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Really a must-read for anyone concerned with not only economics, but also justice, politics, philosophy, or any right-ordering and conduct of society. The work shows Mises' seasoning, experience, and long engagement with the topics contained herein. He does use academic language in the work, making it less accessible to those unfamiliar with such vocabulary. As is typical in such works, his assault upon competing systems is an irresistible battering ram, but his own alternative construction is not beyond criticism itself. Oddly enough, in the case of this book's primary argument, the only real flaw in terms of internal logic is an unforced error and easily avoidable, making it all the more surprising that a man of Mises' caliber and experience with this topic would have chosen such an error.
Rather than sticking with classical Liberalism, Mises chose to embrace Liberalism's offshoot Utilitarianism as the proposed way forward for society. Utilitarianism proposes "the greatest good for the greatest number" without being able to measure good and thereby arrive at any accumulation of good equaling the greatest amount. Nor are Utilitarians agreed as to how that "greatest" should be calculated, assuming they could ever surmount the problem of measuring good in the first place (so far, none of them have). Do we take an average, a median, a sum total, or some other calculation of the unmeasurable good?
Given Mises own wrecking ball he employed against Socialism's inability to engage in economic measurement and therefore calculation and therefore planning, one would think he would be more sensitive to this particular and insoluble problem with Utilitarianism. Further, while Utilitarianism may be able to trace its parentage to Liberalism, and its founders initially adopted Liberal vocabulary, it obviously must violate the individual protections of Liberalism. Individuals are subordinate to society, the collective, in terms of the collective's "greatest good," no matter what that means in terms of sacrifices at the individual level.
Some versions of Utilitarianism try to establish certain negative rights never to be transgressed in the pursuit of the greatest good, but once these are extended to the full amount of protection offered under Liberalism, what is left of Utilitarianism but varying conflicting opinions as to what might be the best choices for individuals to make in terms of their possible contributions to collective good and no ability to enforce such prescriptions?
Although Mises' inexplicable dalliance with anti-Liberal Utilitarianism is a major and unnecessary flaw in an otherwise extraordinary work, it really is otherwise head-and-shoulders above most such works in terms of its clear thinking, precise articulation, and the value it adds to the subject. For me, Mises' top three works include Liberalism: The Classical Tradition, Human Action, and this work; I would recommend reading them in that order. Many others would recommend Socialism An Economic and Sociological Analysis by Mises, Ludwig Von ( Author ) ON Jan-01-1981, Paperback in place of Liberalism, though I personally found Socialism's arguments to be scattered, disjointed, and sometimes guilty of the same criticisms Mises levied against Marx. It is a valuable work, but I'd save it until having read other of Mises works, so at least you understand what he's saying when he fails to explain it on his own therein.
Theory and History is a must read, you will feel your brain cells growing while you read it, whether you find yourself agreeing or disagreeing with it as you go.