Kochland: The Secret History of Koch Industries and Corporate Power in America

"Leonard’s book is the story of Koch Industries, which is the little known and rather secretive private conglomerate owned by the Koch family. It’s had a big influence as a business, but the Koch brothers, who own it, have also had a lot of political influence. Christopher Leonard, the author, is a journalist and one of the most interesting things about the book for me is that he gets you inside a business that is notoriously secretive. He does an incredible job of painting the picture of how Koch Industries was born and how it developed. Also, as the FT’s management editor, I find the book very interesting on the methods that Koch Industries use. They have their own internal management process to keep themselves consistent and keep standards up. The book also shows how Koch Industries exerted its power in the US during successive administrations on how certain things, like climate change, were regulated and governed. It has got that sense of a thriller, as Leonard digs deeper into what Koch Industries is doing. Yes, Leonard illustrates the book with compelling stories about the way in which Koch Industries has operated across a whole range of different sectors. He does a good job. As a side note, we did actually have another book about Koch Industries, Sons of Wichita , on the longlist of the prize a few years ago. That was also about the Koch brothers, one of whom died recently. So this book is, weirdly, the second book about Koch Industries that has featured on the business book award longlist."