Henry and Edsel

Reviews / Votes

Bak (Detroit Across Three Centuries) gives new life to the well-known story of industrialist Henry Ford (1863-1947) and his rise from Michigan farm boy to the powerful head of an automobile manufacturing company. Deeply interested in anything mechanical, Ford left the family farm to become a machinist's apprentice, an engineer, a race-car builder and, in 1903, founded the Form Motor Company. In 1908, the company produced the Model T, a simple designed car form the average family that was wildly successful and make Ford a millionaire. Responsible for implementing the assembly line in the mass production of cars, Ford also initially provided his workers with a living wage. In this engrossing history, the author traces the power grabs at Ford Motor, focusing particularly on the relationship between Ford and his only son, Edsel, both of whom spring to life here. Although Form initially planned to have Edsel take over the company, he relied on the advice of Henry Bennett, the tyrannical security chief, who thought that Edsel was a weakling. According to Bak, Edsel was a cultured, talented man and an expert at designing cars. He did not share his father's hatred of unions that translated into repeated violence against organizers. Ford outlived his son, who dies of cancer, a death many believed to have been hastened by conflicts with his father. Despite their problems, Ford loved his son and was deeply grieved by his death. Fully documented here (though not for the first time) is Ford's virulent anti-Semitism, which he expressed through articles in the Dearborn Independent. Photos. (Oct.) (Publishers Weekly, August 18, 2003) One of many books on the Ford Motor Company published in this, its centennial year, Bak's work focuses on the relationship between founder and patriarch Henry Ford and his son, Edsel. It is a true story perhaps better suited to a TV movie: the strong-willed father runs the company with an iron fist. marginalizing his talented son and instead relying on fixer/brawlerwler Harry Benrtett. Why Ford Sr. embraced Bennett and not his son comes down to ego. Even after Henry, at age 75, finally turned the company over to his son, Bennett was still on the payroll. Edsel died of cancer in 1943 after leading the Ford Motor Company for only two years. An elderly Henry, loath to give lip his leadership role, resumed the presidency. But while Edsel has often been portrayed as a weak and ineffectual leader, Bak counters that Edsel was a sensible manager whose creative business solutions helped the company survive the many tough challenges in its first decades. This work is valuable as both a sociological and a psychological study, and business and automotive historians will also be interested. -Eric C. Shoaf, Brown Univ. lib., Providence, RI (Library Journal, September 15, 2003)

"...the book is rich in detail..." (Director, January 2004)

"...good at illuminating the often ridiculous quarrels between the pair..." (Focus, February 2004)

"...offers a new perspective on the human drama that changed the shape of Ford...must reading for anyone interested in business..." (Bolton Evening News, 11 March 2004)