The Stages of Economic Growth : A Non-Communist Manifesto

Rating:
Summary: Tedious, non-falsifiable.
Review: Like Marx's, Rostow's historical schema is non-falsifiable. Too, the "stages" are rather pat. When the reader is through with Rostow's turgid prose, what has he learned? Hmm.

Rating:
Summary: Comprehensive, yet at times boring.
Review: The summary says it all. This text provides a terrific foundation in the explanation of Rostow's theory of economic growth. It is unfortunate that Rostow's writing is as dull as it is, because, underneath it all, is a rather interesting book.

Rating:
Summary: A Classic Look at Economic Growth
Review: This book is a terrific exposition on how various countries go from traditional societies to societies of mass consumption. If you want to know what kind of preconditions are necessary for economic take-off (like 10% investment of GDP or a leading take-off sector), this book sets the standard. It is a classic work which many economists have used to build on since then. And though this book is meant as a counter to the Communist Manifesto, Rostow does not get caught up in a mundane critique of the former USSR. Instead, the reader gets some very incisive criticism on what was wrong with the ideology and implementation (the means often determine the ends) in the USSR. At the end of the day, what you get with this book is a handbook to economic growth, something useful to countries not yet in the "take-off" period and for those who wish to understand economic growth.