The book discusses how did western Europe and the U.S. achieve their current prosperity and traces it back to the interplay of four factors that Bernstein claims never were all available in any place before in the history of humanity: I enjoyed this book for the thesis it presents -- That the four pillars of wealth creation: (1) The rational/scientific thought process, (2) Private Ownership, (3) Capital Markets, and (4) Speedy communication, were finally aligned for the world to experience a radical trajectory shift in broad based prosperity beginning around 1820 and continuing through the the current day. It's IMHO a tragedy of human society that more books/movies/games written about the conquerors and those who used violence to get/keep power (more people search/become waht's being praised) and amass wealth than those dedicated to investigating the people and processes that lead to the wealth, prosperity, health and plenty of all people. by McGraw-Hill, The Birth of Plenty : How the Prosperity of the Modern World was Created. Atlantic Books, London, 2008, ISBN 978-1-84354-668-9. When all these are in place, nations (and their people) prosper; when they are not available, nations and their people are impoverished. Great book! Zerahemnah's error was in identifying the how, not the why behind the Nephites' victory. Overall I think the author has probably true views of the origins of plenty despite the fact that sometimes I didn't particularly like his for me too decisive tone and I think little things might be debatable (his view on religion for example I've read argued opposite quite convincingly too), but the general direction might very well be sound. What will you do when it's your turn to pick your book club's next read? The Birth of Plenty frames the modern world's prosperity--or, in far too many cases, continuing lack of prosperity--in terms that are ingenious yet simple, complex yet easily understood. After establishing these as the basic requirements for economic success, the book examines the historical progress of a number of countries both with and without these attributes. William Bernstein's The Birth of Plenty is based upon the premise that mankind experienced virtually zero economic growth from the dawn of time until 1820. For example, Germany and Japan recovered much more quickly from the destruction of World War II (admittedly, with major assistance from the Marshall Plan) than Russia has from the loss of property rights and rule of law resulting from Communist rule. The Birth of Plenty is an history of the world expressed in economic terms. We’d love your help. This book puts any of my remaining doubts to rest. The Birth of Plenty: How the Prosperity of the Modern World Was Created is a nonfiction book on world history and economics by American author William Bernstein. Somewhere around 1820, however, things changed and wealth, prosperity, or whatever is measured by per capita GDP began to grow at an annual rate of approximately 2%. The four pillars of success: property right, intellectual rationalism, capital, transportation/communication, form a great framework to understand the past, and predict the future of a nation. An intellectually challenging but approachable book. The Birth of Plenty: How the Prosperity of the Modern Work was Created - Ebook written by William J. Bernstein. [1], Publishers Weekly described the book as, "authoritative... accessible and thoroughly entertaining". It was especially interesting to read that major catastrophes, such as wars, that virtually destroy nations, have much less negative effect on prosperity than removal of one of the major factors, such as property rights, does. Buy The Birth of Plenty: How the Prosperity of the Modern World Was Created by William J Bernstein, William Bernstein online at Alibris. Luxembourg is better off compared to Bolivia or Laos. Thoroughly enjoyed this book! This basically means that life for the average individual was no better in 5 A.D. than in 1555 A.D or 1555B.C. . My greatest take away from the book was to become acquainted with the enormous foundation work within his suggested "key pillars," which occurred first in the Netherlands, then in England, and finally in America--all leading the super prosperity explosion post 1820. Bernstein asserts that the absence of even one factor endangers economic progress and human welfare. This book gives an amazing account of the root causes of prosperity and lack of it. Prepare to be amazed.” — John C. Bogle, Founder and Former CEO, The Vanguard Group “Vital—a cogent, timely... Free shipping over $10. Bernstein begins with a factual observation: “True, beginning about A.D. 1000, there had been improvement in human well-being, but it was so slow and unreliable that it was not noticeable during the average person’s twenty-five-year life span. In "The Birth of Plenty," Bernstein claims that "...the four factors—property rights, scientific rationalism, capital markets, and improvements in transport and communication— [are] the essential ingredients for igniting and sustaining economic growth and human progress." Be the first to ask a question about The Birth of Plenty. It has very little to do with geography, natural resource or even wars. He has written two successful investing books for us and both have exceeded expectations; The premise of Dr. Bernstein's book is fascinating as well as provocative. I read this book several years ago and felt it was owed a re-reading. The Birth of Plenty: How the Prosperity of the Modern World Was Created @inproceedings{Bernstein2004TheBO, title={The Birth of Plenty: How the Prosperity of the Modern World Was Created}, author={W. J. Bernstein}, year={2004} } Albeit, all four ingredients need to be simultaneous and cohesive else the one will trump the other and the wealth of that nation will stagnate and by default evade the seeker. Very interesting discussion of the influence that rule of law, property rights, scientific inquiry, good communications, and access to capital have on the poverty or prosperity of nations. In one swift move, the author has excused himself from writing a dry, meandering book. The author applies four principles of prosperity to three levels of countries: the most successful, the second most successful, and failing countries. . Go through this book alongside his other book: The Splendid Exchange. Bernstein argues that in order to prosper, a country must possess four main attributes: property rights, the scientific rationalism, capital markets and an effective means of transportation and communications. Highly recommend. 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