The Great Wave

“Very persuasive….A major work that deserves the attention of all historians.”–Nancy Gordon, Bloomberg Quarterly”This year’s best book for investors.“–The New York Times Annual Survey of Books in Business and Economics”A powerful piece of historical analysis and ought to become part of everyone’s framework of understanding.“–New Statesman and Society”A provocative and thoughtful tour through history.“–The Economist”Tantalizing….A bold thread coursing through the weave of eight centuries of economic history.“–William P. Kucewicz, Markets”This is a fascinating book; it is also an important one…. Fischer succeeds in demonstrating that there are recurrent waves of price revolutions in human history…. His is a powerful piece of historical analysis and ought to become part of everyone’s framework of understanding.“–William Rees-Mogg, New Statesman and Society”A bold overview of how ordinary men and women have been protagonists in a drama that was (in retrospect) nothing less than the modernization of economic life.“–Civilization”An informative and readable history of price revolutions…. Fischer combines a lively narrative with cogent analysis and sound advice.“–Library Journal”This year’s best book for investors….Too often, historical perspective on Wall Street means going back a decade or two. Mr. Fischer instead traces inflation data from medieval times forward, finding evidence of repeated long patterns of rising prices, followed by long periods of stability. In the process, he demolishes some theories of what causes inflation….The thesis is both believable and fascinating, and so is the book.“–Floyd Norris, The New YorkTimes”It is rare to find a history book that tells an important story without putting you to sleep, especially perhaps if the subject is economic history. But David Hackett Fischer’s The Great Wave is just such a book, both informative and compelling….A panoramic view of the role of prices and the pernicious effects of inflation down through the ages.“–Stanley W. Angrist, The Wall Street Journal”The Brandeis historian David Hackett Fischer gives us a brilliant, bold analysis of the relationship between economics–the prices of things–and human welfare over 800 years…. [This book] allows us to observe an audacious and prodigiously learned historian’s mind at work…. Fischer has, in fact, given us one of our classic American jeremiads.“–William S. McFeely, The Boston Globe”The breadth and depth of Mr. Fischer’s knowledge, his facility with languages and his expertise in handling both quantitative and qualitative evidence exemplify the historian’s craft…. He has described the past and present in ways that inspire interesting questions and offer novel insights into our condition. Can a historian make a finer contribution?“–Thomas J. Archdeacon,The New York Times Book Review”Mr. Fischer looks at a thousand years of European history, and documents with fascinating detail long periods of rising prices that are accompanied by social unheaval and even war, followed by long periods of stable prices accompanied by social calm.“–Wall Street Journal”No economist or historian will agree with everything [Fischer] says. Many will vehemently disagree; but most will learn a great deal.“–Lexington Herald-Leader”Utilizing a very long telescope, one that sees back as far as the Dark Ages, Fischer investigates the history of price changes to expound on a fascinating theory that can possibly foretell nothing less than the furture of the United States, whether we’re headed for an era of greater prosperity, or a catastrophe like that of the Great Depression…. Economics has been called the dismal science, but Fischer’s work offers a cautionary story that is readilyunderstandable and surprisingly compelling to the general reader.“–The Herald”After reading this superbly written and potentially controversial book, you’ll never glare at a price tag in quite the same way again.“–San Franciso Examiner”In scholarly yet lucid prose, [Fischer} traces price trends back to medieval times in Europe and the colonial days of the Americas. What he discovers is a bold thread coursing through the weave of eight centuries of economic history.“–Market”In an interesting and informative way, the author reminds us of the real consequences that economic policy has in each person’s life, consequences that extend far beyond economic well-being.“–Michael Wald, Monthly Labor Review”Very persuasive…a major work that deserves the attention of all historians.“–Nancy Gordon, History”Economists can read this book with interest and profit….Fischer is a consummate stylist and meticulous in his attention to details.“–Rondo Cameron, Journal of Economic Literature”Fascinating reading. Fischer is no sensationalist trying to crank out a pseudo-economic bestseller, but a serious economic historian….A book worth chewing on and digesting.“–Barton Biggs, Morgan Stanley Dean Whitter Investment Perspectives

David Hackett Fischer is Warren Professor of History at Brandeis University. He has won numerous awards for scholarship and teaching. His many books include the highly acclaimed Paul Revere’s Ride.