A Global Life: My Journey Among Rich and Poor, from Sydney to Wall Street to the World Bank

A Global Life: My Journey Among Rich and Poor, from Sydney to Wall Street to the World Bank Review

Before the reader sits down with Mr. Wolfensohn's book he is best advised to be well-rested because in addition to a fascinating autobiography they are also receiving a forum on international development and global relations, a primer on business, and an introduction to the personal and professional psychological machinations of interpersonal/organizational relationships. Jeffrey Goldstein, one of Wolfensohn's first hires at his investment firm in the 1980s, described Wolfensohn as being "a sponge" during the time they were building Jim's business but judging from his humble childhood in Sydney, Australia to his movement into the highest echelons of power, Wolfensohn also has to be viewed as a laser guided torpedo constantly locking onto new targets be they in business, development, or in the arts. The book paints a picture of a self-assured almost cocky young boy who finds himself, at the outset, getting his head "dunked" by a farmhand into a bucket of lime and who later upon making the Australian Olympic team as a fencer is dismissed by a young autograph seeker who states, "Oh don't worry about him, he's only a fencer." This pattern of challenge and personal reassessment is sprinkled throughout his life. After applying to Oxford (rejected) and failing to receive an appointment as a Rhodes Scholar, Wolfensohn took what was behind door number three, Harvard Business School, and that to paraphrase Frost, "Made all the difference." After that Wolfensohn slammed down onto a personal gas pedal that led to Europe, Wall Street, two terms as the president of the World Bank, an appointment as the Special Envoy to the Gaza Disengagement in addition to numerous corporate boards and the chairmanship of both Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. At four-hundred and forty-four pages the reader's time is well spent and he will come away feeling about this book in much the same way that one of his mentors, Julius Stone, wrote on his Harvard application that Wolfensohn possessed, "Indefinable attributes."

A Global Life: My Journey Among Rich and Poor, from Sydney to Wall Street to the World Bank Feature

• ISBN13: 9781586482558
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A Global Life: My Journey Among Rich and Poor, from Sydney to Wall Street to the World Bank Overview

The autobiography of the larger-than-life, visionary financier and humanitarian who led the World Bank through one of its most intense and tumultuous decades in the struggle against global poverty.

As president of the World Bank for a decade, James Wolfensohn tackled world poverty with a passion and energy that made him a uniquely important figure in a fundamental arena of change. Using a lifetime of experience in the banking sector, he carved a distinct path in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe for the institution that serves as the major lender to the world's poor.

In A Global Life, Wolfensohn tells his astonishing life story in his own words. A man of surpassing imagination and drive, he became an Olympic fencer and a prominent banker in London and New York. An Australian, he navigated Wall Street with uncommon skill. Chairman of Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center for many years, he is also an amateur cellist. But it was his tenure at the World Bank that made him an international force. While at the helm of this controversial institution, Wolfensohn motivated, schemed, charmed, and bullied all the constituencies at his command to broaden the distribution of the world's wealth. Now he bluntly assesses his successes and failures, reflecting on the causes of continuing poverty.

Much more than a business story, this is a deeply reflective account of a fascinating career and personality.

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