Hershey: Milton S. Hershey's Extraordinary Life of Wealth, Empire, and Utopian Dreams

Extraordinary life is right. Hershey was present at the Columbian Expedition in Chicago and the Centennial in Philadelphia. He worked in Denver, Chicago, Philadelphia and New York City, failing at every turn, before moving back to the Lancaster area where he was born to open his caramel factory. Fortunately he moved on to chocolate and a fortune and juggernaut was born.
Unfortunately he died and the juggernaut cracked at the seams. The Orphans School was the sole owner of the Hershey stock and as such reaped much more money than they could ever spend. The board wanted to break the trust and sell the stock which tore the town apart. Not a fitting ending, which could have been prevented by some smarter planning on M.S. Hershey's part. Stay show more tuned.
I learned so much and found the book to read like a novel. Dense with facts, it never bogged down or became overwhelming. I thoroughly enjoyed it and now want to visit to see for myself what so many others have enjoyed. show less

5.3 Top 10 book for me. Amazing story, such a wholesome, heartwarming tale. MS wasn’t perfect by any means but he understood the power of doing good with his money and created an incredible legacy. I’m a Hershey bar fan!

An interesting book, which often focuses more on Hershey's accomplishments as a town-builder and patron of orphans than on the building of the chocolate business. I would have liked for some of the people to come alive more (Hershey does, and his wife, but rarely others). But they don't seem to have left behind much personal information, whereas the town of Hershey is well-documented.

Fascinating life