He makes Bill Gates look like a Pauper!

This was a long, long read but I just can’t see how you’d get the whole story about the Rockefeller Empire by reading an abridged version. It was long, but well worth your time.

From the onset, John D Rockefeller was destined to be a financial giant. Choosing not to enlist in the union Army during the civil war he began building his empire in Cleveland with a small Oil refinery. As the demand for oil grew, and following several business savvy maneuvers he slowly built Standard Oil into the world’s largest oil company and he into one of the world’s richest men. Not without a few underhanded tactics which he would ignore, Standard Oil grew to colossal proportion until it was ultimately broken up by the US courts.

This was an excellent read and I would recommend it to anyone who would like to learn about Rockefeller, Standard Oil, his philanthropic endeavors, or how one of the largest corporations in the world became the greatest monopolies. The story is long and no detail is left out and it is well worth the time to learn how this very powerful, yet very complex family empire came to be.

102 people found this helpful

WOW! What a fascinating story!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

YES! And I have, to anyone who will listen. This is a fascinating story of a man very few people know much about beyond his wealth. Chernow is both an excellent writer and a master of research. This is a long listen but it never bogs down. You will walk away having completely revised your understanding of Rockafeller. You may not like him any better but you will know him better.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Titan?

When I realized the origin of Spellman College in Atlanta, GA.

What about Grover Gardner’s performance did you like?

Everything, he is one of my favorite narrators. Knows when to emphasize and when to hold back, easy on the ears, good diction, pleasant tone.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The end. I was sorry it was over.

66 people found this helpful

Powerful. Engaging. Inspirational.

After reading this book, here is a once sentence description of Rockefeller.

If Rockefeller was a modern day NFL football player he would be a all pro linebacker who blindsided quarterbacks and put them in the hospital then stepped off the field, went home and baked cookies for the neighborhood kids.

Weird, eh?

I recall my high school text books dedicated one or two paragraphs of one chapter to "The Robber Barons" and for some strange reason I just assumed that was sufficient to gather the gist of what they were about.

Wow, that a bad assumption.

The actual story of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. is so, so much more than a mere story of a guy who was in the right place at the right time. Chernow's detailed portrait of his life makes him come to life in a way that is vivid and stunning. I am amazed that he was able to reconstruct so much of this man's origins, motivations and feelings as his life unfolded on such a grand stage. What a well done piece of scholarship and what a well done narrative.

At no point in the this book do I feel like Chernow took a side. At some points I felt Rockefeller was a victim of the greed of others, he was taken advantage of and he had really tried to cultivate true goodness in his character. At other moments I was shocked as his aggression and just how hard he charged in his business.

The life and habits of this curious man are on full display. It made me want to take the best of him and make it myself while keeping the worst of him at bay.

The narration is masterful. No complaints there.

Hope you enjoy.

63 people found this helpful

A Great Listen - Fascinating and Entertaining

Found it hard to put this down. It's beautifully written and read. A very easy listen too.

The author tells a great story but is at pains to include important historical details. It's very detailed but well paced. I like the way the chapters are organised into different sections of Rockefeller's life.

Even though this was written in the 1990s the narrative style has a certain late 19th / early 20th century flavour to it. The reader's style works well with the words, he manages to evoke the age, steeping the listening experience in atmosphere.

I'd imagine years of painstaking research have gone into creating this book.

Last week I knew very little about Rockefeller. Now I know a lot about the man, his beginnings, how he built his fortune, his saintly, human, crooked and cunning sides, his mind boggling philanthropy and more besides.

We humans love to paint others as either one thing or the other, good or bad, saintly or evil. This is a great study how someone can have so many contrasting and contradictory sides to their character. I would have loved to have met Rockefeller, especially in his old age. He was an astoundingly, fine, cunning, complex and brilliant character.

On balance I'd say the book is quite sympathetic to Rockefeller, but that's not surprising. He was vilified from afar, but close up had a way of winning people over. The book does devote plenty of space to his misdeeds however, and lays responsibility firmly at his door for these.

Loved it!

I want to listen to more audio books like this.

Strongly recommended.

45 people found this helpful

This is a Masterpiece!

I was not interested in the life of Rockefeller when I bought this. I got it truly bc of the reviews and the fact that it was one of the only Chernow books NOT narrated by Scott Brick. (Sorry I know lots like him, but I've gotten a little tired Scott brick.)

I knew about Roosevelt's trustbusting and Ida Tarbel's newspaper attacks, but not from the perspective of those who were victims of much scrutiny and hatred. Tarbel in particular went too far.

I sludged through first two or three hours, then I was hooked. I learned SO much about how big businesses worked back then. The most interesting part of book for me was the way the family charities evolved into serious organizations whose members won Nobel prizes for curing diseases and saving countless lives. Many will be surprised at the state of medicine in America before the Rockefeller Institute for scientific research in medicine. The charities are so numerous. I especially was impressed with his work to raise education in the south.

Chernow is an outstanding historian. He covers every aspect of every story. Good and bad. He creates both the savage business man and the well meaning family man. He shows us the humanity that was lost on so many others who abused him personally about his looks and his illness, they even attacked his family. I did feel sorry for the man at times!

Definitely interesting and beyond well-written. Great Performance by Grover Gardner!! As usual... (Why didn't he read George Washington????)

43 people found this helpful

A Fascinating Biography of History's Richest Man

"Standard Oil had taught the American public an important but paradoxical lesson: Free markets, if left completely to their own devices, can wind up terribly unfree. Competitive capitalism did not exist in a state of nature but had to be defined or restrained by law."
- Ron Chernow, Titan

One of the great truths about America is the paradoxes built into it, almost from the beginning. It was the land of the free, but built largely on the backs of slaves. It has all the bunting of freedom, but often can act like an adolescent empire. Those same paradoxes are also found within American Capitalism AND some of America's greatest men. Rockefeller is one of those men, known for both good and evil, where it is very hard to write a biography without carrying into it A LOT of bias. Standard Oil, in some ways, is the perfect example of many of the virtues of capitalism (and the Protestant work ethic). It also contains within it, many of the vices.

Chernow is able to explore the life of Rockefeller without turning the book into a hagiography (Rockefeller paid for plenty of those) or Devil's dictionary (there were plenty of those too). He examines Rockefeller as a man, faults and brilliance combined. This isn't a perfect biography, but is definitely top shelf. It isn't even Chernow's best. I'd rank this one under Alexander Hamilton, but over Washington: A Life (Since I haven't read The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance or The Warburgs: The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family, I'll decide later where it fits among those two). The biggest weakness, in my opinion, of this biography was the end. Chernow wanted a cradle to grave biography and delivered it. I just feel he could have cut about 100 pages from the last 15 years of Rockefeller's life. The biography became a bit less compelling after the chapters on the Rockefeller Foundation. While I think his time in Florida, giving out dimes and nickels, needed a few lines -- it just wandered a bit at the end (thus my four stars, not five).

Some of what I loved the most from this book, however, were the bits about minor satellites to Rockefeller. I loved the discussions concerning such fascinating figures as Ida Tarbell (the Jane Mayer of the early 20th Century), Frederick T. Gates (who helped Rockefeller give his money away, and invest it later in his life), JR (a whole book can be written on the relationship between Rockefeller Sr & Rockefeller Jr), the Baptists (another whole book could be written on the relationship between the Rockefellers and religion), etc. These asides alone were worth the entire price of admission.

I kept thinking as I read this of Jane Mayer's book Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right. It was amazing how much power Rockefeller really had. It was also amazing at how bad both the Rockefellers and Standard Oil were at public relations and politics. It seems in some ways the Kochs have learned from the mistakes of previous billionaires, but it also seems like the more things change with oil, money, and politics - the more they stay the same.

20 people found this helpful

Long but engaging and enlightening

36 hours is quite long for an audiobook. And yes, at times it feels there are too many details on a topic that is not critical to the story. Still, the audiobook is always engaging and always interesting. I was not tempted to fast forward or skip.

On the contrary, I really enjoyed this book. It gives a surprisingly complete view of John D. Rockefeller, his context, his life, his legacy and his challenges. The book provides life lessons, a detailed view into the state of business, trade and even the culture of the earlier 1900s as well as a comprehensive account of JDR's life, business, struggles and personal achievements.

Worth spending 36 on it.

17 people found this helpful

Very nice and interesting

If you could sum up Titan in three words, what would they be?

Enjoyed every minute

What does Grover Gardner bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Reason I selected the book in first place was the Grover Gardner, he brings the story to life.

14 people found this helpful

Another Good Chernow Biography

I enjoyed this book as well as the Chernow biographies of Washington and Hamilton. Chernow always has an interesting and thorough approach to biography without making it too detailed or over praising the subject. The first half or more of the book that dealt with Standard Oil and Rockefeller was the most interesting part. The philanthropic portion of the later life was a little longer than I thought it needed to be. I did learn a lot about many of the charities that Rockefeller started and supported in the areas of medicine, education, and religious institutions. I felt the author had an evenhanded approach to the religious side of Rockefellar.

13 people found this helpful

Wonderful Bio on John D

I am currently researching many legendary businessman and had previously listened to "The Rockefellers" by Peter Collier & David Horowitz. "Titan" provides everything that "The Rockefellers" lacks (which is a ton). While one could view them as being complimentary, if you are to choose between the two, "Titan" is the one to go with, hands down. Highly recommended.

12 people found this helpful