Mixed Fortunes

Reviews / Votes

Popov has certainly written an interesting and challenging book.This small monograph deals with a very big topic: the great divergence in economic development,between Western countries and those of China and South East Asia, from the sixteenth century to the mid-twentieth century; and the great convergence between China and the West from the second half of the twentieth century. * Michael McLure, Economic Record * The book is the result of many years of his consistent research and logical summary of the main original findings, early versions of which were published widely and became well-known internationally. * Bakhtiyor Islamov, Acta Slavica Iaponica * This is a short, fast-paced, and ambitious book. Its discussion is rich in economic history ... an outstanding work that focuses on economic development and uses history primarily to shed light on issues of the present and the future. Time will tell if the proposed paradigm will help shape mainstream development thinking, but there is no question that it provides food for thought and deserves to be read by anyone interested in how poor countries can gain ground with their rich counterparts. * EH.Net * It is an interesting, thought-provoking and unorthodox explanation of the mechanism of economic expansion and growth. * Grzegorz Kolodko, Personal Blog * In Mixed Fortunes Vladimir Popov has provided a remarkably original and provocative analysis of economic growth and institutional change across the world but particularly in China, Russia and the West. While most conventional interpretations have seen this process as a consequence of either enhancing or stifling the power of market forces, Popov stresses the differing roles of the state in building institutional capacity as the major explanatory variable. This book can be read profitably by both specialists and laymen interested in the past, present and future of the world economy. * Ron Findlay, Ragnar Nurske Professor of Economics Emeritus, Columbia University * it will have, per page, strong influence on how we look at economic development over the long term. * Branko Milanovic, Journal of Economic Literature * Filled with fresh thinking on the factors behind economic development, Popovs analysis cuts through old orthodoxies and offers a host of new insights. This is the best study yet of why the last two decades have been marked by stunning economic success in China, and frustrating failures in Russia. Blending attention to institutions and capital accumulation with analyses of the social order as shown in murder rates and income inequality, Popov demonstrates how promoting economic growth requires custom fitting of policies to a countrys stage of development, political institutions, and historical legacies. This book, in non-technical terms, points the way to a new and more productive approach to economic development. * Jack A. Goldstone, Hazel Professor of Public Policy, George Mason University * In a wide historical sweep, Vladimir Popov charts the rise of the West after the first Industrial Revolution, the apparently successful but ultimately failed development challenge launched by the Soviet model, and the current rise of China. He emphasizes the role of indigenous institutions in fostering economic growth and the failure of imported models. It is a powerful indictment of development economics as practiced during the last couple of decades. There are few economists better equipped that Popov to handle these large issues of rise and fall of economic powers. * Branko Milanovic, author of The Haves and the Have-Nots: A Brief and Idiosyncratic History of Global Inequality, Basic Books * A big, bold book that provides a unified framework for explaining why some countries and regions get ahead economically while others fall behind. Popov shows how inequality, institutions, saving rates all matter but sometimes in surprising and unexpected ways. * Dani Rodrik, Institute for Advanced Study * Challenging conventional wisdom, Vladimir Popov offers a rare perspective on the economic development challenges of our times by bringing together his profound understanding of economic history, development theory, and post-communist transition. Offering a nuanced statist developmental view of capitalist transformation and accumulation, he provides rich comparative insights into the interaction and sequencing of various key elements accelerating or retarding and sustaining growth and economic transformation. * Jomo Kwame Sundaram, FAO Assistant Director General for Economic and Social Development; UN Assistant Secretary General for Economic Development, 2005-2012 *