I. David Rosenstein's Blog: Focus on Non-Fiction , page 2

Book Review: In Fall: The Mysterious Life and Death of Robert Maxwell, Britain’s Most Notorious Media Baron

The Crash of a Megalomaniac

In Fall: The Mysterious Life and Death of Robert Maxwell, Britain’s Most Notorious Media Baron, author John Preston describes the rise and fall of Robert Maxwell. While Maxwell controlled a vast media empire during the 1970s and 1980s, his name has all but disappeared from the headlines. That is, until recently, when his daughter, Ghislaine Maxwell, was indicted and tried for her alleged assistance to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Preston brings the memory of Robert Maxwell back to life with this engrossing page-turner.

Maxwell’s story can be divided into three parts. The first part of the story is how he became Robert Maxwell. It begins with Maxwell, then named Jan Hoch, escaping his home in Czechoslovakia just before the Holocaust. Preston wastes little time describing his thrilling adventures throughout the War where he worked in multiple roles and changed his name several times. He ultimately ended up working for the British where he adopted the very British name of Robert Maxwell.

One of his roles during the War was that of a spy. And Preston suggests that Maxwell may have continued with his espionage activities (possibly for Britain, or Russia or Israel or for more than one of the above) well after the War ended. Preston does not delve deeply into this issue. Instead, through his brief description of Maxwell’s work as a spy and his ability to slip in and out of new identities, Preston simply lays the foundation for a man that may not be all that he seems and may be something of a con man.

The second part of the story is how Maxwell built his media empire. During this period, Maxwell purchased multiple publications, grew very rich, and befriended some of the most powerful people in the world. Preston suggests that there may be something shady about the source of Maxwell’s wealth and the way that he managed his companies. Another author may have dug deeper into this issue and given more details regarding Maxwell’s finances. But, Preston again chooses not to delve too deeply into this issue. Instead, he moves quickly through the financial dealings and uses them to reinforce the mystery surrounding Maxwell.

The last part of the story describes how Maxwell’s empire fell apart. In this part Preston describes the failures of the individual corporate ventures and Maxwell’s futile efforts to do everything he can to possibly save them.

Since Maxwell built a media empire that came crashing down to earth this could have been a story about corporate intrigue. But it is not. It is simply a story about Robert Maxwell. Preston learned about Maxwell through his numerous interviews with Maxwell’s former associates and employees. While Preston describes many of Maxwell’s actions, such as his cruelty to some of his employees, in detail, he carefully leaves much of his life in the shadows. Maxwell, the enigma, coming to his fall, is what this book is all about. This is an excellent read. I give it 4 stars and recommend it for everyone.

Book Review: Under Jerusalem: The Buried History of the World’s Most Contested City

Somewhere Between Indiana Jones and Religious Extremism

Under Jerusalem: The Buried History of the World’s Most Contested City by Andrew Lawler is the story of the archeological explorations of Jerusalem that have taken place since the the late 19th century. Although Lawler provides limited descriptions of archeological practices he has not attempted to write a scientific book describing the minutia of archeological discovery. Instead, he has written a political/religious thriller that describes the intrigue of numerous parties who are seeking to discover what they want to discover and to interpret their discoveries in the way they want them interpreted.

Buried below the streets of Jerusalem are artifacts from numerous historical ages, from before the period of David and Solomon, through the years of the two Israelite Temples, then the years of the Roman conquest and, finally, the years of Ottoman rule. Many of the artifacts under those streets are sacred to the Jewish, Christian and Islamic religions. Members of each such religion might, therefore, have an interest in searching through the ruins below Jerusalem to find artifacts that validate their own beliefs of events that are said to have occurred in ancient times.

When reading Under Jerusalem I had a picture in my head of many people, some trained archeologists, some treasure hunters and some religious zealots, wandering around Jerusalem with a bible in one hand and a shovel in the other hoping to find artifacts that confirm their own, or someone else’s, belief in what happened in Jerusalem two or three thousand years ago.

And there was a lot to find with all that digging. Lawler describes the discovery of numerous tunnels, stairways, chapels and burial sites. Although he provides maps throughout the book, most of the activity occurs underground and it is not always easy to follow the action as the explorers break through walls to find tunnels and cisterns from long ago. As a reader, it reminded me a little of the early computer text adventure games where you had to direct your character through a maze of adventures that you could not see but had to imagine from the clues you were given.

But the real action of this book is not the discovery of artifacts from times past. It is, instead, the conflict between those that want to plow through everything in their way to find discoveries that support their beliefs and those that want to ensure a methodical, scientific analysis of everything that lays beneath Jerusalem’s streets. Lawler handles this conflict deftly, providing a balanced description of the various parties’ interests.

Lawler took a subject that could have been very dry - archeological digs - and made it very interesting by presenting it through the eyes of all of the people who have been involved with the efforts to discover what is beneath Jerusalem. This is a great book for anyone with an interest in religious history or an interest in the the Arab-Isreali conflict. I give it 5 stars.

Book Review: Cuba An American History

Well Written History of the Cuban People and their Efforts to Establish a Sovereign Nation

Cuba An American History, by Ada Ferrer, is the expansive story of the Cuban people and their attempts throughout their history to establish a sovereign nation free of foreign control and influence. Ferrar is well qualified to tell this story. She is currently the Julius Silver Professor of History and Latin American and Caribbean Studies at New York University and she has been researching the history of Cuba for over 30 years.

According to Ferrer, Cuba’s history has always been defined by the outsiders that frustrated all efforts by Cuban nationalists to establish a truly independent sovereign nation. In this meticulously researched and well written book she describes hundreds of years of exploitation of the island and its people by the Spanish, wealthy landowners, corrupt politicians and the United States.

She suggests that, with his successful revolution of 1959, Fidel Castro may have finally established the independent nation so long sought by the Cuban people. But she acknowledges that Castro did not really succeed in expelling all outside influence. His economy was totally reliant upon subsidization by the Soviet Union. And the island’s economy essentially collapsed in 1990 when that subsidization ended with the end of the Soviet Union.

Ferrer suggests that there may be hope for the future of the Cuban people in the post-Castro era. She cites new laws encouraging foreign investment, new hotels welcoming foreign vacationers and new policies permitting private ownership of businesses. However, such hope continues to be frustrated by relations with the United States which rise and fall depending upon the policies of the administration that is in control of the government.

This book checked all of the boxes for me. It was beautifully written; it was easy to follow; I read it quickly because I wanted to know what happened next; I learned something new about a subject with which I was not familiar; and I thought about the book well after I was done reading it. Therefore, it is easy for me to give it a 5 star rating and to recommend it for anyone seeking a book that describes the history of Cuba and its people. In fact, I am putting it on my list of the 5 best books of 2021.

However, notwithstanding my enthusiastic endorsement of this book, it has to come with a qualification. The plight of the Cuban people and the reasons for that plight are highly charged issues. I am not familiar enough with Cuban history to know whether Ferrer’s presentation of that history is well balanced or was slanted in some way to fit a particular political viewpoint. I am anxious to get a better view of Cuban history (and to remove the qualification) by reading some more on the subject. I recommend that other readers do the same.

Book Review: Travels with George: In Search of Washington and His Legacy

A Wonderful Trip Through a Time Past with a Charming Historian

Travels with George: In Search of Washington and His Legacy, author Nathaniel Philbrook, retraces George Washington’s trips to New England, Rhode Island and the South where he visited with citizens of the newly minted United States of America. Philbrook wholeheartedly succeeds in describing the new President’s travels. But what makes this book truly enjoyable is the opportunity to ride along with the delightful author, his wife, Mellisa and their dog, Dora, as they follow in Washington’s steps.

After the Constitution was enacted and George Washington was elected President there was no real consensus about how this country was actually going to operate. Washington felt that one of his first orders of business was to reassure his constituents that their country was in good hands. He, therefore, took three trips, one throughout the New England states, one to Rhode Island (which was one of the last states to approve the Constitution) and one to the Southern states. In Travels with George, Nathaniel Philbrook, along with his wife, Melissa and their dog Dora, retrace these three trips.

Philbrook is an award winning author who has written extensively about colonial and post-colonial times in America. In Travels with George he provides extensive incites into the things that would have concerned Washington at the time of his trips - his health, the question of slavery, establishment of the Capital in Washington, DC, the quarrels between the Federalists (led by Alexander Hamilton) and the Anti-Federalists (led by Thomas Jefferson), and what would become of Mount Vernon after he is gone. Most importantly, Philbrook shows that Washington’s greatest concern was what he could do to establish practices and procedures that would reflect a true single government for the thirteen new states.

With respect to the actual trips, Philbrook describes an exhausting series of celebrations welcoming Washington to each town he visited. He explains that Washington was able to maintain his dignity throughout and was always a man of quiet grace and charisma who was viewed by all as the heroic embodiment of the new central government. As such, Washington succeeded in rallying support for that government.

Unlike his other books, Philbrook made this one personal. With his wife and his dog, as traveling companions, he describes his own experiences retracing Washington’s travels. And he effectively invites the reader along as a “remote” traveling companion. Through Philbrook the reader meets local historians and descendants of those who were there in Washington’s time. During the trip he manages to debunk some myths about Washington and to confirm others. It turns out that Washington did not sleep everywhere that claims to have had him as a guest.

Nathaniel Philbrook is a highly engaging person who has made history his life’s work. I cannot imagine a better traveling companion and I was sorry to have to say goodbye when the book ended. I give this book 5 stars and recommend it for all.

Book Review:The Afghanistan Papers: A Secret History of the War

An Outstanding Explanation of the United States’ 20 Year War in Afghanistan

The Afghanistan Papers: A Secret History of the War by Washington Post Reporter Craig Whitlock is the concise and very readable story of the United States’ longest war. Because of his 20 years of reporting from the field and his extensive review of numerous recollections of participants as recorded in either “oral histories” or “lessons learned” analysis Whitlock is uniquely qualified to write the history of this War. And he does not disappoint.

Whitlock asserts that the initial justification for the War in Afghanistan was clear. The United States wanted to root out al-Qaeda to prevent any further 911-type terrorist attacks on US soil. However, he explains that once the troops were on the ground the administrations of four successive United States Presidents failed to define and pursue a strategy for victory in the War. The resulting mission creep led to a morass from which the United States could not extract itself.

Whitlock addresses numerous factors that contributed to the United States’ futility while in Afghanistan from 2001 through 2021. He discusses the corruption of the Afghani government, the failure of the United States military to adequately prepare our soldiers for service in Afghanistan, the distraction of the War in Iraq and the indifference of the Afghani people to our attempts at nation building.

According to Whitlock, however, these factors would have been non-issues had the United States clearly identified its goals early on and brought its troops home once those goals were achieved.

In the end, the United States’ experience in Afghanistan - i.e. the failure to “win” the War - echoes the experiences of the British in the 19th century and the Russians in the 20th century. While Whitlock makes little mention of Viet Nam in his book it is clear that the United States’ experience in Afghanistan was also very much like our own experience 40 years earlier in the War in Southeast Asia. And that is what makes this book so important. Unless books like this are widely read and understood this country is likely to continue to repeat the same mistakes. We will continue to find ourselves in far off wars where we try to save people who do not want any of our help.

I give this book 5 stars and highly recommend it for everyone.

The Reckoning: Financial Accountability and the Rise and Fall of Nations

An Interesting History of a Principal that We Now Take for Granted

The Reckoning: Financial Accountability and the Rise and Fall of Nations by Jacob Soll was a pleasant surprise. I do not know what I was expecting when I chose to read this book. But what I got was a book on the history of double-entry accounting and the need for honest and thorough audits. This is not necessarily a subject in which I have a lot of interest. However, because of the author’s fascinating presentation, I completed the book and am glad that I did.

Because double entry accounting and periodic audits are so thoroughly accepted today, it is hard to imagine a time when they were misunderstood and mistrusted. However, as Mr. Soll explains, that was exactly the case during and after the Middle Ages when rulers were assembling the funds necessary to engage in far off wars, to administer their extensive empires and to build their magnificent edifices. These rulers faced financial chaos because they did not fully understand their financial situation.

Initially these rulers tended to ignore the advice of men who understood the requirements of prudent money management. In part, they felt that these “mercantile” principals were below them. Eventually, however, they found that they had to adopt certain principals in order to stay solvent. This ultimately led to double-entry accounting which is now in use in all public and private enterprises.

But, this was not the end of Mr. Soll’s story. He goes on to explain that the mere adoption of modern accounting principals did not eliminate the potential for financial chaos. Indeed, those who are intent on mis-using a double entry accounting system can still use that system to give a false view of financial stability unless and until the money runs out or the fraud is discovered by a thorough audit.

Mr. Soll does not spend any time explaining double-entry accounting in his book. This made the book fast paced and well written for those of us who are already familiar with these principals. However, I have to wonder whether someone who does not have such an understanding might be a little lost. I give this book 4 stars and recommend it primarily for those who have an understanding of basic accounting principals.

Book Review:Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty

A Disappointing Attempt to Tell the Story of the Vanderbilt Family

Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty, by Anderson Cooper and Katherine Howe, is supposed to be the story of the Vanderbilt family. I enjoyed the first portion of the book that described Cornelius Vanderbilt’s creation of the family fortune (worth more than 2.0 billion in todays’ dollars). However, I was very disappointed in the latter portion of the book that was supposed to have described how the fortune was lost by his heirs.

The authors admit that they were not trying to present a broad story of the Vanderbilt descendants. Instead, they presented eight or ten short vignettes of selected people and expected the reader to glean the story of the Vanderbilts from that small sample. It is worth noting that the authors did not limit their vignettes to members of the Vanderbilt family, choosing instead to devote significant portions of the book to descriptions of peripheral “hangers-on” like “The 400 List” creator, Ward McAllister, and the writer, Truman Capote. I had to wonder whether, notwithstanding all of their research, the authors might have concluded that there was not really anything that interesting about all but a few of the Vanderbilts and that the only way to describe this family was by providing a detailed description of the lives of members of gilded age society.

The “Rise” of the dynasty, as described by the authors, consists of Cornelius Vanderbilt’s creation of the greatest fortune of his time. The authors successfully painted a very clear picture of Cornelius - including his focus on making money, his ruthlessness as a businessman and his attitude towards his sons and daughters.

The “Fall” of the dynasty is supposed to consist of the Vanderbilt heirs’ loss of the family fortune. However, in contrast to their successful description of the “Rise”, in describing the “Fall”, the authors fail to tell the whole story of where all the Vanderbilt money went. They describe elaborate parties, massive homes and a generally consumptive lifestyle. Is the reader supposed to infer that the entire fortune was lost through this excessive living? Were there also bad business ventures? Was the fortune just dissipated through its dispersal among numerous heirs over the years? And has the fortune actually all been lost? Do the authors want the reader to believe that current day Vanderbilts live like the rest of us? Or do they still have a few dollars around while they reap the benefits of legacy admissions to Ivy League Universities and high level business connections? The reader does not get the answer to any of these questions from this book.

In addition to my concerns regarding the authors’ failure to tell all of the story, I was also disappointed that, other than with respect to Cornelius Vanderbilt (and possibly Alva Vanderbilt, the wife of one of Cornelius’ grandsons) the authors failed to leave the reader with any real feelings towards the members of this family. I did not come away with any feelings, either pro or con, regarding this very wealthy family’s reaction towards the suffering of others during the depression. And, while there is some mention of alcoholism, suicide and overbearing parents, I did not come away with any empathy for members of the family that were crushed by their fame and fortune. Instead, the authors seem to be satisfied to present a recitation of facts that do not elicit any strong feelings about the Vanderbilt heirs.

In contrast to its ambitious title, this book fails to provide a description of the Fall of an American Dynasty. With its extensive descriptions of party decorations, costumes, carriages, homes and travel (and its inclusion of the society hangers-on mentioned above) it is more a portrait of excessive living by very rich people in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Readers who are looking for such a portrait will appreciate this book. Readers who are looking for the story of how the Vanderbilt family squandered Cornelius Vanderbilt’s fortune will be disappointed. I give this book two stars.

Book Review: The Immortal Irishman: The Irish Revolutionary Who Became an American Hero

The Immortal Irishman: The Irish Revolutionary Who Became an American Hero, written by Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Timothy Egan, is a beautifully told story of the life of Thomas Meagher, a man who seemed to be everywhere, participating in virtually every major event in the mid-19th century. I knew little of Meagher before reading this book. But after reading the book I feel that I now know and greatly admire him

Thomas Meagher was born in Waterford City, Ireland. His father was a wealthy merchant who sent Meagher to private boarding school where he was something of a rebel who developed extraordinary oratorical skills. In the 1840s, while Meagher’s father entered politics and eventually represented his district in the English Parliament, Meagher advocated for full independence for Ireland as a member of Young Ireland. Meagher’s anti-English militancy peaked during the Great Famine of the late 1840s when the Irish were starving because of the potato blight and the English profited from the export of other crops from their farms in Ireland.

Because of his revolutionary activities Meagher was convicted of sedition and sent, as a prisoner, to Tasmania. Although he was not required to work at hard labor like other prisoners, he was kept separated from most other Irishmen. Eventually he escaped from Tasmania and landed in New York City where he reconnected with other members of Young Ireland. He continued to work for Irish independence by giving speeches to groups of Irish immigrants throughout the country.

When the Civil War began Meager assembled a group of Irish immigrants, known as the Irish Brigade, who fought on behalf of the Union. Meagher rose to the rank of Brigadier General. Under his leadership the Irish Brigade became well known for their bravery as they fought in some of the bloodiest battles of the War. As one of the leading Irish immigrants of the time Meagher had to deal with the fact that not all of his countrymen were enthusiastic about fighting for the Union. In fact, many Irish participated in the draft riots in New York City. The backlash caused a great amount of hatred towards the Irish.

After the War Meagher hoped to create a safe space for Irish immigrants in the Northwestern United States. Towards that end he received from President Andrew Johnson an appointment as Secretary of State of the Montana Territory. For a time Meagher also served as acting Governor of the Montana Territory. But while he was in Montana he found that the Territory was controlled by a group of vigilantes. Egan suggests that his attempts to bring law and order to the Territory may have led to his mysterious death in 1867.

I liked the Immortal Irishman very much. Egan’s wonderful prose vividly brings Meagher’s varied experiences to life. Through Egan’s writing the reader can feel Meagher’s pain as he experiences the horrors of the Great Famine in Ireland, his time as an isolated prisoner in Tasmania and his grief as he watches his recruits die in battle. I give this book an enthusiastic 5 stars and recommend it for everyone.

Book Review: Inside Money: Brown Brothers Harriman and the American Way of Power

Over the last 200 years innumerable bankers have poured money into America’s ever growing capitalist economy. Their mythic and controversial stories include the creation of enormous industries and/or the disappearance of huge fortunes. In Inside Money: Brown Brothers Harriman and the American Way of Power, author Zachary Karabell, tells the story of Brown Brothers Harriman, possibly the least exciting and most conservative firm ever to grace Wall Street. But while the firm might be a bit boring Karabell’s telling of its story is not.

The story of the firm is fairly straightforward. It starts with the arrival in Baltimore of Alexander Brown, a Belfast linen merchant, in 1800. Alexander Brown, together with his four sons, expanded the firm’s business into cotton, coffee, iron and sugar. But, eventually, the firm phased out of physical commodity trading and phased into financing trading by others. Alexander always stressed to his sons that the firm should value risk management over profits. And it was that conservative ethos that always pervaded the firm’s business practices.

Because of its conservative nature the firm remained quite small and, until relatively recently, was managed by direct descendants of Alexander Brown. It was only in the 1930s, when needing an infusion of capital, that the firm merged with the firm created by railroad magnate, E.H. Harriman. And while the firm is no longer managed by heirs of Alexander Brown, Karabell explains how the Brown’s original ethos is carried on in current times by like minded members of the “establishment” who have established close, almost familial, ties during their years at places like Groton and Yale.

Had this book been solely about Brown Brothers Harriman it might have been no longer than 100 or 200 pages. In fact, there may have been no real reason to write a book about this highly conservative and non-controversial firm.

However, this book is about far more than Brown Brothers Harriman. Its more than 400 pages traces the history of the United States, as seen through the eyes of the financial community. Of particular interest in the financial community’s participation in the development of public policy. Karabell makes it clear that, while at one time, members of the financial community, tried to manage their business while staying above the political fray in Washington, D.C. they now are fully entrenched in the political process drifting seamlessly between their firms on Wall Street and their appointments in government in Washington, D.C.

And although Karabell usually takes a straightforward, almost professorial position in the book, he does not shy away from revealing his view of Brown Brothers and the rest of the financial community. For example, he makes it very clear that, while members of the Brown family may have believed that slavery was morally wrong, they saw nothing wrong with profiting from the trade in cotton, which was facilitated by slavery on the cotton plantations.

Those who are considering this book may be seeking some inside details about one of the longest surviving firms on Wall Street. And towards that end the book reveals how Brown Brothers Harriman used its ethos of conservatism and risk management to survive the country’s numerous financial crises. However, because of the far-reaching extent of this book the reader will also gain a better understanding of the interconnection between the history of the financial community and the history of the nation. I give this book 4 stars and recommend it for anyone interested in the history of banking and finance in the United States.

Book Review: Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World

Could the Great Depression Have Been Prevented?

In Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World, author Liaquat Ahamed tells the story of the men who headed the world’s central banks just prior to the Great Depression.

Ahamed tells his story through the eyes of Benjamin Strong, head of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Montagu Norman, head of the Bank of England, Emile Moreau, head of the Banque de France and Hjalmar Schacht, head of the Reichsbank. He shows how these four men, both individually and jointly, tried to manage numerous financial crises that occurred throughout the 1920s. Their jobs were made difficult, if not impossible, by their attempt to adhere to the gold standard, the post World War I reparations imposed upon Germany, and the general frenzy over investments in the stock market.

Ahamed explains, in exacting detail, how these four men tried to deal with the various crises that they faced. They could have dealt with those crises by tactically increasing or decreasing interest rates and/or by tactically increasing or decreasing the amount of their nation’ currency. But Ahamed shows that all four lacked the expertise, the tools and the intellect to fully grasp what was happening and how they could control it. When they took action it was generally for the benefit of their own country without adequate thought to what affect their actions might have on the international economy. Ultimately, because they failed to rescue their financial institutions, the world suffered a global economic depression and the rise of Adolph Hitler.

Our knowledge of the Great Depression usually focuses on unemployment, food shortages, and the rise of fascism. But Ahamed puts a face - or rather four faces - on the men who who might have prevented the Great Depression from ever happening. Certainly, the very knowledge that the Great Depression might have been prevented is somewhat frustrating. However, the good news is that, just prior to 2009 when Ahamed wrote this book, the world averted another financial crises because central bankers took action to bring the economy back from the brink. By showing how poorly the bankers responded to their crises in the 1920s Ahamed demonstrates that we may have learned something from their actions so that something like the Great Depression can be prevented in the future.

A book about international finance is not going to be for everyone. However, this book is not simply about international finance. It is a captivating book about four flawed men who failed to prevent an international calamity by not thinking beyond the conditions of their own countries’ economies. This is a very well written book and Ahamed makes sure that the story of these men does not get lost in the details of international finance. I give this book 5 stars and recommend it for anyone interested in the history of the years between the World Wars or anyone interested reading a very accessible primer on international finance.