Six Tycoons: The lives of John Jacob Astor, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Henry Ford and Joseph P. Kennedy

by Wyn Derbyshire

John D Rockefeller. Cornelius Vanderbilt. Andrew Carnegie. John Jacob Astor. Henry Ford. Joseph P Kennedy. Even today, long after their deaths, the names of these six men continue to be associated with wealth and power. When they were alive, they dominated their worlds as few men had done before, and few have done since. These are the life stories of six of the richest men who ever lived in America. Their lives offer us windows into ways of life over two centuries that most of us can only imagine, and an opportunity to glimpse times when laws, attitudes, prejudices and opportunities were very different from today. Their achievements - financial, political and social - continue to affect us, for good or ill, to this day. Their mistakes still offer important lessons about the acquisition, use and abuse of wealth and power. And had they not lived, the history of America - and the world - might have been very different indeed.

Genres: Biography

252 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2008

Reviews

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always been fascinated by the birth of America during the Industrial Revolution. So often, people think today is filled with squalor and horrid conditions for some... but truthfully, it's light years ahead of the past. What people lived like in cities was insane, and while this book focuses mostly on the wealthy and famous, you see glimpses of both sides. Definitely a good way to whet one's appetite on how many of the leaders from a century ago came from interesting roots.

[Dem · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

Six Tycoons John Jacob Astor - Cornelius Vanderbilt - Andrew Carnegie - John D. Rockefeller - Henry Ford - Joseph P. Kennedy - " Even today, long after their deaths, the names of these six men continue to be associated with wealth and power. These are the men who built empires and created advances in technology in the modern world

Ever since I visited Newport in America a couple of years ago and saw the mansions built and owned by some of these families I really was facinated by their wealth and their contribution to the shaping of America in the early days. I watched a TV series called The Men Who Built America which was excellent and when I came across this book I was really excited because I was reading a snapshop of six men in history in the one book.

The book very informative and I think it really did deliver on the information that I was looking for. I really enjoyed learning about the Tycoons who mostly came from meager beinnings and ended up owning such empires and earning a place for themselves in history.

A chapter is dedicated to each Tycoon and this makes the book very easy to follow.

I read this on Kindle and spent a lot of time googling faces and places. There are 14 photographs included in the book .
I did notice a few errors on my Kindle version but nothing that took away from my enjoyment of the book.

I feel I leaned a lot from the book and I was glad to have found this on my Kindle.

Would I recommend it? Yes! but only if you have an interest in the lives of these Six Tycoons.

[Filip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading Six Tycoons is felt like reading way longer wikipedia page. And like wikipedia it is interesting to read but gives only dry, basic informations. I never got a sense what motivated these men to do what they did, book only gives basic information and that is it. I would like way more quotations and what other people tought of them.
Book is not bad but it could be much more.

[Thomas Christianson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book which fulfills its promise to provide a back story for several famous Americans.

[Philippe Jonquet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative. I enjoyed it very much.

[Max Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Six American greats from the robber baron era, all (mostly) self-made, industrious, and hell-bent on success. Meet: Astor (fur and real estate), Vanderbilt (steam ships and railways), Carnegie (iron and steel), Rockefeller (oil) and Kennedy (what didn't he make money from...)

[Jerry Borrowman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provided a high level biography of each of these tycoons. Although the author was generally favorable, he did mention the significant controversies that surrounded each of these ambitious men. I enjoyed reading it.