Rating: 0/10
I am currently on vacation in Kerala and ordered this book after seeing its 4.5 out of 5 rating on Amazon, hoping for a thoughtful exploration of capitalism and its flaws. Unfortunately, it turned out to be one of the most disappointing and intellectually careless books I have come across.
In the first chapter on free markets, the author argues that markets are not truly free, pointing to restrictions and regulations and portraying this fairly obvious observation as a kind of revelation. It felt like a weak “gotcha” rather than a serious argument.
The writing is full of glib assertions and oversimplified claims. I stopped reading around the chapter on wage differentials, where the author states that a taxi driver in Sweden earns 50 times more than one in India purely because of immigration controls, without even acknowledging purchasing power parity or cost of living differences. Ignoring such a fundamental economic concept seriously undermines the credibility of the analysis. That was the nail in the coffin for me. After about 30 minutes of reading, I decided not to spend any more time on it.
In my limited reading, there were a few interesting historical observations. For example, the author notes that practices such as child labour and even aspects of the slave trade were once defended in the language of free markets. What seems morally absurd today was fiercely debated 200 years ago. That could have been the foundation for a nuanced discussion. Instead, the book veers into what feels like a lopsided portrayal of capitalism as fundamentally flawed at its core.
The author’s bias becomes obvious very quickly, and the arguments feel narrow rather than analytical. The book reads more like ideological hand waving than serious critique. I regret spending even 30 minutes on it.