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Title: Titan : The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (Cassette/Abridged) by George Plimpton, Ron Chernow ISBN: 0-375-40280-2 Publisher: Bantam Books-Audio Pub. Date: 12 May, 1998 Format: Audio Cassette Volumes: 4 List Price(USD): $25.95 |
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Average Customer Rating: 4.54 (114 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: The parallels to Gates and MSFT are an interesting subtext
Comment: I am in awe of Ron Chernow for writing a long and thorough biography that I absolutely could not put down. Rarely have I finished such a long book in such a short period of time. Chernow manages to show how complex Rockefeller's personality and motives, were, and he helps us to avoid the all-too-easy cliches about the rich and powerful. Yet while revealing the complexity, he is never boring, didactic, or long-winded.
I found it interesting to compare Rockefeller and Standard Oil to Bill Gates and Microsoft. Both men are powerful, rich, misunderstood, certain that their actions are ethical and good for their country and the economy, and dedicated to helping those who are less fortunate. Both men vow(ed) to give away most of their fortune. Both have been attacked by their own government, and villified in the press. Both dominate media coverage of business. And, like Rockefeller, Gates is a brilliant strategist who defies easy cliches and shallow descriptions. You can see goodness in either man, and you can also see evil. The beauty of Chernow's biography is that he allows us to see both sides of Rockefeller, without ever landing on either side himself.
Regardless of my thoughts on the parallels, I highly recommend this bio. Four friends are receiving it as their Christmas gift from me.
Rating: 5
Summary: A truly outstanding biography
Comment: My interest in John D. Rockefeller was spawned by an interest in the theory and policy underlying antitrust law in the United States. Having read fairly extensively in the realm of academic texts on the subject, I was interested in acquiring a somewhat more human insight into an individual such as John D. Rockefeller who is often held up as an icon of the unrestrained capitalism of the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.
Ren Chernow's book is outstanding and provides an exhaustive description of Rockefeller's background, business and philosophy to life. Having already formed my own personal opinions about monopolies, I felt Chernow provided a well-balanced assessment of Rockefeller's behaviour and avoided the pitfalls of adoration or vilification.
The book is immensely readable and you need not be a lawyer, economist or business historian to make it through any section of the work. His research is exhaustive and leaves the reader feeling that they have truly been provided with insights into what made Rockefeller tick.
I highly recommend the book to anyone with an interest in commerce or in the history of the United States in this period. As we enter a period in which a new multi-billionaire becomes the subject of intense debate over his business practices, it is most interesting to look back on the life of John D. Rockefeller and determine the extent to which history is actually repeating itself.
5 stars - without any hesitation whatsoever.
Rating: 5
Summary: Five solid stars, THE book on J.D. Rockefeller Sr.
Comment: The other reviews have basically said it for me: this is the definitive book on the founder of Standard Oil. While most biographies of Rockefeller Sr. have been either suspiciously laudatory or equally dubiously contemptuous, Chernow takes the middle ground. Ultimately, Chernow seems to fall more on the side of liking Rockefeller, and employs the somewhat cliche perspective that could fairly be called "modern contextualist"- from which Rockefeller is not much more than a product of his times. However, the slight overuse of this particular biographical "voice," if you will, is but one element of what is really a monumental biography of a fascinating person. Chernow is a very readable biographer who evidently has a deep understanding of American business. (Chernow also wrote "The House of Morgan" - an account of the development of the various offshoots of J.P. Morgan's banking empire which, although very good, lacks Titan's intense focus and analysis.) I heartily recommend Titan.
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Title: The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance by Ron Chernow ISBN: 0802138292 Publisher: Publishers Group West Pub. Date: 15 October, 2001 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
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Title: Carnegie by Peter Krass ISBN: 0471386308 Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Pub. Date: 30 August, 2002 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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Title: Morgan : American Financier by Jean Strouse, Random House Inc. ISBN: 0060955899 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 01 April, 2000 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
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Title: The Warburgs : The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family by Ron Chernow ISBN: 0679743596 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 23 August, 1994 List Price(USD): $21.00 |
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Title: Memoirs by David Rockefeller ISBN: 0679405887 Publisher: Random House Pub. Date: 15 October, 2002 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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