Titan Paperback – Deckle Edge, 30 March 2004

Easily the best biography I’ve EVER read, (well apart from Autobiography of a Yogi), Titan is a marvel. Written in a flawless, lucid style, the book describes the life and times of John Rockefeller, the legendary business tycoon of 19th century America.Described unfairly as a robber baron, Rockefeller amassed a fortune and an empire the world had scarcely seen. Yes, he ruthlessly ripped apart competition; yes he bribed his way to industrial sovereignty. But one must not forget that he was working his way in old frontier America, an America which hardly had any competition or industrial laws. Cowboy capitalism was the name of the game, and Rockefeller was our Clint Eastwood- the strong, silent leader.Reading this book is an education- one sees the forces of capitalism, law, politics and personalities clash and collide, creating new industries, new wealth and new leaders. Its wonderful. Its addictive. What stands out in the whole narrative is the man himself- Rockefeller was an enigma. Deeply religious, he often displayed eerie powers of self control and awareness. His rock-solid composure often made me think of the Bhagwan Gita’s idea of samata. Despite one setback after another, this man just pushed on.Not only do we get to know how he made his empire, but also how he retired at the age of 55 and devoted himself fully to philanthropy and religion. It was Rockefeller who started the University of Chicago and many other educational and medical institutions. What is striking is to see how difficult, how exhausting and nerve wracking even philanthropy proved to be. When you see and read what Rockefeller went through, you often wonder whether accumulating wealth is worth the troubleTruly a titan. If you’re interested in fascinating men, or even the growth and spread of corporate America interlaced with law and politics, just go for it.

Warning: This book is really long.From being a humble bookkeeper to becoming one of the richest men in history.The book is definitely worth the read. Rockefeller was a very interesting character. His intense discipline and focus are well narrated. If you were wanted to be convinced of the power of delayed gratification this book is the one you should read. It also mentions stories of the gilded age in America and how major industries and mega corporations started cropping up. The author presents both sides of Rockefeller as a devoted Baptist and benevolent character but also a ruthless businessman who bent over backward to destroy or absorb all his competitors.

First I’ve received damaged item but after I replaced it, which took a lot of time and then I received the good new book which I loved.But I wish that delivery time for this book after I’ve replaced it should be minimal

The media could not be loaded. The book 📖 allows the reader to feel every moment of emotion of what was going on in that era. Those times were wild and true efficiencies reached at their peak only at a scale.John D was the force of God bestowed upon the people to benefit them of necessary resources.A marvelous attempt at creating the realistic description of those times and words written with a practical flavour.A must read book 📚 for all entrepreneurs out there.

A fine encapsulation of the arithmetic progression of a man from cipher to an industry leader, could not have been written in a better fashion.

I like reading biographies of successful Business men, and most of the ones I have read are in first person (TonyHseih, Richard Branson, Captain Gopinath, Maverick and others). This Biography differs in that the analysis is really deep and neutral. The good and the bad are placed together without judgement. The most important, the most fascinating thing is how he set up the system for few years, and then it just kept paying off! And not like in the current context where software has huge economies of scale.Recommended read, if have the time. It's HUGE.

Well it’s been almost three months since I started reading this,either for the lack of time or other reasons, but still the book kept pulling me back to it. I believe had it been any other book I’d have abandoned it, kudos to the writer for that. In short it provides a peek into the heydays of American industrialisation.

One of the most inspiring books and the Life of John D. Rockefeller is worth studying.