Why Nations Fail
by Daron Acemoglu
★ Top 25 book of 2012 · #22 on Best Books of 2012
Acemoglu and Robinson argue that wealth and poverty stem from political and economic institutions, not culture, weather, or geography. They support the theory with evidence from the Roman Empire to the two Koreas, and apply it to today's big questions.
Best for: Readers curious about why some countries prosper while others stay poor
Why Nations Fail is #22 on BookWard's Best Books of 2012, out of 58 2012 books that cleared our data bar.
What Why Nations Fail is about
Why is one country rich while its neighbor stays poor? Economists Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson tackle that question in this 2012 book. They begin with two towns called Nogales, one in Arizona and one in Sonora, sitting side by side yet living very differently. Their answer rejects the usual suspects: culture, climate, and geography, they say, do not settle a nation's fate.
Instead they point to institutions. Societies thrive, they argue, when many people have a real voice in governing, though some central authority is needed too, or openness can slide into chaos. To make the case they draw on examples from ancient Rome, the Maya, the Soviet Union, and the United States. They also use Schumpeter's idea of creative destruction to explain growth. Anyone curious about politics, history, or global inequality will find an accessible, argumentative guide.
Why Nations Fail on the Best Books of 2012
Why Nations Fail came out in 2012. Of the 58 books first published in 2012 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #22 on our Best Books of 2012 list.
Why it made the list: 714 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.7 out of 5 (34 ratings); 51 are reading it right now. The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 2012 list
- The Darkest Minds Alexandra Bracken, #20
- The Hidden Kingdom Tui Sutherland, #21
- Antifragile Nassim Nicholas Taleb, #23
See all Best Books of 2012 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2011 Best Books of 2013.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 618 want to read it, 51 are reading it now and 45 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 3.7 out of 5 from 34 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 71 | 55% |
| Reader love | 9 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 81 | 20% |
Questions about Why Nations Fail
When was Why Nations Fail published?
Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu was first published in 2012.
Was Why Nations Fail one of the best books of 2012?
Why Nations Fail is #22 on BookWard's Best Books of 2012, out of 58 2012 books that cleared our data bar. 714 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.7 out of 5 (34 ratings); 51 are reading it right now.
Why is Why Nations Fail on the Best Books of 2012 list?
714 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.7 out of 5 (34 ratings); 51 are reading it right now.
More of the best books of 2012
- Wonder R. J. Palacio, #1
- The Fault in Our Stars John Green, #2
- The Selection (the Selection #1) Kiera Cass, #3
- Drama Raina Telgemeier, #4
- Throne of Glass Sarah J. Maas, #5
- The Power of Habit Charles Duhigg, #6
See the full Best Books of 2012, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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