"In this expansive, engaging, and learned history of the ever-changing set of ideas and ideologies which have legitimated corporate power and profit in America, James Hoopes explores the presumptions, popular as well as academic, that have for so long sustained managerial authority and corporate prestige. Because Hoopes is a thoughtful ethicist, as well as an accomplished historian of business enterprise, his book has the kind of moral weight and political urgency that commend it to a very wide readership indeed."
~Nelson Lichtenstein, MacArthur Foundation Chair in History, University of California, Santa Barbara
"Hoopes throws his hat into the ring of books on the evils of corporate America. Hoopes seeks to resurrect in Americans a 'moderate anticorporatism' by tracing the history of corporate culture from the 1930s to the end of George W. Bush’s presidency. He divides the book into seven parts that correspond to stages in the evolutionary time line of corporate culture, each of which includes four vignettes that describe a defining event or important personality that significantly impacted the stage. A quick read with academic flavor, this title will appeal to fans of political and business history as well as those looking to better understand what led to America’s latest recession."
~Library Journal
"Throughout American history, there has been an intriguing tension between corporate authoritarian rule and the democratic ideals of the government. Hoopes argues in this timely volume that despite prevailing anticorporatism, Americans have been in awe of corporations and have placed too much faith in their leadership. He examines the ebb and flow of illusions surrounding business management from the Great Depression to the great recession and seeks to reveal that the corporation is a moral paradox that improves prosperity by subjecting its workforce to overbearing authority. Hoopes argues that Americans must understand the usefulness of corporations while being wary of their power, and must maintain discerning suspicion of corporate power as they have been mindful of politicians. Excellent chapter on critics of managerial character. Recommended."
~Choice
"James Hoopes believes we need to understand the differences between valid 'entrepreneurial leadership in politics and government' and tired versions of corporate fluff. He argues that simplistic president-as-chief-executive-officer equations of politics and business are dangerous. This short book is informative."
~Journal of American History
