Deficit
The Hidden Value of Care
Published on 5. March 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
336 pages
978-0-7535-6148-5 (ISBN)
Description
*AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER*
WINNER OF THE POLITIKEN LITERATURE PRIZE 2024
'Brilliantly rewrites the history of economic thought to place 'her story' at its heart. A must-read' - Kate Raworth, author of DOUGHNUT ECONOMICS
How can we create a better future - one that truly prioritises health and happiness?
For too long, economic thinkers have left out acts of care - written off as 'women's work' for centuries - from their calculations. The result? Terrible real-world consequences today: crumbling public services, struggling schools and care systems on the brink of collapse.
In Deficit, prominent Danish feminist Emma Holten reveals how and why this happened, and argues that the things that matter - doing homework with your child, checking in on loved ones, talking to a
colleague who doesn't seem well - might seem inconsequential, but are in fact the building blocks of the economy. Urgent and incisive, this is a call to rethink the economic value of care.
'One of the most important feminist voices of the 21st century' - Sofie Hagen
WINNER OF THE POLITIKEN LITERATURE PRIZE 2024
'Brilliantly rewrites the history of economic thought to place 'her story' at its heart. A must-read' - Kate Raworth, author of DOUGHNUT ECONOMICS
How can we create a better future - one that truly prioritises health and happiness?
For too long, economic thinkers have left out acts of care - written off as 'women's work' for centuries - from their calculations. The result? Terrible real-world consequences today: crumbling public services, struggling schools and care systems on the brink of collapse.
In Deficit, prominent Danish feminist Emma Holten reveals how and why this happened, and argues that the things that matter - doing homework with your child, checking in on loved ones, talking to a
colleague who doesn't seem well - might seem inconsequential, but are in fact the building blocks of the economy. Urgent and incisive, this is a call to rethink the economic value of care.
'One of the most important feminist voices of the 21st century' - Sofie Hagen
Reviews / Votes
This book brilliantly rewrites the history of economic thought to place 'her story' at its heart - while combining sharp analysis with piercing wit and deep care. It's a must read -- Kate Raworth, author of DOUGHNUT ECONOMICS Emma is one of the most important feminist voices of the 21st century. Emma Holten is going to change the world and you better get on board now, by reading this book. This book will make everything make sense. The book about capitalism we didn't know we needed -- Sofie Hagen At once poignant and accessible, Deficit deftly exposes how our existing economic institutions fail to value care in our societies and are incapable of understanding why relationships between people matter. A truly impressive book -- Rosie Collington, author of THE BIG CON A triumph . . . Like all the great classics of economics, Holten's DEFICIT is at heart about how we care for ourselves and other people. DEFICIT punches a great hole through history and our thinking about the care crisis that defines all of our lives. Holten is immensely readable, crystal clear, informative and best of all laugh-out-loud funny. So entertained and engrossed was I by Holten's distinctive voice, it was only after I put down the book that I realised the impact of this subtle, informative history lesson in four hundred years of western economics, and how feminist thinking has the capacity to change it -- Rachel Holmes, author of ELEANOR MARX and SYLVIA PANKHURSTMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Ebury Publishing
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 195 mm
Width: 132 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
240 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7535-6148-5 (9780753561485)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Persons
Emma Holten is a feminist activist and gender policy consultant. In 2014 she created the project CONSENT, raising awareness of digital sexual violence. Since 2019, she has worked with feminist economics. She served on the European Institute of Gender Equality Experts Forum as an expert in feminist economics, and on Human Rights Watch's advisory committee on Women's Rights. In 2023 she was appointed as advisor to the Danish government's investigation of power in Denmark. She has delivered keynotes at the Conference on the Status of Women at the UN, the Guadalajara Book Fair, the European Commission and many other places. She also has a degree in Modern Culture and has translated Chris Kraus and Silvia Federici. She lives in Copenhagen. Deficit is her first book.