Goddess of the Market

Lewis A. Erenberg, Journal of Historical Biography Burns has crafted a superb biography that traces her influence, places Rand in historical context, avoids both condemnation and hagiography, and undercuts the view, fostered by Rand herself, that she was a self-created genius.

Political Studies Review a pleasure to read

Elaine Showalter, Times Literary Supplement [an] important study

Brian Doherty, The Washington Times A smart assessment of Rand's life and ideas and how they influenced each other... As Ms. Burns successfully demonstrates, Rand's ideas have remained an important part of the American ideological mix, especially in how she honored the creative powers of American business in a free market to improve human lives. Ms. Burns' readers will see Rand still has the power to instruct on the meaning and scary implications of government growth in the age of Barack Obama.

Washington Monthly Magazine Burns has the edge, though, in identifying Rand's intellectual legacy. She describes Rand as "the ultimate gateway drug to life on the right" elaborating: "Just as Rand had provided businessmen with a set of ideas that met their need to feel righteous and honorable in their professional lives, she gave young people a philosophical system that met their deep need for order and certainty.

The New Yorker Burns, a professor of history, more ably situates Rand within and against the world of American conservatism

U.S. Intellectual History A well-written and absorbing biography of Rand, it also places her ideas and influence in three overlapping contexts. Goddess of the Market goes a long way toward explaining both the popularity of Rand's ideas and their somewhat marginalized status.

M. L. Jackson, CHOICE This is a significant contribution to Rand scholarship and an engaging read for anyone interested in Rand or 20th-century politics and intellectual life

Alex Goodall, Literary Review balanced and engaging

Tribune At last! A well-balances book about Ayn Rand (1905-82), the guru of selfishness. After all the attack memoirs and right-wing adulation, Jennifer Burns has finally given us an intellectual biography

Martin Jenkins, Chartist a well researched and readable account of Objectivist philosophy, Rand's life and accounts of the sometimes misanthropic personalities if not the philosophy involved.

Time magazine Excellent

John Krueckeberg, Literature & History Burns contributes so much to understanding the philosophies behind Rand's literature, libertarian thinking, and the philosophical underpinnings of the American right, that this book is sure to be of interest to many.

<br>Jennifer Burns is Assistant Professor of History at Stanford University. A nationally recognized authority on Rand and conservative thought, she has discussed her work on The Daily Show and Book TV and has been interviewed on numerous radio programs.<br>

I. THE EDUCATION OF AYN RAND, 1905-1943; 1. From Russia to Roosevelt; 2. Individualists of the World, Unite!; 3. A New Credo of Freedom; II. FROM NOVELIST TO PHILOSOPHER, 1944-1957; 4. . The Real Root of Evil; 5. . A Round Universe; III. JOHN GALT SPEAKING, 1957-1968; 6. . Big Sister is Watching You; 7. . Radicals for Capitalism; 8. . Love is Exception Making; IV. CODA: 1968 AND EVERYTHING AFTER; 9. . It Usually Begins with Ayn Rand; 10. The Ayn Rand School for Tots