The Birth of Plenty: How the Prosperity of the Modern World was Created [Hardcover]

First, any good economist or historian could tell you that Economic History 101 has always talked about the turning point of 1820-not a new premise at all. No economic historian of note has evidently reviewed the book. Indeed, Angus Madison remains one of the most celebrated economic historians for precisely his findings on these issues, the man cited by William Bernstein. So does Charles Kindleberger.

Second, and most disappointing were the four reasons why economic progress took off. None were really created around 1820 and did not come together for the first time in 1820 either but much sooner. Even the transportation revolution had occurred with maritime discoveries and shipping. Railroads (the focus of the date of 1820) and cars are really the next phases of the same evolution. Further, property rights were in existence long before the nineteenth century. And most of the reforms in property rights (including bankruptcy reforms and security asset innovation) LAGGED economic progress rather than caused it.

Third, the book focuses on scientific progress. Here is a classic chicken and egg reasoning in a book that purportedly is supposed to resolve that dilemma. The author simply ignores the incredible economic boom of colonization in the three centuries preceding his takeoff date, a colonization made possible precisely with science.

A third reason focused on by the author was securities market innovation but the book ignores the fact that virtually all securities innovation came decades after it should have been due, not before. Certainly the stock markets and IPO were innovated in 1602 not 1820, so the author is short on explaining why the delay when all his four factors existed before.

Then the book relies on the transportation revolution. It has to of course because 1820 marks the advent of the Century of Railroads in the United States. Here again is a chicken and egg problem. It also does not acknowledge how James Watts' watching his mom's kettle ties into any macro issue it cites.

All in all, the book is interesting to someone who has not studied Law 101, Economic History 101, History 101 or the thousands of books on the ascent of Western Civilization. Perhaps the promise by the book of creating a new category all its own may have added to my disappointment but this book is far from innovative, and perhaps even incomplete relative to most books that handle this subject. For those who have studied elementary histories of Western civilization or economics, this will have to be the most repetitive and pretentious book in recent memory.

His theory is not unique. The countries who prosper are the ones who give their citizen the right to own their property, to communicate freely with each other, to practice the scientific method to replace outdated traditional knowledge, and to take business risk with other people's money. In summary, the countries who prosper are the ones who allow individuals to reap the fruits of their risk-taking efforts. These are not new and original ideas.

After all, there is a long list of economics writers who pretty much said the same thing starting with Adam Smith back in 1776 in the "Wealth of Nations." More recently, Hernando de Soto wrote about the exact same subject in "The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism triumphs in the West and fails everywhere else." Also, David Landes' book "The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some are So Rich and Some So Poor" adopts the exact same theory as Bernstein's. My list could go on an on. This is because it is a subject that fascinates and never gets exhausted.

Even though all the above books are excellent and some are true classics in comparative international economics, Bernstein's book shines because it is so much more readable, accessible, and entertaining to read. While the others come across as dull economics professors, Bernstein comes across as an incredibly lively journalist. He turns his treaty on economics history into a real page turner giving David Browne's "Da Vinci Code" a run for his money [in the page turning department]. Thus, by reading this book you will learn just as much if not more than the other books I have mentioned, and you will have so much more fun.