Episode · Freakonomics Radio · 2025-10-31
Books mentioned on 651. The Ultimate Dance Partner
For most of human history, horsepower made the world go. Then came the machines.
Ann N. Greene discussed The Horse in the City by Clay McShane and others. Also mentioned: The Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan and Horses at Work by Ann Norton Greene.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
-
The Silk Roads
Discussed“Frankapan has written several books about the ancient world. His best known published in 2015 is called the Silk Roads, a new history of the world.”
Where to get it
-
Horses at Work
Discussed“We wanted to speak with Green because of a book she wrote called Horses at Work: Harnessing Power in Industrial America.”
Where to get it
-
The Horse in the City
Discussed“That's a phrase that comes out of the work by two colleagues of mine, Clay McShane and Joel Tar, who wrote a book called The Horse in the City, that makes you think about the horse functionally, and it brings this kind of power, which humans have been using for centuries, into the same space as other kinds of energy”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (3) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
Passing Riding to Arms
“Riding to Arms, by Charles Caramello (2022).”
Passing The Horse in the City
“The Horse in the City, by Clay McShane and Joel Tarr (2011).”
Passing Horses at Work
“Horses at Work, by Ann Norton Greene (2008).”