Fortune's Children by Arthur T. Vanderbilt 2nd Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Fortune's Children
Book Review: A Review of Fortune's Children
Summary: 5 Stars
I visited Biltmore Estate with my family in October. I wanted to know more about the Vanderbilt family so I bought this book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about what could have been a very dry topic. This author brought the family to life for me. I recommend this book if you want to know the Vanderbilt history...how they made their money and how they managed to spend most of it.Book Review: A family affair
Summary: 4 Stars
Fortune's Children was a good read for anyone interested in how the rich lived in the late 1800's. The author detailed the main characters very well as well as the over the top, outlandish homes that these characters resided in. It is truly a nice look into that era and what it all meant to be a Vanderbilt. Reading this book has piqued my interest in other books about the first rich family of America. Once I began reading this book I had trouble putting it down.Book Review: A good 50,000 Foot Overview
Summary: 4 Stars
If you have toured a Vanderbilt house in Newport RI, Hyde Park NY, Northport NY, Florham NJ, or in New York City (Yes, one of the original Vanderbilt homes is a store on 5th Avenue and 52rd Street) and have had your interested piqued, then this is a excellent book for an overview of the family and there beginnings. The book never goes very deep but gives you a very good understanding of how the Commodore made his first $95 million and how his son, William, turned it into almost $200 million. But the best part of the book helps you understand how the next generation of William II and Cornelius III and wives spent almost all of the incredible fortune. The author, Arthur Vandy, is kinder to Alva than most books, but hey, they are related.Book Review: A look into some Vanderbilts
Summary: 5 Stars
Arthur Vanderbilt II takes great care in researching and describing his own family tree. despite the fact that there are still many Vanderbilts that are missing, such as Frederick Vanderbilt who built the mansion in Hyde Park, NY, the book is a very good quick reference of the family tree.
This is a must have for historians of the Guiled Age and Vanderbilt family, as Arthur has compiled an extensive bibliography of re fences and primary sources that are immensely important for further research.
Book Review: A story about one of the most storied American families
Summary: 5 Stars
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I bought it at Frederick William Vanderbilt's home on the Hudson River while on vacation, and managed to finish it before leaving northern New York. It is very difficult to put down because it is a study of people, all from the same family, yet the only connecting trait of the whole bunch is the name Vanderbilt. Arthur Vanderbilt truthfully portrays the great business acumen of the early generations of Vanderbilts, as well as the mistakes, gaffes, and scandals of the later ones. The downward spiral of the family is impressively told in an engaging and simple read. For anyone interested in American history and the people that made it, this is certainly a good choice.