Richer And More Equal
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Richer and More Equal: A New History of Wealth in the West

Richer And More Equal A New History Of Wealth In The West

Said about the book:

  • Martin Wolf, FT: ”Waldenström, the Swedish economist, has written a fascinating rejoinder to Thomas Piketty’s best-selling Capital in the Twenty-First Century”.
  • Daron Acemoglu, MIT: ”This engaging book shows that inequality is not a law of nature or economics.”
  • James Robinson, U Chicago: ”I certainly think this is the right story.”
  • Branko Milanovic, CUNY: ”A new and compelling interpretation of wealth accumulation and wealth inequality over the past two centuries in advanced capitalist countries.”
  • Greg Clark, UC Davis: ”With abundant new data and analyses, Waldenstrom proposes a striking new history of wealth inequality.”
  • David Stasavage, NYU: ”In this provocative and persuasive book, Waldenström shows us that to understand the evolution of wealth inequality, we should go beyond considering the impact of war and catastrophe … A very welcome addition to the debate.”

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Back Cover of the Book:

Once there were princes and peasants and very few between. The extremes of wealth and poverty are still with us, but that shouldn’t blind us to the fact our societies have been utterly transformed for the better over the past century. As Daniel Waldenström makes clear in this authoritative account of wealth accumulation and inequality in the modern west, we are today both significantly richer and more equal.
 
Using cutting-edge research and new, sometimes surprising, data, Waldenström shows that what stands out since the late 1800s is a massive rise in the size of the middle class and its share of society’s total wealth. Unfettered capitalism, it seems, doesn’t have to lead to boundless inequality. The key to progress was political and institutional change that enabled citizens to become educated, better paid, and to amass wealth through housing and pension savings. Waldenström asks how we can consolidate these gains while encouraging the creation of new capital. The answer, he argues, is to pursue tax and social policies that raise the wealth of people in the bottom and middle rather than cutting wealth of entrepreneurs at the top.
 
”Richer and More Equal” is a benchmark account of one of the most profound and encouraging social changes in human history and a blueprint for continued progress.

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