{"product_id":"astor-the-rise-and-fall-of-an-american-fortune-isbn-9780063359314","title":"Astor: The Rise and Fall of an American Fortune","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA NPR Best Book of the Year\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe number one \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestselling authors of \u003cem\u003eVanderbilt\u003c\/em\u003e return with another riveting history of a legendary American family, the Astors, and how they built and lavished their fortune.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe story of the Astors is a quintessentially American story—of ambition, invention, destruction, and reinvention.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrom 1783, when German immigrant John Jacob Astor first arrived in the United States, until 2009, when Brooke Astor’s son, Anthony Marshall, was convicted of defrauding his elderly mother, the Astor name occupied a unique place in American society.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe family fortune, first made by a beaver trapping business that grew into an empire, was then amplified by holdings in Manhattan real estate. Over the ensuing generations, Astors ruled Gilded Age New York society and inserted themselves into political and cultural life, but also suffered the most famous loss on the \u003cem\u003eTitanic,\u003c\/em\u003e one of many shocking and unexpected twists in the family’s story.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this unconventional, page-turning historical biography, featuring black-and-white and color photographs, #1 \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestselling authors Anderson Cooper and Katherine Howe chronicle the lives of the Astors and explore what the Astor name has come to mean in America—offering a window onto the making of America itself.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“A brisk, entertaining history of the Astors, a storied dynasty that left an indelible mark on New York’s streets, parks, museums, libraries, hotels, and a famous gay bar. . . . A spirited saga of glitz and greed.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A rich history about the ways in which the very name of the mega-rich weakens through ubiquity and hubris.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChicago Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A must-read. . . . Cooper and Howe dig into one of the United States' most influential families and a parable of capitalism, commerce, and greed that established an American way of life.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“This meticulously detailed family saga is also rich with insight into U.S. history, including revealing chapters on topics ranging from mid-19th-century populist sentiments concerning Shakespeare (the Astor Opera House staged a performance of \u003cem\u003eMacbeth\u003c\/em\u003e that was widely reviled for its high ticket price) and the early 20th-century gay scene (when the Astor Hotel became a queer rendezvous spot). History buffs and readers fascinated by the rich and famous should take note.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A worthy companion to superstar journalist Cooper's and novelist Howe's bestselling account of Cooper's own family, \u003cem\u003eVanderbilt\u003c\/em\u003e. Once again, the authors offer an engaging, multigenerational story that is factual and nuanced. . . . Another nonfiction winner from the duo.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A lively, well-written and satisfyingly detailed account of the family that came to own New York. . . . \u003cem\u003eAstor\u003c\/em\u003e provides a fascinating history of the city, from the populist riots in 1849 stirred up by a production of \u003cem\u003eMacbeth\u003c\/em\u003e at the Astor Opera House to the gay scene that thrived for decades in the bar of the Astor Hotel that once stood on Broadway at 44th Street.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A dramatic tale expertly told of rapacious ambition, decadent excess, and covert and overt tyranny and trauma. . . . With resplendent detail, the authors capture the gasp-eliciting extravagance of the Vanderbilt Gilded Age mansions. . . . With its intrinsic empathy and in-depth profiles of women, this is a distinctly intimate, insightful, and engrossing chronicle of an archetypal, self-consuming American dynasty. . . . Irresistible.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist (starred review) on Vanderbilt\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Marked by meticulous research and deep emotional insight, this is a memorable chronicle of American royalty.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly on Vanderbilt\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Splendid. . . . haunting and beautifully written. . . . This is a terrific book.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWashington Post on Vanderbilt\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"An incredible story.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePeople on Vanderbilt\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harper Paperbacks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44890582384869,"sku":"NP9780063359314","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780063359314.jpg?v=1730233625","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/astor-the-rise-and-fall-of-an-american-fortune-isbn-9780063359314","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}