Genealogy Books - The House of Rothschild: Volume 2: The World's Banker: 1849-1999

Back to The House of Rothschild: Volume 2: The World's Banker: 1849-1999

Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating:

Summary: Not as good as the first; a worthy read still
Comment: The second volume of the family saga is not as compelling as the first. Perhaps that is due to the
length of time covered, or perhaps due to the relative decline of the Rothschilds in the world of
finance. Still, this is a compelling story, which is skillfully narrated by Mr.Ferguson

Customer Rating:

Summary: Nothing about the real family ....
Comment: This book is not about the members of this vast family. I wish to know what the writer knows of the
real Rothschild family, the people, their lives, everyday living? Their pain and heartaches? What
does he know? Why not print the truth's about the family behind all he has to say about this so
called empire. There are real people here....

Customer Rating:

Summary: un-dumbed down
Comment: let me begin by saying that i am not in the habit of handing out five stars in my reviews, but this
fine book certainly deserves it. i am not quite sure what to make of some of the criticisms leveled
at this book in the reviews until now--too many facts, overly exhaustive, too much about continental
finances or politics? can a definitive work of non-fiction have too many facts or be too exhaustive?
what meaning do the rothschilds have if not in the context of continental politics. i loved every
one of those three qualities about this book and, to boot, though it was appallingly well written as
well. i found ferguson exhiliratingly (is this an adverb? it ought to be one) willing to assume that
i could assimilate mass amounts of data, only sometimes arcane, and still want to follow a linear,
only sometimes, social history--that's what definitive works are all about, i think. i applaud
ferguson's not dumbing down history. and perhaps that is the difference between those who very much
this book and those who didn't. i wanted to read history, and got it; others, perhaps, wanted to
read a good yarn and didn't.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Rothschild Omnibus
Comment: We may bump into the Rothschild family in reading about European, British, American, Jewish, or
Israeli history. These well written volumes give us the full history of the family and the context
of its endevors. Some of the financial details didn't resonate with me and may have been too
extensive.

The Rothschilds made their fortune in government bonds and helping to finance the
development of railways and a few other industries. I am left wondering why the family has been
made the prime target of so many European anti-Semites. Perhaps without intention Niall Ferguson
has made the founding ideologues of anti-Semitism look downright silly.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Part I is Much More Interesting
Comment: The last two chapters of this book zing along like the first part, "Money's Prophets." That volume
was fascinating for the way it made financial history a story of personalities and social trends.
This volume gets bogged down in the middle in British political history. You learn in
excruciating detail about the Rothschild's involvement with Liberal and Tory politicians. But
their social role gets buried.

Back to The House of Rothschild: Volume 2: The World's Banker: 1849-1999

Showing page 2 of 2
1 | 2 |