Amazon.com (ISBN 0871137607, Paperback)

A conservative, prosperous, American journalist gadding around the world laughing at all the ways less successful nations screw up their economy--this might not sound like the recipe for a great read, unless you're Rush Limbaugh, but if that journalist is P.J. O'Rourke you can be sure that you'll enjoy the ride even if you don't agree with the politics. Although Eat the Rich is subtitled A Treatise on Economics, O'Rourke spends relatively few pages tackling the complexities of monetary theory. He's much happier when flying from Sweden to Hong Kong to Tanzania to Moscow, gleefully recording every economic goof he can find. When he visits post-Communist Russia and finds a country that is as messed up by capitalism as it was by Communism, O'Rourke mixes jokes about black-market shoes with disturbing insights into a nation on the verge of collapse. P.J. O'Rourke is more than a humorist, he's an experienced international journalist with a lot of frequent-flyer miles, and this gives even his funniest riffs on the world's problems the ring of truth.

Amazon.com Amazon.com Audiobook Review (ISBN 0871137607, Paperback)

What is it that makes one person rich and another poor? It's a tough question and not one generally suited to laughs, but P.J. O'Rourke--in the audio version of his ironic and insightful book, Eat the Rich--is a master at finding humor in the most unlikely places. Here he travels from Wall Street to Russia, Hong Kong to Cuba on an immensely entertaining quest for economic enlightenment. It's an educational journey wrapped in hilarity, which is especially enjoyable when heard in the surprisingly deep, resonant voice of the author himself. (Running time: three hours, two cassettes) --George Laney

Amazon.com Book Description (ISBN 0871137607, Paperback)

Amazon.com Book Description (ISBN 0330353276, Hardcover)

2 cassettes / 3 hours
Read by the Author

In P.J. O'Rourke's classic bestseller Parliament of Whores, he attempted to explain the entire United States government.  In Eat the Rich, he takes on an even broader subject, but one that is dear to us all - wealth.

What is it?  How do you get it?  Or, as P.J. says, "Why do some places prosper and thrive, while others just suck?"

The starting point is Wall Street.  P.J. takes the listener on a scary hilarious, and enlightening visit to the New York Stock Exchange, then sets off on a world tour to investigate funny economics  Having seen "good" capitalism on Wall Street, he looks at "bad" capitalism in Albania, views "good" socialism in Sweden, and endures "bad" socialism in Cuba.  Head reeling, he describes to tackle that Econ 101 course he avoided in college.  The result is the only astute presentation of the principles of economics that can make you laugh on purpose

Armed with theory, P.J. ventures to Russia, Tanzania, Hong Kong, and ends up in Shanghai, observing a top-down transition to capitalism.

P.J.'s conclusion in a nutshell: the free market is ugly and stupid, like going to the mall; the unfree market is just as ugly and just as stupid, except there's nothing in the mall and if you don't go there they shoot you.