A Piece of the Action : How the Middle Class Joined the Money Class (Hardcover)

by Joseph Nocera (Author) "AMERICA BEGAN TO CHANGE on a mid-September day in 1958, when the Bank of America dropped its first 60,000 credit cards on the unassuming city..." (more)
Key Phrases: Merrill Lynch, Wall Street, Bank of America (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In an entertaining and edifying history of personal finance, GQ columnist Nocera charts the transformation of the habits of middle-class Americans. The raging inflation of the late 1970s and early '80s, he argues, led many people to abandon thrift and their aversion to risk, attitudes acquired during the Depression. Faced with double-digit inflation, wildly gyrating interest rates and a sinking standard of living, consumers displayed a great willingness to take on debt. The emergence of two-income couples, adjustable-rate mortgages, credit cards and the middle class's growing participation in stocks, mutual funds and money-market accounts define what the author terms the "money revolution" of the past two decades. Nocera, who believes credit overall has been a force for good in American life, fleshes out this colorful chronicle with profiles of finance wizards Charles Merrill of Merrill Lynch; Dee Hock, creator of Visa; and investment broker Charles Schwab. Author tour.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
The business writer of "The Profit Motive" column for GQ magazine, Nocera presents a fascinating and comprehensive history of the evolution of the personal financial products accessible to most Americans today. His story begins with the birth of the credit card 35 years ago and documents the rise of NOW accounts, mutual funds, cut-rate commissions on stock purchases, IRAs, and ATMs. Drawing upon interviews and business news reports, Nocera also includes the stories of the entrepreneurs behind these products-Giannini, founder of Bank of America; Hock, creator of Visa; Kahr, creator of Cash Management Accounts; Merrill, founder of Merrill Lynch; discount broker Schwab; and fund manager Lynch. This book is also a social history of changing American attitudes about money, investing, and the use of credit. Highly recommended for business collections.
Jane M. Kathman, Coll. of St. Benedict, St. Joseph, Minn.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (October 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671667564
• ISBN-13: 978-0671667566
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #890,266 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great primer for anyone in the personal finance business, January 25, 2005

By	M. Strong (Milwaukee, WI USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: A Piece of the Action: How the Middle Class Joined the Money Class (Paperback)

If you work in personal finance or want to know how the business came to be, I highly recommend this book. It has one instance after another of "a-ha" moments where the light goes on in your head as to why things in our industry are the way they are. Nocera does a great job of tracing each of the innovations that made Wall Street more and more accessible to the average American, benefiting the investor and the companies that got financing.

The other very instructive point this book makes is about the mind, and methodology of the people who drive innovations. For anyone looking to build the better mousetrap, here is a book about person after person who did exactly that in the arena of personal finance.

Highly recommended.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exciting story, about your attitude toward $, December 22, 2000

By	Paul Sas "The tapeworm" (Berkeley) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: A Piece of the Action: How the Middle Class Joined the Money Class (Paperback)

What a thriller! Nocera describes the way Am. attitudes toward debt, investment, savings, and inflation have been transformed since 1958 (the day 60,000 credit cards got mail-dropped in Fresno). Every chapter revealed another fascinating aspect of our changing relationship to $: Credit cards, money market funds, the discount brokerage boom and Charles Schwab's relationship to that force, the superstart fund managers and the personal stories of Peter Lynch and Fidelity, as well as the second wave of credit card design, which focused on poaching upon those most prone to run up debt. This book can give you a deeper understanding of your own attitudes toward finance, while also offering many insights into America's ambivalent relationship toward the dollar and debt.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Informative and easy-to-read., May 8, 1998

By	[e-mail] (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

Mr. Nocera has done a phenomonal job of putting the entire evolution of consumer financial products into an easy-to-read story. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the development of products such as mutual funds, credit cards, and discount brokerage accounts.