How the Russian Billionaires Became Billionaires: A Loving Portrait of Larceny
Being the history buff that I am, I couldn't help but order this history of the Russian Oligarchs as soon as I saw it. As it will be a week or so before it arrives, I will quote the Amazon product description that sold me on it below. The reviews are also glowing. Since the Russian oligarchs ("billionaires") comprise a Rogue's Gallery of fast thinking opportunists, this should be as fun to read as any bank heist caper or Wall Street investment banking history.
The Oligarchs: Wealth And Power In The New Russia by David Hoffman.
Hailed as "the most dramatic and comprehensive account" of the early years of Russian capitalism (New York Times Book Review)
David Hoffman, former Moscow bureau chief for the Washington Post,
sheds light onto the hidden lives of Russia's most feared power
brokers: the oligarchs. Focusing on six of these cunning and ruthless
men--Alexander Smolensky, Yuri Luzhkov, Anatoly Chubais, Mikhail
Khodorkovsky, Boris Berezovsky, and Vladimir Gusinsky--Hoffman reveals
how a few players rose to the pinnacle of Russia's new capitalism.
The oligarchs started small. Before perestroika, they lived the lives
of Soviet citizens, stuck in a dead-end system, cramped apartments, and
long bread lines. But as Communism loosened, they found gaps in the
economy and reaped their first fortunes by getting their hands on fast
money. As the government weakened and their businesses flourished, they
grew greedier. The state auctioned off its own assets, and they grabbed
the biggest oil companies, mines, and factories. They went on wild
borrowing sprees, taking billions of dollars from gullible western
lenders. When the ruble collapsed, the tycoons saved themselves by
hiding their assets and running for cover. This is a saga of brilliant
triumphs and magnificent failures, the untold story of how a rapacious,
unruly capitalism was born out of the ashes of Soviet communism.
About the Author
David Hoffman joined the Washington Post
in 1982, and covered the Reagan and Bush presidencies as a White House
correspondent. After serving as diplomatic correspondent and Jerusalem
correspondent, he moved to Russia to head the Post's Moscow bureau for almost six years, and is currently Foreign Editor of the Washington Post. Get more information.
What do you think of the book now?
Posted by: MickB | October 30, 2009 at 07:28 PM