I had quite a reaction to this book. Mark Pendergast narrates the heroic story of the rise of Coca Cola from the patent medicines to an enormous company. Even though the book is remarkably well written, it isn't everyone's read. The most valuable information to me as a dealer in Coke collectibles was the explanation of the dichotomy between the Atlanta based processor of syrup and the bottlers. Especially informative is the lineage tree tracing the sale from J. Pemberton to Asa Candler. The book is also peppered with psychological insight into the growth of the corporation. At the beginning one wonders how the story will end. I got tired of the short-comings of each of the directors from the inventor up to the Cuban,Roberto Goizueta. Candler seems phony and cheap. The next president, R. Woodruff, is also a scrooge, unimaginative, a terd but a super salesman. Under him the organization expanded internationally. Their first big patent lawyer, Harold Hirsch, later turned around and sued the parent company in Atlanta. In order to grow lots of feet were kissed.
The impression I got after reading about the atrocities in Guatamala and Columbia connected with Cokes trying to break the hold of unions is that the company is corrupt. The directors look like scumbags in the issue of the Florida based Minute Maid affair where workers were housed in substandard dwellings and under paid. Worst of all was and is their insensitivity to political climates especially in the case of running Coke bottling companies in Nazi Germany.
My biggest criticism of this 501 page book is that the print is too small. I had to read it with a large magnifying glass all the way through. Ugh! As far as the content goes, the author doesn't make it clear when refrigeration began. He finally mentions the word in a date of 1920. Another thing that needs to be straightened out is when the bottles and sodas became sterilized and properly sealed so that there was no contamination from bugs and worms. This didn't improve immediately after the Pure Food and Drug Act.
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Top reviews from other countries
Amazon Customer
a classic wish I'd read it years ago
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 30, 2022
Eluard Moraes
If you want to know how a empire rises...
Reviewed in Brazil on October 5, 2020Amazon Customer
Mark Pendergrast did it right.
Reviewed in Canada on November 21, 2015
