DANIEL SCHULMAN is the New York Times best-selling author of Sons of Wichita, a biography of the Koch family that was a finalist for the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award. The deputy Washington bureau chief of Mother Jones, he lives in Massachusetts, with his wife and sons.
"Schulman offers a rich account of [the modern financial] system,
and of his subjects' role in shaping it . . . He anchors his
narrative in intimate personal details, creating a compelling
portrait of a close-knit Gilded Age aristocracy, which, though its
members possessed nearly infinite wealth, was locked out of many of
the country’s élite institutions. Schulman doesn't shy away from
the unsavory, rendering his subjects with satisfying complexity."
—The New Yorker
"Stellar . . . [A] wonderful book . . . A striking portrait of
how Jews, and specifically these most elite Jews, set out to
determine what it meant to be Jewish in America . . . Rich in both
historical detail and as a character study, and readers will come
away with a newfound appreciation for the heft of the legacy of
these men, and a realization of how bittersweet that legacy is."
—Emily Tamkin, The Washington Post
“A sprawling history of the German Jews who came to the United
States in the 19th century and helped create the modern economy
while navigating their own identities as Jews, bankers and
Americans . . . Schulman is a thorough reporter with an eye for
delightful details.” —Jacob Goldstein, The New York Times Book
Review
“An illuminating group portrait . . . Schulman’s tale begins with
pushcart peddlers in the1830s who rose within a generation to
become titans of finance . . . With U.S. campuses today being
shaken by anti-Israel demonstrations and American Jews fearing a
renewed antisemitism, The Money Kings sounds a disquieting and
timely note . . . The plight of Schiff and his peers will surely
echo with American Jews today, suddenly feeling their standing
fragile again.” —Roger Lowenstein, The Wall Street Journal
“A deeply reported and readable chronicle of a group of
German-Jewish immigrants who arrived in the US in the 1800s and
earned fortunes that lasted generations. Schulman vividly portrays
their profound impact on Wall Street and the world . . . A timely
corrective to historical distortions that have helped feed
antisemitism.” —Joshua Franklin, Financial Times
"A well-researched economic history of the foundations of
Jewish wealth and philanthropy in America . . . Schulman
seasons his account with entertaining anecdotes [and] is alert
to themes that resonate today . . . While it’s [Jacob] Schiff
who stands out, he’s well situated in the context of his
network, so the reader gleans a fuller picture of
turn-of-the-century American Jewish life and is shown
a robust study of late nineteenth century, early
twentieth century American financial history." —Bettina
Berch, Jewish Book Council
“Not merely an engaging account of the lifestyles of the rich and
famous—although that part of the story is unavoidable—but, more
importantly, a history of how a handful of industrious immigrants
were able to have such an outsized impact on both America and
American Jewry . . . Today’s battles over immigration,
antisemitism, and even US-Russia relations are also amply
represented in the era under Schulman’s scrutiny.” —Rafael Medoff,
New York Post
"Full of illuminating information about Americans’ attitudes toward
Jews . . . Tells the not always well-known stories of these men,
their families, and their impact on modern corporate finance, IPOs,
anti-trust legislation, the creation of the Federal Reserve Bank,
philanthropy, Jewish life in the United States, Zionism, and
antisemitic conspiracy theories . . . Daniel Schulman has
brought [Jacob Schiff] back to life." —Glenn C. Altschuler, The
Jerusalem Post
"An ambitious and captivating group portrait of Jewish financial
dynasties 'with profound legacies' in the U.S. from the 1830s to
the present . . . Schulman presents a wealth of fascinating
detail . . . Full of vivid personalities and intriguing tales of
alliances and rivalries, this is a sensitive and compassionate
portrait of the families that built Wall Street." —Publishers
Weekly (starred review)
"A spirited account of the first great American financiers, many of
them German Jewish immigrants, [and] a welcome, highly readable
contribution to American financial and social history." —Kirkus
Reviews (starred review)
“With The Money Kings, Daniel Schulman becomes our foremost
historian of the American business dynasty. The story behind
Goldman Sachs and other famed financial institutions takes readers
to unexpected places: not just Wall Street, but Germany and
Alabama, the Middle East and the Lower East Side. Schulman contends
with both the good and evil that concentrated wealth can thrust
upon the world—all without losing sight of the human tales behind
the creation of modern finance.” —Beverly Gage, author of G-Man
(winner of the Pulitzer Prize)
“The Money Kings is more than just a riveting unraveling of the
history of high finance in America. It gives voice to the Jewish
peddlers who remade Wall Street, debunks antisemitic conspiracy
theories, and offers inspiration to new generations of big-dreaming
immigrants.” —Larry Tye, author of Demagogue
“The origin stories of America’s great Jewish banking
families—among them, the Lehmans, the Schiffs, the Goldmans, and
the Seligmans—have always been shrouded in some mystery. But no
longer. Thanks to Daniel Schulman’s endlessly riveting and
triumphant Money Kings, the fascinating details of how these
determined men made their marks and their fortunes on Wall Street
are revealed, many for the very first time.” —William D. Cohan,
author of Power Failure
“Daniel Schulman’s fascinating book tells the story of not one but
two Jewish communities in New York more than a century ago. The
relationship between them—the wealthy uptown elite and the poor
downtown immigrants—makes this an absorbing tale.” —Adam
Hochschild, author of American Midnight
“A must-read for anyone seeking to gain a deeper understanding of
the roots of modern finance and its foundational families. Schulman
weaves a masterful tapestry of history, bringing to life the untold
stories of a group of trailblazing pioneers who left an indelible
mark on global business and Jewish life. It’s a monumental work.”
—David de Jong, author of Nazi Billionaires
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