Announcing the Albies

As the end of the year approaches, it’s time to look back and master the fine art of holiday letters think about "best of 2009" lists.   And, to be sure, this past year was an eventful one for the global political economy.  Trying to make sense of the past twelve months is a tricky business, even in a world of real-time instanalysis.  When intelligent zombies Salma Hayek-worshippers future historians try to make sense of what happened and why, what can we say are the five things that are worth reading? 

If David Brooks has his Sidney Awards, let’s call these the Albies, after this guy. 

Unlike Brooks, I’m not limiting myself to magazine articles.  I’m talking about any book, journal article, magazine piece, op-ed, or blog post published in the 2009 calendar year that made you rethink how the world works in such a way that you will never be able "unthink" the argument. 

The Albies will be announced at the end of this week, and I already have a pretty good idea of some of the winners.  At present, not all choices are fixed or frozen, however.  So consider this post an opportunity, and provide your suggestions (with links) in the comments.