What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets

A surprisingly accessible and engaging read–which is quite a feat when you consider a work combining economics and philosophy. Sandel depicts the problem as more than just commodification that favours the rich. The subtler effect of inserting economic optimization into relationships between people and communities, what Sandel calls corruption, distorts the ability to even frame moral agency. For example, a supply and demand approach of virtue (i.e. don't exhaust your compassion) fundamentally changes the understanding of the good as a practice rather than a resource. The marketizing presupposes the very concept of “ought” to be transactional, thereby paving the way for any one of Sandel's eye-opening case studies from bribing childhood reading to short selling the life spans of strangers.

an urge for markets to traffic in morality.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Yet another crisp yet introspective book by Sandel. This book covers various aspects of human life and social order that have suddenly opened up to market places and become a tradeable commodity. It raises several points of morality, political philosophy and ethics through various anecdotes while referring to various peer-reviewed studies to support his thesis. My two major takeaways were;
1. the question of unfairness and coercion - corruption and degradation that commercialization of things like the human body, relationships, death and life causes.
2. It also raises important points of distinction between fees and fines when discussion different methods of incentivization.
While these books covered a bunch of interesting case-studies and anecdotes to provide both sides to the story before him discussion his opinion, the narrative does become a bit repetitive. But Sandel's adept writing style keeps you engaged in this 200-page long book and doesn't make you want to leave midway.
also, a bit random but the copy I issued from the library (by Penguin Books) has fantastic print and paper quality and that just aided the reading experience so much. I genuinely wish more publishers made this a priority.
Overall, if you want to know more about the importance of applied ethics, organisational behaviour, applied psychology, the role of morality in economics and political philosophy - this book is a great pick. It is accessible, well written and thoroughly captivating.