First published 2016
Marc Levinson examines the collapse of the postwar economic miracle that defined prosperity from 1945 to 1973. He shows how the golden age of steady jobs and rising living standards gave way to energy crises, financial turmoil, and mass unemployment. The book traces how politicians lost their ability to deliver prosperity and turned against currency speculators and oil producers they could not control. Citizens from Sweden to Southern California began questioning their governments and rejecting the high taxes that funded social programs. This shift brought conservative leaders like Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan to power with promises of deregulation and smaller government. Levinson demonstrates that these free market solutions failed to restore the economic security people expected. The book reveals how neither state intervention nor market forces could bring back the golden age, leaving societies to grapple with economic uncertainty that persists today.
Genres: history, 20th-century, economics, non-fiction, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: social-commentary
Setting: Sweden, Southern California
Period: 1945-1973, Post-World War II
336 pages · Hardcover · Basic Books