Global Capitalism
It was 1900 when international trade reached unprecedented levels and the world's economies were more open to one another than ever before. Then as now, many people considered globalization to be inevitable and irreversible. Globalization is a choice, not a fact. It is a result of policy decisions and the politics that shape them. Global Capitalism accounts for the insightful history exploring the golden age of globalization during the early years of the century, its swift collapse in the crises of 1914-45, the divisions of the Cold War world, and the turn again toward global integration at the end of the century. This book is full of character and event, as entertaining as it is enlightening.
"Magisterial history...one of the most comprehensive histories of modern capitalism yet written."
― Michael Hirsh, New York Times Book Review
“Frieden has a wonderful way of weaving together politics and economics, past and present in an accessible narrative that is...even-handed and objective.”
— Washington Post
“This is an excellent, readable history of globalization with important lessons for our society.”
— Booklist
“An economic history of the twentieth century that makes the whole thing come alive.”
— David Warsh, economicprinciples.com
“Broad and ambitious in its sweep.... One lesson with enormous contemporary resonance emerges: globalization is neither inevitable nor irreversible. Governments can choose to retreat into isolation and have often done so.”
— Alan Beattie, FTmagazine
“Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the history of globalization from 1870 to the present.”
— John Bruton, Irish Independent