This book deals mainly with economic history, beginning in Part I with Medieval Europe, the early stages of capitalism, and devoting chapters to what the author claims is the role of Brazil in the formation of capitalism. This chapter and another one discuss Brazilian economic history of the sugar and mining era when slaves provided the indispensable labor for those enterprises.
Part II opens with a chapter devoted to modern capitalism and monopolistic practices, particularly in the United States, and is followed by a chapter which discusses “democratic” economic forms and forces, meaning the development of labor unions especially in the United States and the cooperative movement starting with the Rochdale Weavers. The last chapter of this section examines Soviet economic policy.
The third and last part analyzes international trade by means of economic concepts such as price and production and savings and investment and is of less interest to the readers of this journal.
Within my limited ability to judge, the author deals competently with his chosen topics, but presents little that is new and that has not already been documented in other sources.
