Excellent history of world trade, from prehistoric times to the present, though I think most of the detail (and great stories) range from about 500BC to the nineteenth century. Fun to read, and I don't usually read history. ( )

I discovered this book when it was available on Amazon Prime Reading. I read it on my Kindle over the course of a year when I was on business trips. It is a fascinating book that provides a historical perspective of the ebb and flow of nation and regional economies and how they can be quickly disrupted by changes in policy, technology, political powers, and market forces. Insights into ancient trade routes and cities that were often centers of commerce that are shadows of their former glory reminds the reader how quickly the world can change. I frequently used Google Maps as a companion, looking at maps and images of the locations in the book. Very interesting from a business and historical perspective. ( )

A dense but compulsively readable survey of world trade for the last 1000 years. Wished it would have delved into some topics deeper - sugar and coffee to pick two - and almost no historical developments in finance but excellent for exactly what it is. Recommended. ( )

Unreliable. Basic errors in historical details. ( )

A very pedestrian history of the free market, very short and just showing the very select few examples. The problem I find is that it doesn't use those examples to say anything, it's just, look, this happened. Also "free trade good, protectionism bad". Dishonestly neglecting to show examples where protectionism worked. ( )