Playfair: The True Story of the British Secret Agent Who Changed How We See the World

by Bruce Berkowitz

William Playfair is best known as an ingenious Scot of questionable repute who happened to invent "statistical graphics"―the line, bar, and pie charts we use today. Some are also aware he developed theories explaining international trade and investment, made contributions to concepts like price indexes and measures of national power, and pioneered strategic analysis. Yet even those familiar with his work will be surprised to learn that Playfair was, in fact, a secret agent, carrying out espionage and subversion against France on behalf of Great Britain. Many of his contributions to economics and statistics were a direct result of his most audacious operation, the first full-scale campaign to collapse a nation’s currency, as the French First Republic turned radical. Playfair had a remarkable knack for appearing at―or propelling―the major events of his era. He’s at James Watt’s side for the birth of the Industrial Revolution. He is on the scene during the storming of the Bastille. He even helps trigger the first major political scandal in the newly formed United States, a land speculation gone bad involving Washington, Hamilton, and Jefferson. This is the first book to uncover the full, true account of this remarkable, colorful man―undeniably brilliant, hopelessly flawed, and fundamentally important. Part biography, part history, and part detective story, its pages reveal the astounding inventions and adventures of this larger-than-life swashbuckler, rogue, genius, and patriot. Distributed for George Mason University Press

Genres: Biography

500 pages, Hardcover

Published January 18, 2018

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

In full disclosure, I published this book for George Mason University Press, so yes, I'm biased. The book is a fascinating story about an overlooked but influential historical figure, William Playfair. Inventor of statistical graphics, pioneer of strategic analysis, and a secret agent who designed and implemented the first economic espionage against a foreign power, for the British against the French Revolution. I can't wait for the movie!

[John Kaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm giving this book 4 stars. When I started, I was all set to give it one star—there are so many typos and infelicities of langauge in the first chapters that I couldn't imagine suffering that quality of editing all the way through. But oddly, they didn't persist, and the writing style, while exceptionally quirky—exceptionally—grew on me.

And the story Bruce Berkowitz has unearthed, through the most amazingly detailed and inspired research and detective work, I found fascinating. William Playfair I knew of through Edward Tufte's first work The Visual Display of Information, and also, marginally, from some earlier works on information display. William Playfair was a marginal character, in lots of ways, although important enough to have an entry in the Dictionary of National Biography, even though this, on the evidence that Berkowitz presents, is a travesty of the truth. It's such a shame that there is no portrait, because although the author has done such a good job on all te intricacies of his clandestine life, his real character and his personality doesn't really, and can't, come through.

It's not an easy read, and as I said, the stle is very quirky, but it's a book worth the time.

[Manuel Frias · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this biography sometimes interesting, sometimes boring and sometimes really boring.

The inventor of the ubiquitous bar chart lived tumultuous times which makes the book interesting. However, the author writes about so many people and in so much detail that it was occasionally difficult to follow. As the author admits, Playfair was “the most famous man you have never heard of. He appears everywhere; he knows everyone”. The author was careful not to forget anyone, indeed.

The most interesting part for me is about how Playfair found inspiration to come up with innovative ways to visualize information. Line and bar charts are so obvious today that it’s difficult to think that they were unthinkable when he invented them.

[Gerry Connolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Playfair Bruce Berkowitz recounts the extraordinary life of William Playfair who seems to have known everyone in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. From British Prime Ministers, authors, American founders like Jefferson and Morris to French revolutionaries and monarchists. He was a writer, a double agent, a statistician, economist and forgerer. He undermined the French economy and promoted disinformation in revolutionary France. He died in poverty abandoned by the government he served at great peril. Fascinating story of an obscure figure who was quite consequential in his time.

[Randy Baker · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't enjoy it. Reading should be a pleasure. This is work...very hard to follow. Some elements are overly developed, others are simply glossed over.