How the World Became Rich

The Historical Origins of Economic Growth

De: Mark Koyama, Jared Rubin

Narrado por: Adam Barr

Most humans are significantly richer than their ancestors. Humanity gained nearly all of its wealth in the last two centuries. How did this come to pass? How did the world become rich?

Mark Koyama and Jared Rubin dive into the many theories of why modern economic growth happened when and where it did. They discuss recently advanced theories rooted in geography, politics, culture, demography, and colonialism. Pieces of each of these theories help explain key events on the path to modern riches. Why did the Industrial Revolution begin in eighteenth-century Britain? Why did some European countries, the United States, and Japan catch up in the nineteenth century? Why did it take until the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries for other countries? Why have some still not caught up?

Koyama and Rubin show that the past can provide a guide for how countries can escape poverty. There are certain prerequisites that all successful economies seem to have. But there is also no panacea. A society's past and its institutions and culture play a key role in shaping how it may—or may not—develop.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Mark Koyama and Jared Rubin (P)2023 Tantor

Thorough, balanced, insightful

I didn’t go looking for this book. It was recommended by Audible based on my other interests.

It is surprisingly easy to listen to, despite the highly academic nature of the content (even at 1.2x speed). The narrator is excellent in that regard.

The authors present multiple viewpoints, then explain their position in light of those. As such, it leaves one feeling enlightened and informed, yet free to disagree or consider alternative explanations. And the text is replete with citations, allowing readers to dig deeper on their own.

I teach at a university and will probably host a book study on this book this semester or next. This is a book that encourages critical thinking and synthesis of multiple theories and domains — just what university students need (and many times aren’t getting in this day and age).

Fantastic

While some economics books just are too dense and difficult to be consumed as an audiobook, that is not the case for this book. The authors managed to write an informative book that works very well in this format (with supplemental material available).

The content itself is impressive. Despite being familiar with at least some of the literature in the field, the overview and synthesis provided in the book offered a lot of new insights. It will definitely change how I teach my growth and development lecture in principles of macroeconomics. This book would also be highly suitable for undergraduate courses on economic development.

Highly recommended!

Excellent

I highly recommend this book to everyone interested in economic growth and the great divergence!

Nice and insightful

Great overview of the world’s economic development. It’s also important to use the supplementary pdf with charts and maps