
Americana
A 400-Year History of American Capitalism
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Narrated by:
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Scott Brick
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Bhu Srinivasan
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By:
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Bhu Srinivasan
About this listen
From the days of the Mayflower and the Virginia Company, America has been a place for people to dream, invent, build, tinker, and bet the farm in pursuit of a better life. Americana takes us on a 400-year journey of this spirit of innovation and ambition through a series of Next Big Things - the inventions, techniques, and industries that drove American history forward: from the telegraph, the railroad, guns, radio, and banking, to flight, suburbia, and sneakers, culminating with the Internet and mobile technology at the turn of the 21st century. The result is a thrilling alternative history of modern America that reframes events, trends, and people we thought we knew through the prism of the value that, for better or for worse, this nation holds dearest: capitalism.
In a winning, accessible style, Bhu Srinivasan boldly takes on four centuries of American enterprise, revealing the unexpected connections that link them. We learn how Andrew Carnegie's early job as a telegraph messenger boy paved the way for his leadership of the steel empire that would make him one of the nation's richest men; how the gunmaker Remington reinvented itself in the postwar years to sell typewriters; how the inner workings of the Mafia mirrored the trend of consolidation and regulation in more traditional business; and how a 1950s infrastructure bill triggered a series of events that produced one of America's most enduring brands: KFC. Reliving the heady early days of Silicon Valley, we are reminded that the start-up is an idea as old as America itself.
Entertaining, eye-opening, and sweeping in its reach, Americana is an exhilarating new work of narrative history.
©2017 Bhu Srinivasan (P)2017 Penguin AudioCritic reviews
"A delightful tour through the businesses and industries that turned America into the biggest economy in the world. Not only is the book written in a light and informative style, it is cleverly constructed.... There is plenty of surprising detail.... An excellent book.” (The Economist)
“[Srinivasan] is particularly insightful on cycles of technological revolution, as with Andrew Carnegie’s innovations as a steel baron and the rise of the automobile industry.... Spryly and with just the right amount of circumstantial detail, Srinivasan places all this against the context of his own history in America.... A smart, accessible contribution to the nation’s economic history.” (Kirkus)
“The historical parallels his work provokes are striking and illustrative, and modern innovators would benefit from looking more closely at how the past may inform their future.” (Quartz)
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A good foundational and general history, with deeper dives into specific occurrences within each major commercial activity, whether only nation altering or world changing
Logical history
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Wow.
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The performance is good, though I would've preferred for the author himself to narrate the entire book instead of just the preface. The narrator's deep voice is impressive, but requires some attention to stay focused on.
An engaging and informative read
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Highly Informative
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Enjoyed every step along the way
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An amazing tour of key moments and great stories of pivotal points in history!
A great read/ listen
One of the best I've read
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excellent, especially early chapters
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This needs to be taught with American history
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Phenomenal read!!! And it’s history!
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