I really had something entirely different I wanted to talk about today. But apparently, the algorithm has spoken—and now we need to address the epidemic of people claiming to have read Mark Carney’s book ‘Values’ based solely on a single meme and a hunch. Welcome to Canada’s most exclusive book club: So, Mark Carney did write a book. You’ve probably heard of it because someone in your Facebook feed quoted one line—something about moral capitalism or climate finance or how the market doesn’t know your Grandmother’s worth unless she’s a condo. Now, let’s be clear. Saying you “read Values” because you saw a meme with Carney’s face and a pull quote is like saying you read ‘War and Peace’ because you skimmed the Wikipedia plot summary and still have no idea who Prince Andrei is. ‘Values’ is 600+ pages of economic philosophy, global finance, climate risk frameworks, central banking minutiae, and yes, actual moral reflection. It’s the kind of book that says “read me” only if you think “quantitative easing” sounds like a fun Friday night.
And no, it doesn’t come with pictures. Or a TikTok summary. Or a chapter called “How I’ll Beat Pierre Poilievre at Debate Club.”
It’s dense. Like, make-a-strong-coffee-and-question-your-educational-background dense. Carney isn’t trying to write a self-help manual. He’s trying to argue that we’re in a values crisis because we’ve confused price with worth—and he does this with charts, footnotes, and the occasional side-eye at neoliberalism.
Here’s what the book is actually about: How markets took over our morals, why climate change is an economic risk (not just a weather inconvenience), the failure of leadership in a crisis (hi, 2008), the need to rebuild institutions with integrity. (Yes, he means government. Yes, that includes Canada.), and how, for the love of Milton Friedman, we need to measure more than GDP.
It’s part memoir, part manifesto, part “here’s how I kept the world from collapsing (twice).” But it’s definitely not beach reading—unless your idea of a beach read involves international monetary policy and a deep dive into climate finance disclosures.
TL;DR: (too long didn’t read for us older folks) Here’s the facts folks-‘Values’ is not for the faint of brain. You didn’t read it if you just quoted one paragraph on Twitter (X). It is not a vibes-based book. It’s a “let’s fix capitalism before it eats us all” kind of book. Apparently, reading ‘Values’ now means confidently misquoting it while claiming Mark Carney said: ‘We need to abolish capitalism,’ ‘Canada should be run by bankers,’ or my personal favourite—‘The WEF controls your thermostat.’ Hate to break it to you, but if your take on ‘Values’ fits on a bumper sticker or was shouted by a guy with a YouTube channel called ‘Woke No More,’ you didn’t read the book—you read the comments.”And if you did read it? Respect. You’ve earned your honorary PhD in Boring Things That Actually Matter. So if you are part of that group that read the book cover to cover I invite you to next weeks review-‘that 2008 Financial Crisis documentary you still haven’t watched but definitely think you understand.’
“Claiming you read Values is the new ‘I have a friend who’s an economist.’ You didn’t. You just scrolled past a quote while rage-posting about the WEF and thought, ‘Yeah, that’ll do.'”
Nancy's Notes 