Pleasant, but rather random history of US from post civil war to 1900. I enjoyed the capsule histories of Tammany Hall, Grover Cleveland, JP Morgan/Rockefeller, WJ Bryan and so forth- and glad to have read them, but author is at pains to point out how this is another win for capitalism. Ummm... ok. sometimes i guess that seemed true (vs. what? uncapitalism? socialism? communism? liberalism?) but it didn't particularly hang together for me as a theme. ( )

A stunning reminder that the obsession with capitalism, lack of welfare, corrupt politicians, stolen elections, voter suppression, and immoral court rulings were as recognizable and called out in the US of the 1800s as they are today. ( )

Excellent book that gets into the nuts and bolts of how capitalism grew in America in the second half of the 19th century. Covers urban and rural, rich and poor, capital and labor - does a wonderful job at touching on every way it impacted the norms of American life, government, cultural, and the economy. Only wish is that the author put forth stronger arguments/thesis about the bonuses/negatives these impacts had. ( )

Excellent, really brings the Gilded Age to life.
Various chapters discuss everything from politics to business to labor to city life, etc...
The highlight is a train chase scene. A freakin' train chase! ( )

Like all of the narrative histories written by Brands, this is workmanlike, solid, broad, engaging, interesting, and easy-to-read. Brands breaks no new research here, it is almost all secondary sources and printed primary sources, but Brands gives an insightful account of the era, which allows the public and historians alike to have a proper grounding in the history of this important time in American history. I thought it balanced well enough and well written. ( )