From one of the worlds leading economists, agrand narrative of the century thatmadeusricherthanever, yet left us unsatisfied

Before 1870, humanity lived in dire poverty, with a slow crawl ofinventionoffset by a growing population. Then came a great shift: invention sprinted forward, doubling our technological capabilities each generation and utterly transforming the economy again and again. Our ancestors would have presumed we would haveusedsuch powers to build utopia. But it was not so. When18702010ended, the world instead saw global warming; economic depression, uncertainty, and inequality; and broad rejection of the status quo.

EconomistBrad DeLong’sSlouching Towards Utopiatells the story ofhowthis unprecedentedexplosionof material wealthoccurred,how it transformed the globe,andwhyitfailed todeliver us toutopia.Ofremarkable breadth and ambition,itrevealsthelastcentury to have been lessa march of progressthana slouchin the right direction.