Publishers Weekly reviewer Greg Alexander wrote: "Smick brings expertise and lucidity to many difficult subjects, and while his book's appeal will likely be limited to those with some background in the field, it will undoubtedly stir interest and debate amongst investors, policymakers and strategists alike.

"[1] In Foreign Affairs, Richard N. Cooper said that "This book is a rambling and anecdotal but enjoyable account by a participant-observer of the vital role the financial system has played in the huge growth in global prosperity over the past 25 years.

"[3] Forbes contributor Bret Swanson expressed disappointment that Smick lays little responsibility at the feet of the inflationary weak-dollar policy of the Federal Reserve.

"[6] The New York Times Joe Nocera mentioned the book, noting that "In indignant tones, he talked to me about the sophisticated off-balance-sheet vehicles the banks used to hide risk and game the system, and the ‘mortgage-backed securities they were shoving out the door.’ He concluded, ‘I find their behavior just appalling.’ But words like ‘off-balance-sheet vehicles’ and ‘mortgage-backed securities’ don't have much meaning for most of us.

"[7] Pete du Pont in the Wall Street Journal, posted that the book "shows that during the past quarter-century we have had a global ‘golden age of wealth creation and poverty reduction never before seen in the history of mankind.’ The global free market ‘experienced an unprecedented doubling of its labor force from 2.7 billion to 6 billion’; the U.S. had 40 million new jobs created; ‘the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed from 800 to over 12,000’ (it is back under 9000 now); and, according to the Federal Reserve, U.S. households saw their net worth increase from $11 trillion in 1982 to more than $56 trillion today.