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Capital in the Twenty-First Century cover art

Capital in the Twenty-First Century

By: Thomas Piketty,Arthur Goldhammer - translator
Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
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Summary

What are the grand dynamics that drive the accumulation and distribution of capital? Questions about the long-term evolution of inequality, the concentration of wealth, and the prospects for economic growth lie at the heart of political economy. But satisfactory answers have been hard to find for lack of adequate data and clear guiding theories. In Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Thomas Piketty analyzes a unique collection of data from 20 countries, ranging as far back as the 18th century, to uncover key economic and social patterns. His findings will transform debate and set the agenda for the next generation of thought about wealth and inequality.

Piketty shows that modern economic growth and the diffusion of knowledge have allowed us to avoid inequalities on the apocalyptic scale predicted by Karl Marx. But we have not modified the deep structures of capital and inequality as much as we thought in the optimistic decades following World War II. The main driver of inequality--the tendency of returns on capital to exceed the rate of economic growth--today threatens to generate extreme inequalities that stir discontent and undermine democratic values. But economic trends are not acts of God. Political action has curbed dangerous inequalities in the past, Piketty says, and may do so again.

A work of extraordinary ambition, originality, and rigor, Capital in the Twenty-First Century reorients our understanding of economic history and confronts us with sobering lessons for today.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2014 the President and Fellows of Harvard College (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic reviews

"L.J. Ganser's voice and accents are superb, and emphasis is well placed." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about Capital in the Twenty-First Century

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

The most talked about non-fiction book this year

This is a mega-work - both in length and impact. The most detailed study of the distribution of wealth for decades - a monumental work of scholarship - and a powerful polemic for the effective global taxation of wealth. It's not the ideal Audible Book because you need to print off loads of PDF charts to really make sense of it, which, since I was listening to it at the gym, was a bit of a problem. Also because it has provoked a lot of debate, including over the accuracy of some of the data, you may prefer to spend your time tuning into the debate on-line; unless you are a professional economist, in which case you will have already read it and have an annotated hard-back copy on your shelf. I committed to the twenty plus hours of listening and learnt a lot. I especially like some of the incidental historical detail and the sections where he goes off-piste and gives us his views on the Euro crisis. I was convinced by both the analysis and the polemic. He is open enough to put all his data on-line. The critique by the FT's economics editor casts doubt on some of it, but Piketty's response is strong, and the fundamental argument that inequality is growing because the returns to capital are growing at a faster rate than the standard of living of the majority of the population survives intact.

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48 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great book - pity about the editing of the reading

Would you consider the audio edition of Capital in the Twenty-First Century to be better than the print version?

It was great to have them both, and to be able to switch between then with WhisperSync, but there were so many glitches in the reading that it was often difficult to understand the point Piketty was making.

The text was translated from the French, and the sentences were long - very long - and very complex. Ganser would start a sentence with a particular intonation, and then realise half way through the sentence that it wasn't going to end quite as he thought, so he would either change his intonation, which made it difficult to follow, as the two halves of the sentence no longer 'belonged' together, or he wouldn't change his intonation, which would make it almost impossible to understand the grammar of the sentence.

I have every sympathy with his predicament, as it is a long and complicated book, and it is impossible to get everything right the first time - but if the audio publisher had been prepared to re-record and splice in more coherent narration at significant points in the text, it would have made such a difference.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Capital in the Twenty-First Century?

Realising that economics is not just an objective science, but depends on your point of view and what you think is important about human life.

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of L. J. Ganser?

His voice was great, and the performance full of enthusiasm, so if the audio publisher had done a bit more work on the editing of the recording, I would think him ideal.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Not sure it would make a very good film!

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37 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A momentous, highly enjoyable book.

Would you consider the audio edition of Capital in the Twenty-First Century to be better than the print version?

Unfortunately, as there are many references to graphs, the print edition might be preferable to the audio version, but the performance adequately describes the content of the graphs so the listener is not at a loss.

Any additional comments?

This book has rightly inspired a heated debate which hopefully will lead to some very significant reforms in the way our modern economy works.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Very interesting content, extremely hard to follow

I found the content very interesting but extremely hard to follow as an audiobook. Continuous references to charts you have to lookup in the PDF (hard to watch on a phone). Maybe I am a visual person, but I can visualise a mathematical formula very easily if I see it written, not if someone read it to me. I sadly gave up after a few chapters.
I have to admit I was listening to this audiobook while commuting. You need a lot of concentration hard to have while on crowded transportation.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Heavy going, questionable statistics...?

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

This was a difficult listening experience. Too many figures and formulas for an audiobook and too vague ideas without cohesive explanations which were followable as an audiobook.

What will your next listen be?

Something lighter and without the figure-heavy, formula-heavy random, straggled monologue.

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of L. J. Ganser?

A Non-american

What character would you cut from Capital in the Twenty-First Century?

Not Applicable

Any additional comments?

This has been praised and slated in equal measure in the media. I'm erring on the side of unimpressed. The overall theme and tenet of the book could be explained in a far more brief format, with snappier and more appealing illustrative examples. The catch-all formulas make no sense in audio format and, as such, I have not and will not finish this audiobook.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Unexpected brilliant

Downloaded by mistake, and have admit that was one the best mistake ever made.
Gives an incredible insight of the historical perspective of the global wealth.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A book for 21st century

More accessible to the layman than I expected, which is a good thing. Capital growth only benefits the elites, drives inequality which is a bad thing and will lead to political instability, eventually political violence. The alternative is increasing oppression by the state to prevent this violence, as seems the path of China and Russia. Properly taxing wealth is the best way to avoid these outcomes and maintain a stable and equitable society with a large trickle down to the rest of us, otherwise this unsustainable inequality and tension will only end badly. Well, that's clear isn't it? Apparently not, Pickerty is not being listened to much by governments, yet his predictions are bearing out: Trump, brexit and a host of other demogues are riding the waves of popular discontent, which, especially in the middle of a pandemic, is a problem for us all. How we manage wealth, good governance and good public services matter.

Tax capital rather than punish the poor with austerity is his basic message but whether we will remains to be seen. If not I think we will see alot worse to come than Trump and his angry mobs thus far.

I hope the pandemic causes a collective rethink away from out of control capitalism and gives the ideas of Mr Pickerty the credence they deserve. If not we ignore this canary in the mine to our peril.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

rubbish

can't stand the acent and the tone of the reader it's annoying and poor bad choice

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Figures are mentioned AFTER he talks about them. No pause is given. No bookmarks. No timestamps.

This book should have been a video with black screen when no graphs are shown.
First of all the speed is very fast paced. Npt on comprehension, but his voice and reading stresses me out. Then he seems to talk about random numbers charts or figures where there are none referenced. And even the ones I looked at: where are the statistics from?? This could just as well be a biased whitewashing of history.
I expected to learn how to deal with mathematical explanations of WHY things are the way they are. But even halfway into chapter four, I fail to see how this book is applicable to the modern stock market. I learned all those in high school society’s class. This book is useless to me.
Honestly, I’d like my money back. I will buy this book physically.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Awesome insight to the history/future of Capital

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Definitely worth taking the time to listen. Very informative and easy to understand the goal of the author.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Capital in the Twenty-First Century?

This statement was a my favourite "The advantage of owning things is that one can continue to consume and accumulate without having to work. Or continue to consume and accumulate more than one could produce on ones own."

What about L. J. Ganser’s performance did you like?

Very captivating

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

This statement was a my favourite "The advantage of owning things is that one can continue to consume and accumulate without having to work. Or continue to consume and accumulate more than one could produce on ones own."

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2 people found this helpful