The Birth of Plenty: How the Prosperity of the Modern World was Created

Interesting Facts

• The book reveals how four great forces—access to knowledge, the development of transport, scientific rationality, and the protection of property—intertwined to give rise to modern prosperity.
• The author masterfully guides the reader through the labyrinths of history, showing how chance discoveries and bold ideas changed the destinies of entire civilizations.
• Special attention is given to how the spread of literacy and the printed word became a catalyst for economic and cultural advancement.
• Bernstein elegantly illustrates that even humanity's greatest achievements were born from a series of mistakes, failures, and unexpected insights.
• The book brings to life portraits of scientists, merchants, inventors, and thinkers whose destinies became entwined in the pursuit of abundance and progress.
• The author shows that the path to prosperity was not a straightforward ascent, but a winding road full of dramatic turns and paradoxical discoveries.