Adam Smith — The Wealth of Nations (1776)
The founding book of modern economics.
📖 Read it free
Published the same year as the Declaration of Independence, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations explains how the division of labor, free exchange and competition create prosperity. It also includes Smith’s warnings about monopolies and about banks that lend recklessly.
Advertisement
Every later economist on this shelf, Minsky included, wrote in conversation with it.
Part of the Boston Made Reader’s special collection Courage, Conscience & Service. Every book and document here is free to read.
Latest stories
View allOct 9, 2026Boston Made Reader Now Carries Every Story in the Network — Free, With No LoginEvery article from across the Boston Made network, plus complete books and free Bible, religious and inclusion studies,…Sep 30, 2026The AI Buildout Has Left the GPUThe AI economy is now a physical infrastructure story about power, cooling, fiber, regional capacity, and the people…Sep 29, 2026The Infrastructure of Power: AI, the Atlantic Alliance, and the Next EconomyAI infrastructure is reshaping the industrial economy. An evidence-led editorial on chips, energy, capital, King Charles III and…Sep 23, 2026Keystone on the Grand Strand: What Myrtle Beach Businesses Can LearnMyrtle Beach runs on small businesses. Here is how to find, and protect, the keystone in yours.Sep 22, 2026The Keystone Pipeline, ExplainedWhat the Keystone Pipeline is, who owns it, what went wrong in 2022, and why Keystone XL keeps…Sep 21, 2026Why “Keystone”? Arches, Pipelines and Software StacksA keystone is the wedge-shaped stone at the top of an arch. Remove it and the arch falls.…