Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781400077304)

National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist

From the acclaimed, award-winning author of Alexander Hamilton here is the essential, endlessly engrossing biography of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.--the Jekyll-and-Hyde of American capitalism. In the course of his nearly 98 years, Rockefeller was known as both a rapacious robber baron, whose Standard Oil Company rode roughshod over an industry, and a philanthropist who donated money lavishly to universities and medical centers. He was the terror of his competitors, the bogeyman of reformers, the delight of caricaturists--and an utter enigma.

Drawing on unprecedented access to Rockefeller's private papers, Chernow reconstructs his subjects' troubled origins (his father was a swindler and a bigamist) and his single-minded pursuit of wealth. But he also uncovers the profound religiosity that drove him "to give all I could"; his devotion to his father; and the wry sense of humor that made him the country's most colorful codger. Titan is a magnificent biography--balanced, revelatory, elegantly written.

Author: Ron Chernow
ISBN-10: 1400077303
ISBN-13: 9781400077304
Publisher: Vintage
Language: English
Published: 03/30/2004
Pages: 832
Format: Paperback
Weight: 2.25lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.10w x 1.70d