This book first recounts the historical progression of innovation and the evolution of capitalism. It illuminates why capitalist economies have been so effective in producing wealth, and why, after thousands of years of almost no material improvement in average people's lives, the last 300 or have produced the abundance the capitalist nations enjoy today. It identifies the specific reasons that free market capitalism has been so superior to state-controlled economies. The book also explains why, given capitalism's clear success, it is so disliked and mistrusted by so many people. With its...