this very smoothly particularly in the discussion about what mortgage rates. There’s a comparison with what is common practice in other countries, what local lender competition is like, the difficulty in forecasting. It’s an important primer as to what drives our decision making (along with the useful psychological asides Dann includes), and he interweaves personal experiences to make the book approachable.
The New Zealand context is also important for readers to understand global politics (even if it limits its market). The New Zealand economy was shaped by specific events and decisions: a free-market-social-welfare state set on its current course by “Rogernomics” (a term used in the book) and the subsequent “Ruthanasia” (unsurprisingly not). Issues around our love of property investment, reliance on China as a customer of our primary products, and low worker productivity are all New Zealand specific elements that Dann explains. He does actively want us to move on from our love affair with house-buying as economic investment.
It is pitched at about a high school economics level, which is good! It explains the key elements of the economy and its interaction with the global one. The only economic “error” I spotted was the info-box on price elasticity initially seems to confuse the terms “inelastic” and “elastic”, correcting itself after the first paragraph. Dann also defends elements of business journalism – what he says is good and worth repeating, though he avoids awkwardness about how reporting is used in opinion pieces that feature prominently in his publication. To be fair the book is not titled “BBQ Ethics in Journalism”.
His comments on New Zealand businessman, which are based on his interviews with them (along with seeing Buffet at a conference setting) displays Dann’s understanding of what drove their success. The economics may be pitched at a high school level, but he does have a much deeper feel than that for how risk and choices work. Dann also makes them relatable, in a “No I am never going to be a billionaire but I get why they are billionaires” kind of way.
What is less so
Dann does smooth over the differences between the major centre parties, in that they both support in principle the neoliberal reforms of the 80s-90s.
For some 40 years now, successive New Zealand governments have offered up changes in style and personality, they have turned the fiscal spending up and down, they've been kinder or tougher with welfare; but the open free-market outlook that the Fourth Labour Government pioneered has remained solid.
…and that is mostly fine, though I feel it glosses over significant differences between them and possibly contributes to wider political disillusionment. Dann does not cover employment law, which is something that seems to significantly change between governments and impacts the vast majority of the population. Further on that point:
Just look at the similarities of the fiscal policies served up by both Labour and National in the 2023 election campaign. Despite the rhetoric around spending and different approaches to tax, the overall numbers were remarkably similar, both promising to get the Crown accounts to surplus by 2026-27 — and both sitting to the economic left of where Douglas and Prebble were taking the government in the late 1980s.
Governments often make material departures from their election platforms, often prefaced by statements about how unexpectedly bad a situation is – the departures tend to align with their ideological positions and tend to be more extreme. This is not an accusation of lying, more that ideology seems to factor in a government’s reaction to these surprises, something a voter should be minded to watch.
Dann also does not properly summarise Marxist thought, even as he holds it up as an influential theory.
He looked at all the inequality and poverty he saw in nineteenth-century Europe and concluded capitalism was not good.
On the one hand, I am liberal tending myself, and am unconvinced by Marxist theory anyway, on the other, it does emphasise how much this book is directed to what Dann see as “mainstream” readership and that they would be unattracted to what Dann perceives as extreme positions. This clashes with my perception that those “extremes” have unequal influences on what the “mainstream” is (Richard Prebble sure gets a lot of articles in the Herald). Dann also touches on but does not deal with issues of systematic inequality, though I do think he goes as far as is appropriate about the upcoming costs of climate change. These complaints are a matter of taste rather than flaws in the book and the editorial decision-making was probably correct, though I note them as they may turn-off people who might otherwise read BBQ Economics. Dann is certainly not ignorant of the fragility of the liberal consensus:
But since the GFC, belief in the power of free markets to deliver positive outcomes has also faded. There is a loose consensus on the need balance freedom and regulation, albeit with intense arguments still raging about how we strike that balance. That is heartening — or it would if the economic debate weren’t being swamped by culture wars.
These are minor comments (whinges) and should not detract from this being a book that does exactly what it says on the tin, and is written in intelligent way with plenty of empathy.
While I stumbled upon this book rather than actively searching for an insight into the New Zealand economy, this is an excellent introduction at a comprehensible level, and hopefully improve readership of the business pages of Dann’s employer.
What is explained
Rudd, seemingly acting unilaterally, had put New Zealand in an impossible position. ‘At that point we were very worried that if the Aussies did that and we did nothing, there would be a loud sucking sound of capital going from New Zealand to Australia,’ Cullen said.
To me this is a financial literacy book placed in the context of the national economy. BBQ Economics provides are answers to questions New Zealanders ask about their money transplanted back and forth into a nationwide setting. Dann does this very smoothly particularly in the discussion about what mortgage rates. There’s a comparison with what is common practice in other countries, what local lender competition is like, the difficulty in forecasting. It’s an important primer as to what drives our decision making (along with the useful psychological asides Dann includes), and he interweaves personal experiences to make the book approachable.
The New Zealand context is also important for readers to understand global politics (even if it limits its market). The New Zealand economy was shaped by specific events and decisions: a free-market-social-welfare state set on its current course by “Rogernomics” (a term used in the book) and the subsequent “Ruthanasia” (unsurprisingly not). Issues around our love of property investment, reliance on China as a customer of our primary products, and low worker productivity are all New Zealand specific elements that Dann explains. He does actively want us to move on from our love affair with house-buying as economic investment.
It is pitched at about a high school economics level, which is good! It explains the key elements of the economy and its interaction with the global one. The only economic “error” I spotted was the info-box on price elasticity initially seems to confuse the terms “inelastic” and “elastic”, correcting itself after the first paragraph. Dann also defends elements of business journalism – what he says is good and worth repeating, though he avoids awkwardness about how reporting is used in opinion pieces that feature prominently in his publication. To be fair the book is not titled “BBQ Ethics in Journalism”.
His comments on New Zealand businessman, which are based on his interviews with them (along with seeing Buffet at a conference setting) displays Dann’s understanding of what drove their success. The economics may be pitched at a high school level, but he does have a much deeper feel than that for how risk and choices work. Dann also makes them relatable, in a “No I am never going to be a billionaire but I get why they are billionaires” kind of way.
What is less so
Dann does smooth over the differences between the major centre parties, in that they both support in principle the neoliberal reforms of the 80s-90s.
For some 40 years now, successive New Zealand governments have offered up changes in style and personality, they have turned the fiscal spending up and down, they've been kinder or tougher with welfare; but the open free-market outlook that the Fourth Labour Government pioneered has remained solid.
…and that is mostly fine, though I feel it glosses over significant differences between them and possibly contributes to wider political disillusionment. Dann does not cover employment law, which is something that seems to significantly change between governments and impacts the vast majority of the population. Further on that point:
Just look at the similarities of the fiscal policies served up by both Labour and National in the 2023 election campaign. Despite the rhetoric around spending and different approaches to tax, the overall numbers were remarkably similar, both promising to get the Crown accounts to surplus by 2026-27 — and both sitting to the economic left of where Douglas and Prebble were taking the government in the late 1980s.
Governments often make material departures from their election platforms, often prefaced by statements about how unexpectedly bad a situation is – the departures tend to align with their ideological positions and tend to be more extreme. This is not an accusation of lying, more that ideology seems to factor in a government’s reaction to these surprises, something a voter should be minded to watch.
Dann also does not properly summarise Marxist thought, even as he holds it up as an influential theory.
He looked at all the inequality and poverty he saw in nineteenth-century Europe and concluded capitalism was not good.
On the one hand, I am liberal tending myself, and am unconvinced by Marxist theory anyway, on the other, it does emphasise how much this book is directed to what Dann see as “mainstream” readership and that they would be unattracted to what Dann perceives as extreme positions. This clashes with my perception that those “extremes” have unequal influences on what the “mainstream” is (Richard Prebble sure gets a lot of articles in the Herald). Dann also touches on but does not deal with issues of systematic inequality, though I do think he goes as far as is appropriate about the upcoming costs of climate change. These complaints are a matter of taste rather than flaws in the book and the editorial decision-making was probably correct, though I note them as they may turn-off people who might otherwise read BBQ Economics. Dann is certainly not ignorant of the fragility of the liberal consensus:
But since the GFC, belief in the power of free markets to deliver positive outcomes has also faded. There is a loose consensus on the need balance freedom and regulation, albeit with intense arguments still raging about how we strike that balance. That is heartening — or it would if the economic debate weren’t being swamped by culture wars.
These are minor comments (whinges) and should not detract from this being a book that does exactly what it says on the tin, and is written in intelligent way with plenty of empathy.
January 19, 2025
PAPERBACK EDITION!
3.5 Stars!
“New Zealanders work 34.2 hours per week, compared with 31.9 hours in other OECD countries. And New Zealanders produced less, achieving only $68 of output per hour, compared with $85 in other OECD countries.”
Governments and politicians around the world claim it’s not always easy to make significant changes to structures or institutions etc, and then we see how quickly that changes like during the GFC and Covid, when suddenly it could be done almost overnight. Also an encouraging example of positive government intervention was in 2006 when the NZ Labour government forced Telecom to sell down their assets, making it sell off its lines business to create at least some form of competition.
Something which is briefly touched on is the perennial issue of the supermarket cartel – as we know owing to the lies, laziness and general BS from successive governments the supermarkets continue to price fix with impunity and instead they and certain politicians try and shift the blame to the desperate people who resort to stealing from them, because they cannot afford basic goods and no one else is helping them. Some go to jail for stealing less than $100 worth of goods from supermarkets – usually out of desperation, but if you make decisions which rob the entire nation of billions over years you probably get a bonus and a nice pension.
Now there’s absolutely no reason whatsoever why the supermarkets shouldn’t have been broken up years ago. They have been issued countless warnings and idle threats but to no avail. Every tourist, foreigner and Kiwi knows they are being overcharged, sometimes to the point of extortion by their supermarkets and so at the risk of asking the obvious?...why have they still not been reigned in?...
Much of the problems can be traced back to the Commerce Commission, which allowed some very big industry mergers in the 2000s – like Woolworths to buy Progressive Enterprises in 2005, which created the duopoly. And then in 2003 the same clowns grant Australian bank ANZ a pass to override the laws to buy National Bank – appalling decisions like this is why in 2022 alone New Zealand sent around $7 billion to Australian banks.
Again we should be asking harder questions. To me this sounds suspiciously close to corruption and double standards or at the very least a selective approach to law and regulation. I feel like I’m asking a dumb question here, but what exactly then is the point of the Commerce Commission, if it can’t do its job?...and why are the people there who made those awful decisions not being held more accountable for their poor actions?...
“Since the mid-1990s, the average price of a Kiwi house has increased by more than 600%.” Compare this with other inflated markets like in the UK which is at 400%.
At one point Dann insists that,
“Kiwis didn’t necessarily change or get greedier, but we were given access to capital, and we got better at buying selling. We created conditions that made property investment even more lucrative.”
I’m sorry but this made me laugh, that’s just a sneaky politician’s way of saying…well yes we actually did get greedy, very greedy. NZ’s tiresome obsession with property and not paying CGT is one of the most distasteful aspects to the nation’s character and their obsession with owning multiple properties and not even paying the proper tax on them is clearly indicative of a greedy, selfish and entitled culture – to suggest otherwise is merely to bury your head in the sand.
“But generally, my experience over the years is that the banks are pretty good corporate citizens.”
He follows that cracker up with,
“Complaining about banks making money is a bit like blaming a wolf for eating your sheep.”
Wow. That's helpful and just what the world needs another apologist for the financial industry. Maybe Mr Dann is laying the ground work, keeping the boys onside for when he tires of the journo gig.
So this is an easy and mostly enjoyable read, which covers many of the fundamentals and basics around the Kiwi economy, with a little bit of political and economic history to frame and contextualise just how we got to where we’re at today. Dann adopts a relaxed and engaging style, knowing his audience and he clearly goes to quite some lengths to avoid controversy and keep both sides happy (and of course maximise readership potential).
But I think his timid approach eventually backfires and I believe that not only is he far too generous and forgiving on the financial industry, but it comes closer to self-delusion, and this toxic, passive aggressive middle ground he tries to hold throughout, doesn’t really work and although I enjoyed this and learned some interesting background about Kiwi economic, political and even cultural history, I did find him quite annoying in other ways and was left a bit suspicious and unconvinced by much of his spiel.
June 20, 2024
BBQ Economics, Liam Dann. Ah, economics - 'the dismal science'. Man's wants are endless, but resources are finite. It is so much more than about just the allocation of resources in society. Dann's conversational and chatty style made this an easy and fascinating read. A Gen-Xer, like me, he gives a potted economic history of NZ from the 1970s to the present: the horrors of Muldoonism; the lurching over-correction of Rogernomics; the sharemarket crash of 1987; the 1991 Mother of all Budgets; the housing boom from 1995 to now; the GFC of 2008; and the long slow growth from 2000-2020. Along the way, we learn quite a few things. The eternal dynamic between Keynesian stimulatory demand-side economics and monetarist (Friedmanite), disciplined supply-side economics. I guess we've got a monetarist government now. GDP - it measures the value of goods and services produced in an economy but it is woeful at measuring the unpaid work done by women and voluntary work. Why central banks around the world fight so hard to keep inflation under control, and the fine balancing act it is with interest rates. The law of supply and demand and the Phillips curve. He only gives us two equations throughout: MV=PQ, and one to do with bond values that is indecipherable. He also has a good go at explaining derivatives, options, calls and puts (don't ask me, it may as well be quantum physics). The takeaways I got can be summed up below: -
1. NZ is a very small player in the global economy. The GDP of China is about $18 trillion. Our GDP is about $248 billion. While the US, China, UK and others are like the high rollers in the exclusive casino room, we are the little guy on the casino floor laying a $20 bet on blackjack. We are subject to global forces beyond our control e.g. commodity prices.
2. Kiwis' obsession with the property market is not great for the productive sectors of the economy, but short of a seismic shift in the tax system and investment incentives, it is the safest way to build wealth and security for retirement. House prices have gone up an average of 600% since 1995, and although we may feel richer on paper, it is four times more difficult for a young person to buy their first home.
3. Growing an economy that relies mainly on the export of primary produce will take some doing: - 1) investment in education and skills development 2) research and development [biotechnology, agriculture, horticulture, new products and services] 3) investment in infrastructure 4) foreign investment.
4. The population is aging. 1 million of us will be aged 65 or over by 2028. There will be big opportunities in aged care and provision of services for the elderly.
5. Climate change. A McKinsey report said that to de-carbonise the world economy by 2050 would cost $275 trillion. The contemporary political battle lines are about who presently benefits from the status quo and who has the most to gain from change. The trouble is, if we don't change, climate change could cost the global economy $178 trillion by 2070, and the average GDP drop across the world could be as much as 7.6%. A.I. will play a role in helping us tackle climate change, but at the moment it is promising much and delivering little.
6. Know your own appetite for risk. How much can you afford to lose? Whether that be in the sharemarket, property, in business etc. Are you a risk-taker or inherently conservative? Bear in mind, that to make money, you have to take some risks.
7. Invest in yourself. Get good at something that will make you some money. Save some. Be optimistic. Paraphrasing Buddha - '1/4 should be spent for enjoyment; 1/2 invested in business; and 1/4 saved in case of adverse circumstances.' Managed funds are probably the best if taking on the sharemarket scares the hell out of you (as it does me) [ Disclaimer: this is not financial advice. Your individual circumstances are unique. Seek advice from an accredited financial adviser].
8. Technology and A.I may take us anywhere. Work will change. Be prepared to change.
9. In the end, money is more than just numbers. It is safety, security, comfort, opportunity, freedom and choice.
I really enjoyed this book, and thoroughly recommend it.
see less
1. NZ is a very small player in the global economy. The GDP of China is about $18 trillion. Our GDP is about $248 billion. While the US, China, UK and others are like the high rollers in the exclusive casino room, we are the little guy on the casino floor laying a $20 bet on blackjack. We are subject to global forces beyond our control e.g. commodity prices.
2. Kiwis' obsession with the property market is not great for the productive sectors of the economy, but short of a seismic shift in the tax system and investment incentives, it is the safest way to build wealth and security for retirement. House prices have gone up an average of 600% since 1995, and although we may feel richer on paper, it is four times more difficult for a young person to buy their first home.
3. Growing an economy that relies mainly on the export of primary produce will take some doing: - 1) investment in education and skills development 2) research and development [biotechnology, agriculture, horticulture, new products and services] 3) investment in infrastructure 4) foreign investment.
4. The population is aging. 1 million of us will be aged 65 or over by 2028. There will be big opportunities in aged care and provision of services for the elderly.
5. Climate change. A McKinsey report said that to de-carbonise the world economy by 2050 would cost $275 trillion. The contemporary political battle lines are about who presently benefits from the status quo and who has the most to gain from change. The trouble is, if we don't change, climate change could cost the global economy $178 trillion by 2070, and the average GDP drop across the world could be as much as 7.6%. A.I. will play a role in helping us tackle climate change, but at the moment it is promising much and delivering little.
6. Know your own appetite for risk. How much can you afford to lose? Whether that be in the sharemarket, property, in business etc. Are you a risk-taker or inherently conservative? Bear in mind, that to make money, you have to take some risks.
7. Invest in yourself. Get good at something that will make you some money. Save some. Be optimistic. Paraphrasing Buddha - '1/4 should be spent for enjoyment; 1/2 invested in business; and 1/4 saved in case of adverse circumstances.' Managed funds are probably the best if taking on the sharemarket scares the hell out of you (as it does me) [ Disclaimer: this is not financial advice. Your individual circumstances are unique. Seek advice from an accredited financial adviser].
8. Technology and A.I may take us anywhere. Work will change. Be prepared to change.
9. In the end, money is more than just numbers. It is safety, security, comfort, opportunity, freedom and choice.
I really enjoyed this book, and thoroughly recommend it.
see less
December 23, 2024
3⭐️ great book which I picked up to see if economics would become my thing. Unfortunately I have have not become an economist or have any desire to become one, however, this was easy to read and understand. I loved the history and the NZ context and I feel slightly better equipped to have a conversation around a BBQ about the state of it all (okay - maybe not at that level yet haha). Would recommend
May 29, 2024
For a relatively short book, Liam Dann has done an excellent job at taking the reader through a crash course of economics in New Zealand and beyond.
BBQ Economics was very interesting. While I had a basic knowledge of key events and factors in the New Zealand and world economy, this book brilliantly summarises it all into an enjoyable read. From the Global Financial Crisis, to how mortgages work, Dann spins a tail that is relevant to all.
I especially appreciated the asides that would explain tricky concepts. Taking a step out of the 'narrative' helped to make sense of the idea broadly before applying it specifically.
Great book overall.
BBQ Economics was very interesting. While I had a basic knowledge of key events and factors in the New Zealand and world economy, this book brilliantly summarises it all into an enjoyable read. From the Global Financial Crisis, to how mortgages work, Dann spins a tail that is relevant to all.
I especially appreciated the asides that would explain tricky concepts. Taking a step out of the 'narrative' helped to make sense of the idea broadly before applying it specifically.
Great book overall.
June 27, 2024
It is a well-written, easy-to-grasp book on tricky concepts, which I thoroughly enjoyed. My favourite chapter was that on risk - it was very well explained with some good analogies. It was also interesting to learn about Liam's approach to re-fixing his mortgage. Also, for someone like myself, who emigrated to NZ in the early 2000s, it was fascinating to get a crash course in NZ economic history and then re-evaluate what I experienced myself as a new migrant setting in NZ (I was pretty oblivious to many things, as it turns out). I applaud the author for keeping the tone of his book relatively neutral and not trying to jump onto the colonisation bandwagon.
March 17, 2025
I found this book to be really useful. It broke complex economical ideas down into easily understandable pieces. It built a foundation of understanding, then added more complex ideas on top of it. Dann uses storytelling and experiences we are all familiar with to make these concepts seem both real and approachable.
I liked Dann's written voice and his acknowledgement of his own perspectives, experiences and bias. My two notes on this book are that sometimes the graphs are hard to interpret as the dark grey and black lines look very similar in colour, and that there are very few women quoted or referenced (although this is likely a wider spread issue and not a reflection of Dann himself).
I liked Dann's written voice and his acknowledgement of his own perspectives, experiences and bias. My two notes on this book are that sometimes the graphs are hard to interpret as the dark grey and black lines look very similar in colour, and that there are very few women quoted or referenced (although this is likely a wider spread issue and not a reflection of Dann himself).
April 20, 2024
I bought this book in the hopes my 15 year old would read it. That remains to be seen but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I felt compelled to read many parts of this book to my husband which generated really interesting discussions. He's reading it now. I've learned so much about NZ economics but not a thing about how to BBQ so sadly the husband will continue in that role.
August 18, 2024
A good viewpoint of economics from a current NZ standpoint. What makes this book different from a typical economics book is the inclusion of the history and politics that have New Zealand, as well as many relevant graphs and anecdotes that helped make sense of the current situation. This was an enjoyable and intriguing read
April 14, 2024
3.5 - 4 stars
July 18, 2024
This is an excellent way to learn about Aotearoa New Zealand’s political history while you learn about economics. Definitely more interesting than my Econ 101 course!
August 7, 2024
A good primer on NZ economics and economic history.
August 26, 2024
Nice simple explanations for your everyday layman. A good solid read.
September 4, 2024
Great summary of economics with relevant examples from New Zealand.
November 29, 2024
It is what it says it is on the tin: BBQ Economics is a conversational guide to the basics of economics in New Zealand, designed to help you join in on economic discussions at any Kiwi BBQ.
February 27, 2025
My favourite part of this book was the section on nzs economic and political history. I’m interested to learn more about that area, especially the last 50 years. Liam Dan is an engaging writer
April 17, 2025
I really enjoyed this. A good summary on local economics that was easy to read.
September 14, 2025
Nice, simple introduction to a bunch of key economic ideas and NZs history wrapped in amongst it. Enjoyable.
September 21, 2025
decent, lot on housing and interest rates, but a good writer
October 16, 2025
A good starting point for someone wanting to know about the economy
October 31, 2024
BBQ Economics by Liam Dann offers an engaging exploration of money and economic principles through relatable anecdotes and practical questions, like whether now is a good time to buy or sell. Drawing from his extensive experience as a financial journalist, Dann discusses everything from inflation and the complexities of cryptocurrency to New Zealand's productivity challenges, making complex economic theories accessible and entertaining with the help of anecdotes, illustrations, and quotes from notable figures.
With a blend of humor and insightful commentary, Dann successfully demystifies the world of economics, making it both informative and enjoyable. This book is a refreshing take on economics, and its conversational tone invites both novices and seasoned readers to grasp the essentials of economic theory in a fun and approachable way. A must-read for anyone looking to understand the intricacies of finance and economics while impressing friends at the next barbecue.
With a blend of humor and insightful commentary, Dann successfully demystifies the world of economics, making it both informative and enjoyable. This book is a refreshing take on economics, and its conversational tone invites both novices and seasoned readers to grasp the essentials of economic theory in a fun and approachable way. A must-read for anyone looking to understand the intricacies of finance and economics while impressing friends at the next barbecue.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews