A Book Review - Confessions of an Economic Hitman

...

The book is told in narrative and in first person, which is John Perkins himself. The narrative style in first person can be boring, but the way John told the story truthfully has managed to make the readers feel engaged in his world. I think John Perkins intended the book to be read by everybody, particularly Americans who live in the United States, because they have the power to change things. Based on the way John told his story, he expected or wanted the readers to be shocked, do some self-introspection, and come to realize that they need to change things. It is intended to move the reader and reveal the truth about economic hit men. The book is separated in parts. For every part, there are some chapters, which organized in terms of year. For a ‘tell-all’ book, it is a good structure because the readers won’t get confused about the order of the story.

There are also some downsides. The first one is John Perkins use a lot of economic terms, which actually can be expected since the title has the word ‘economic’ in it. But, since John Perkins intended the book to be read by everyone, this may lead to misunderstanding or a little bit of boredom to the readers. However, I think this problem can be solved for there are notes for the terms and these days, people can use Google for words they don’t know the meaning of. About the story itself and John Perkins himself, some people may not feel sympathetic for him because there is a continuous pattern which is, he continually expresses his frustration with his job in one sentence, and then justifies his choice to stick with the job in the next by picturing himself as a victim. Another note is that the accuracy of the content has been questioned. Some say John Perkins exaggerates the story.

In spite of the controversy the book held, it did well in terms of sales, making it into best-seller lists, because this really is a fascinating book. People’s whole attention will be stolen as they read through the page and discover the darker side of foreign economic policies, along with globalization. This book may feel like a spy novel that is even more exciting since it is based on true story. After finishing the book, especially if you’re American, you will feel the urge to do and change something. Overall, Confessions of an Economic Hitman is definitely worth the read.