BARUCH: MY OWN STORY

by Bernard Baruch ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 19, 1957

The first of a two volume memoir, this is a very full reminiscence- recorded at leisure and at the admirable age of 87- by the eminent financier and public servant. Certainly one of the most forceful figures of our time, the dynamic qualities of the man are surprisingly absent- or perhaps subdued by modesty, and his personal life- over and above the mention of his wife and children- does not intrude. However his opinions as well as his achievements alternate in the chronicle of his life. The son of an immigrant who became a Civil war surgeon, Baruch, spent his early childhood in the South until the family moved to New York city. A shy youngster, quick-tempered too, Baruch attended CCNY but was deflected from medicine by a phrenologist who suggested finance or politics as a future. His first years in the Street, his many successful speculations which brought him his first million when still a young man, his acquaintance with Thomas Fortune Ryan, Morgan, Harriman, Diamond Jim Brady and other financial titans, his diversified interest in rubber, copper, sulphur, all ultimately led to the realization that money was not the gratification which could satisfy him- and he turned toward public service. Baruch's own personal philosophy, as well as his philosophy of investment, of politics, lend stature to his story which, on the strength of his name, will command an audience- certainly more masculine than feminine.

Pub Date: Aug. 19, 1957

ISBN: 156849095X

Page Count: -

Publisher: Henry Holt

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1957

Categories: NONFICTION