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The Haves and Have-Yachts

Dispatches on the Ultrarich

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About this listen

 *** THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ***

Chosen as a book of the year by the New Yorker, Financial Times, The Times and Sunday Times.

‘A field guide to the super-rich . . . a hoot to chronicle – and even more fun to read’ Sunday Times

The one percent now hold more of America’s wealth than they did in the heyday of the Carnegies and Rockefellers, and their habits cast a longer shadow than ever before. With deft storytelling and meticulous reporting, Evan Osnos exposes the hidden world of the ultrarich in all its outrageous, fabulous, ridiculous detail: superyachts, luxury bunkers, private gigs, wealth managers, elite tax dodges and a torrent of political donations.

Osnos’s essays are an entertaining, unsettling and eye-opening wake-up call – a case against complacency in the face of unchecked excess and staggering disparities of wealth and power. As the choices of the ultrarich ripple through our lives, The Haves and Have-Yachts couldn’t be more relevant to today’s world.

‘A prestige romp’ New York Times

‘Superb’ Literary Review

‘Charming’ Washington Post

‘Important’ Irish Times

‘Entertaining and unsettling’ Financial Times Political Science Politics & Government Social Classes & Economic Disparity Sociology Gilded Age Taxation

Critic reviews

‘A field guide to the super-rich . . . Evan Osnos, a writer for the New Yorker, gained access to the world of the 0.00001 per cent and reports on their thinking and behaviour, their manners and delusions. Sure, it’s not the toughest beat but a hoot to chronicle – and even more fun to read’
‘An eye-opening account of superyachts, the billionaires who buy them, and what it all means for the rest of us . . . [a] droll and timely analysis of extreme wealth’
‘Beneath the laughs, there is a serious point. Osnos chronicles how business leaders, notably Donald Trump and Elon Musk, see money and political power as two sides of the same coin’
'There is something of the Hogarthian morality tale about the stories . . . wonderfully salacious'
'A beautifully written and often amusing climb to the very top of Maslow's hierarchy of needs' (Rana Foroohar)
'Toggling between extravagances like simulated World War II battles and dueling luxury disaster refuges, Osnos takes the reader deep into our new Gilded Age'
‘A collection of essays on the various insanities of the contemporary ultrarich . . . ‘The Floating World’ makes for a great introduction, not just thorough but also funny. Even funnier, though more alarming, is ‘Survival of the Richest’ . . . they are all examples of superb, dogged journalism. Osnos writes well and fact-checks his material obsessively. Furthermore, the issues he raises are profound’ (Bryan Appleyard)
'Revelatory' (Rosemary Goring)
'A thoroughly reported and spryly narrated – and deeply maddening – tour of extreme wealth'
‘Surely all but the most gullible can conclude that America’s regime deserves to be called oligarchy – rule by the wealthy few. How did the US reach this point? . . . Osnos’ book, subtitled Dispatches on the Ultrarich, provides some important answers’
All stars
Most relevant
Fascinating insights into US wealth and power. Excellent narration and full of detailed information on the cases presented.

Recommended

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It very neatly straddled the worlds of wealth and politics without being boring or (seemingly) judgemental. Highly recommended!!

Hugely enjoyable!

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Every chapter is different, which is true for the way we can make money. Why are most of us not billionaires…… is probably because we have personal standards that we aim to upkeep, along with not having the opportunity.
But the variety from hedge fund execs to pop stars to people from money it shows what some people will do for money and the big question of how much is enough. Once you know that you control some of your destiny.

The variety of wealth

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The book started off well, covering yachts, the life on yachts and riches, how staff are being possibly abused. However, then it went off into Facebook history and much of US politics which I am not interested in. I stopped listening for now, can't return it for a refund as I bought it in the sale.

scrambled story

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