Customer Reviews

Monopoly: The World's Most Famous Game--And How It Got That Way

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Monopoly's impact on world history is truly amazing. As one of six children, Monopoly was a beloved favorite in my family. But, I had no idea how much more than "just a game" it is! The author takes you on a 100 year journey from the mind of Lizzie Phillips (who conceived Monopoly's forerunner as a political tool) to radical professor Scott Nearing (who popularized the game), through movers in the Roosevelt Adminstration, and on to Parker Brothers who published Monopoly and spread it worldwide. The Monopoly game helped prisoners escape in WWII, served in the Cold War, and on and on. Along the way, hundreds of millions of players played it, competed in tournaments, and absorbed it into our culture in more ways than I could have imagined. I also learned the best properties to buy, and the appendices list every version published, which is great in case you want to start collecting. I loved this book and highly recommend it as a fascinating, well-researched, delightful read!

Love Monopoly and love pop culture history, so I was anxious to read this treatment of the history of America's favorite game. Unfortunately, the book does not live up to its promise.

Here's the core problem - the actual Monopoly content probably only fills about 75 pages. The rest of the text is the author's simplistic and superficial efforts at summarizing the American history that surrounded each decade of the game's life. So, instead of reading about Monopoly, I'm reading about FDR's New Deal and the author's thoughts on World War II.

He's no historian and his historical treatments are elementary-school level. By the 1960s, I was skimming over all his useless verbiage and trying (desperately) to find more on the game itself. The back cover teases with interesting Monopoly facts, but trivia of that ilk is given short shrift in the book.

Finally, he's just not a particularly good writer, using painful analogies and awkward prose. I'm not saying don't read it, especially if you have a high level of interest in the topic, but don't expect too much.

If you're a casual player of Monopoly®, you may never have managed to see a game through to the finish. However, it won't take you much time at all to complete this breezy, informative survey of the tortuous development of the "real estate trading game" from a didactic method of teaching a 19th-century economic nostrum (Henry George's "single tax") to a pastime that is enjoyed around the world. Orbanes is in a position to know all about Monopoly®, having written the previous "The Monopoly® Companion", serving as a judge at Monopoly® tournaments, and being in touch with the many collectors and fans who have come to specialize in the game and its variants and spin-offs. He does commit a fairly egregious number of faux pas of a purely historical nature, however. The ending is weak, with entirely too much time being spent on a description of Monopoly® tournaments and various individuals who have an online Monopoly® presence. It might have been better had the book been an oversized hardback, with larger space being provided for the many illustrations of Monopoly® variants, precursors, and rip-offs. Even so, this book is worth reading by anyone who enjoys the game and the general history of American pop culture.

After more than seventy years in the public eye there is no doubt that Monopoly has been a successful and well-loved game. It didn't just appear overnight, of course, (with many forerunners) but the essential game patented by Parker Brothers at the very end of 1935 still holds sway. It should, because it's terrific.

Philip Orbanes's book with the title of the same name is a curious look at the history of Monopoly. Striving to fill out enough information, both historical and entertainment-wise, it does...but just barely. The good chapters begin when the serious effort to market Monopoly gets going....the characters that were involved earlier on....Darrow, Magie, et al. figured into things but it wasn't until 1936 that the game took off. From that point on "Monopoly" (the book) becomes intriguing...its role in subversive activity in World War II, the Nixon-Khrushchev kitchen debate in 1959 and the many international editions that have been published with local flavor all add to the sweetness of the game and the book. Yet the author spends an inordinate amount of time getting the book off the ground, and finishing it up, as well. The names and the games get caught in a swirl of disconnect and publishing their rules at the end of the book (like "Landlord's Game" and "Finance" just seem like filler). The Monopoly rules, however, are what we really need to know.

There are some nice photos that accompany "Monopoly" and I give the author credit for this addition. I wish he had been more succinct in his telling of the story (the middle of the book) than all the sides that surround it. "Monopoly" is a nice read if you know what to look for.

this is one of the best board games ever. my whole family love it. this game is great because of the things u do on it so im going to have to give this game a 10.i love this game!i cant beleive people because they r crazyif they say this game iis bad. y do people not like this game?can u tell me y cuz if u can plz tell me.

This was a pretty good book. Definitely an awesome book (higher rating) for those who are REALLY into Monopoly or game-history.

My godfather gave me this book because he and I have played Monopoly together since my first visit to their home in West Virginia when I was fourteen.

Our most recent game was when I drove to visit them in their New Hampshire home in 2004. Our inside joke is that he always accuses me of cheating if and when I "steal" the lead.

Overall the book was an interesting insight to the story behind the game, the people involved of making what it is today, and the history and economics that weaved around the games success. There were a few typos (bad editor!! bad!!!!) but for the most part was a well put-together and researched book.

And I'm all the wiser for it in the event I play jeopardy or trivial pursuit now

When I picked up this book, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it. I thought it was going to be a book just about the game and its glory. While I was intrigued because Monopoly is my favorite game, I figured I would give it a shot. And boy was I surprised.

The book starts off with the Author in search of the history of the game. Which leads him not Monopoly, but to two key figures; Henry George and Elizabeth Magie Phillips. Henry George wrote a socialist book about the Single Tax Theory in his book Progress and Poverty in 1879. Ms. Phillips developed a game called the "Landlord's Game" in 1903 based off Mr. George's theory. This interesting beginning started a revolution that we know today.

While many game manufactures like Parker Brothers would not carry the game, Lizzie would patent it and give teach friends how to play the game. Some investors decide to build on a parcel of land to test the theory out where Lizzie sent them a copy of the game. The town was Arden, DE.

As she taught her friends, they taught others and it eventually made it to a class room at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania to teach students economics and the evils of Monopolies. As students were taught this game, it migrated to other colleges and university including Columbia University. It started to become popular by word of mouth.

The Landlord Game went through many modifications to become Monopoly. The Atlantic City theme did not appear until1930's When Dorothy and Cyril Harvey started to put the names of the streets and avenues of the town. They played this game with Charles and Olivia Todd who in turn showed Charles Darrow the game. Darrow would go on to popularize the game and to get Parker Brothers to start publishing the games years later. He even took credit for inventing the game we now know.

The only thing I did not like about the book was that he spent a lot of time on tournament play toward the end of the book. It was exciting, but it really wasn't need to complete the story of the game. I would have left it out.

Philip Orbanes not only adds the colorful history of the game, but he includes a knowledge of ecconomics, politics, history, all background stories to the book, making more than a book about the game, but a book about the United States and its rich history. This is a valuable book for everyone because it shows us what we actual miss in school about these subjects, but adds a sense of fun and reality to it. It was a joy to read and learn about this great game.


I highly recommend this book.
Enjoy

Monopoly is the world's most famous proprietary game: but why has it proven such an outstanding success over competitors? Monopoly, game fans and public libraries alike will find engrossing MONOPOLY: THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS GAME, which offers insight into the history and developers of the game. Chapters describe the game's creation, marketing, evolution, and attractions and include many insights on how the Internet and technological advancements have changed the game.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This is an extremely informative book on the early history of monopoly, and how it went through its changes to become the cultural mainstay it is today, and likely will continue to be so. After the initial history, the author starts wandering off into his rather elementary perceptions of US history and how they affected the game. I seriously had to fight off the eye glazing effect for the rest of the book, though there are some parts of the author's firsthand accounts of Monopoly tournaments that are mildly interesting. For an Amazon bargain book, worth the money, otherwise no way.

I love MONOPOLY. I never get tired of playing it. Lately, I love to read about it as well. I enjoyed Mr. Orbanes book entitled "The Monopoly Companion". It left me longing for more information and definitely for pictures. I was excited when I found his newest book about Monopoly. The history was great. I don't think anyone else could have provided a more complete and accurate history of Monopoly than Mr. Orbanes. The big disappointment was the 32 page "Monopoly Gallery" in the center of the book. The low resolution black and white photos were a tease. Mr. Orbanes himself says in the book that Charles Darrows' visual appeal of the game has greatly contributed to its success. I agree. That's why I am still waiting on a Monopoly book with a plethora of colorful, detailed and quality pictures.