Episode · Conversations with Tyler · 2026-11-04
Tyler Cowen & Richard Hanania: books mentioned on Conversations with Tyler
Richard Hanania on Conrad's Nostromo, Latin American Crime, and Populism
Joseph Conrad's Nostromo, widely considered his masterpiece, follows a fictional Latin American country torn apart by corruption and its uneasy dependence on foreign capital.
Tyler Cowen recommended A House for Mr Biswas by V.S. Naipaul, and discussed Nostromo by Joseph Conrad. Richard Hanania recommended Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad, and discussed Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad and The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Nostromo
Nostromo by Joseph Conrad is a sweeping novel of revolution, greed, and political corruption set in the fictional South American republic of Costaguana.
Discussed“We decided jointly we would start off the conversation by discussing Joseph Conrad’s Nostromo, a book which I reread, and he was reading, I think, for the first time.”
Where to get it
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A House for Mr Biswas
A House for Mr Biswas by V.S.
Recommended“If you were doing development economics and you were to send people, say, to five novels, A House for Mr. Biswas, a few others, this would be one of the five.”
Where to get it
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Heart of Darkness
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad is a classic novella detailing a perilous journey up the Congo River and the moral collapse of the colonial agent Kurtz.
Discussed“There’s more of that in the Heart of Darkness, which is about a guy who just goes crazy and becomes worse than the worst savage.”
Where to get it
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The Secret Agent
The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad is a dark political novel exploring terrorism, espionage, and human frailty within London.
Discussed“It is his most political novel, at least of the ones that I’ve read, although The Secret Agent is political too. Yes, Nostromo’s deepest interest isn’t politics.”
Where to get it
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Lord Jim
Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad is a profound novel examining the complex interplay of honor, personal principles, and the unfolding consequences of human actions.
Recommended“I love Lord Jim. Again, I don’t want to spoil people who are just getting into Conrad, but I love the way that story unfolds. The romance of the individual and his principles and his passions is the replacement for the politics, right?”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (3) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“Richard has a new book out called Kakistocracy: Why Populism Ends in Disaster. I’m happy to have blurbed that book. A lot of the book is about the stupidity of our current politics.”
“You’ve written a book on populism. Again, it’s your new book, Kakistocracy. Conrad’s Nostromo, parts of it can be read, is about Latin American populism. Does it bug you in any way, or what insight do you draw from it?”
“You’ve written a book on populism. The future of populism is uncertain. It could die out, or it could just be everything becomes populist. In a sense, in that scenario, maybe you can’t just keep on writing books about populism.”