Reviewed by Leonard Smuts for Readers' Favorite

Our modern world was shaped by the Industrial Revolution, a phenomenon that emerged during the late 18th century. Productivity increased due to the use of machinery and the investment of capital, holding the promise of a better life for all. Dr. Peter Brews examines the events that followed in detail in Lead, Follow, or Fail. The listed subtitle summarizes the subject matter perfectly, and the book broadly divides the analysis into three periods: pre-Industrial Revolution (before 1800), the industrial era (1800 to 1950), and post-Industrial Revolution (after 1950). Previously, the feudal system had prevailed, characterized by disease, serfdom, slavery, short life expectancy, colonization, and corruption. The churches, royalty, landlords, and rich merchants dominated it. The Dark Ages showed almost no growth in production. Living standards remained largely unchanged, but the post-Renaissance period provided new hope. The early leaders were Britain, Western Europe, and North America, which built infrastructure such as factories, power generation, roads, and railways. Peasant farmers moved from subsistence agriculture to find paid work in the factories of the growing cities. The role of agriculture diminished, machines eventually replaced labor, and a service-based economy emerged. Nation-building took place, leading to stability and higher living standards. Politics and business became uneasy bedfellows. A new age had dawned, but with it came new challenges.

Lead, Follow, or Fail records how a few countries pioneered economic development through industrialization. These were followed by emerging economies, notably in the east and more recently in the southern hemisphere. The followers could learn from the leaders. The rest remained in the failure category. The role of entrepreneurs like Christopher Columbus, Henry Ford, and Bill Gates is reviewed and reveals a sharp divergence in motivation and style. The unequal spread of global production is stark, and the distribution of income among individuals is more so. Growth declines as an economy matures. Sustaining the struggle for increased productivity is difficult, and there is a growing gap. Threats are outlined and vary from meteor strikes to climate change, energy use and pollution, increasingly scarce resources, a rise in national debt, dollar weakness, rising labor costs, changing demographics, to the challenge posed by robots or AI taking over jobs. It is becoming harder to predict the future, and recent political developments in America have added uncertainty. Dr. Peter Brews is a noted academic who has conducted detailed and insightful research into this defining period, which is presented with statistical data from selected countries to illustrate his analysis. He highlights trends and asks searching questions. Are the majority of humans better off now, as half of the world’s population still lives in a pre-industrial world? This incisive look into economic history will be a textbook for students and provide a wider understanding to a broader audience. I enjoyed the book and its insights.