"The epic story of the rise and fall of the empire of cotton, its centrality in the world economy, and its making and remaking of global capitalism, [in which the author explores] how, in a remarkably brief period, European entrepreneurs and powerful statesmen recast the world's most significant manufacturing industry, combining imperial expansion and slave labor with new machines and wage workers to change the world"--
Read More
"The epic story of the rise and fall of the empire of cotton, its centrality in the world economy, and its making and remaking of global capitalism, [in which the author explores] how, in a remarkably brief period, European entrepreneurs and powerful statesmen recast the world's most significant manufacturing industry, combining imperial expansion and slave labor with new machines and wage workers to change the world"--
Read Less
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
May have some shelf-wear due to normal use. Your purchase funds free job training and education in the greater Seattle area. Thank you for supporting Goodwill's nonprofit mission!
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. (U) BOOK ALONE! CD/access code/additional pieces NOT included! *WRITING/HIGHLIGHTING/UNDERLINING THROUGHOUT. Tape to cover/binding. Worn corners, curling, scratches, dents, & tears all over. Page edge shows some dirt & wear. USED publisher/misc. stickers all over.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. All pages and cover are intact. Possible slightly loose binding, minor highlighting and marginalia, cocked spine or torn dust jacket. Maybe an ex-library copy and not include the accompanying CDs, access codes or other supplemental materials.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. Book has internal/external wear and/or highlighting and underlining. It may have creases on the cover and some folded pages. This is a USED book. Codes have been used. All items ship Monday-Friday within 2-3 business days. Thank you for supporting Goodwill of OC.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Acceptable. Former Library book. Hardcover The item is fairly worn but still readable. Signs of wear include aesthetic issues such as scratches, worn covers, damaged binding. The item may have identifying markings on it or show other signs of previous use. May have page creases, creased spine, bent cover or markings inside. Packed with care, shipped promptly.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. This hardback book cover has stickers/sticker residue on it. Shipped to you from Goodwill of the Valleys, Roanoke VA. Thank you for your support!
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 640 p. Contains: Illustrations. May show signs of wear, highlighting, writing, and previous use. This item may be a former library book with typical markings. No guarantee on products that contain supplements Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed. Twenty-five year bookseller with shipments to over fifty million happy customers.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972. Used books may not include companion materials, some shelf wear, may contain highlighting/notes, and may not include cd-rom or access codes. Customer service is our top priority!
"Economic historian" who flunked out of econ class
A Pulitzer Prize nomination --who are they kidding?!? Just because the author is skilled at writing a flowing prose narrative doesn't mean that any of the snake oil he is selling will cure you.
This just goes to show how peer review in academic history settings is really code for "group think." This is nothing more than warmed-over Marxism in a thin cotton veil. The author knows a ton about cotton itself, but shows a total lack of familiarity with major areas of social-science scholarship (development economics, state formation, political economy, etc.) that make his entire argument about "war capitalism" obviously spurious. This book's popularity among academic historians is itself a scathing indictment of the lack of socially-scientific hypothesis testing in the present delusional "cultural-turn" era in the humanities.
Ann
Feb 10, 2019
Good, but a slog
As the prior reviewer said, it's a very good book. The writing style doesn't make it a quick or smooth read though.
newyorkreader
May 14, 2018
masterful survey
Modern industrialization is popularly obfuscated as a collection of atomized personages and events. In Empire of Cotton, Beckert presents the complex web of social relations that animated the 19th century industrial revolution. The opening chapter is a bit wordy, but that small problem quickly fades as the story unwinds (pun intended). His explication of late 19th and early 20th century imperialism is refreshingly insightful.
