A fabulous update

Warning: may contain gleeful bragging

Hi again! As promised I’m trying to avoid abusing this newsletter and pumping out a gross amount of book-plugging (that’s what LinkedIn is for, after all), but after a few months of silence it felt like an update was overdue. Not least because I now have some very early reviews and blurbs to share, and some news and events to announce.

And yes, a lot of this will be horrifically self-aggrandising, so feel free to delete this email immediately. I’ll understand. But I’ve always thought one should treat every book as probably the last one you’ll ever get to write, and therefore sing any successes from treetops and bury the bad news in the back yard and spray the carcass with sulfuric acid.

(yes my book shelf isn’t very organised by topic or author)

First of all, I’m planning to be in New York September 20-27 — the week A FABULOUS DEBT is coming out — and in London September 28-Oct 6. I’ve already got some events I’m speaking at, and Penguin are sorting out a ream of interviews etc, but if you’re keen to arrange something then get in touch.

The New York trip is also for a live recording of an episode of The Story of Money, the FT’s financial history podcast that I now co-host with Gillian Tett. Exact plans tbc, but it will be open to everyone, possibly be a morning event at the Morgan Library, and we’ll probably tackle the birth of the bond market in 12th century Venice (and yes, we really should do the Panic of 1907 if it ends up being the Morgan Library, but maybe some other time).

I hope to get around to arranging some other public talks and book signings later this year, so let me know if you happen to want to arrange one yourself.

Speaking of speaking, after a promiscuous few years I’ve also signed as an exclusive speaker with the Leigh Bureau, so if you happen to be in the market for someone who loves to geek out about virtually anything finance and economics-adjacent then hit them up. While I’m in book promotion mode I’ll probably also be a cheaper date than usual if there’s a chance to plug my new baby.

Anyway, the main point of this ‘stack was to share some undisguised, unashamed, zero-humility-100%-brag nice things that people have begun to say about A Fabulous Debt.

Publishers Weekly said that my “accessible distillation of data and Dickensian eye for memorable events and characters make this a must-read for anyone interested in global finance.” Which is pretty wonderful to hear, but the best bit of news for me was that Jason Zweig read it, included it in his summer reading roundup and said:

Yes, a book about the history of the bond market can be entertaining and enlightening. Wigglesworth takes a panoramic, almost cinematic approach, finding the tension and drama in episodes where bonds helped shape the course of history.

I couldn't be more chuffed about this, as Zweig is one of my heroes in journalism. He is one of the best in the world at tackling often complex and off-putting subjects and transforming them into crisp and delightful copy, and is someone I try emulate in my own writing.

And then there are the blurbs, or endorsements. To be clear, blurbs are not proper reviews. I’ve just sent out early copies of the book to a few journalists, historians and finance types that I really respect. Some of these people I know, but some I don’t, as I wanted a mix. Hopefully they say something nice if they had time to read it and liked it, and hopefully remain tactfully silent or say they didn’t have time to read it if they think it’s a blight upon the literary world.

To immense delight, it seems none of them hated A Fabulous Debt, and quite a few were incredibly kind and had very nice things to say about it. Here’s a non-exhaustive roll-call. They’re generally referenced as the authors of specific books rather than by their professional affiliations, as they’re speaking as individuals, but you’ll know who most of these people are.

In A Fabulous Debt, Robin Wigglesworth rescues the bond market from its reputation for dullness and restores it to its rightful place at the center of world history … This is narrative financial history at its best: erudite without being arid, ambitious in scope but never losing sight of the human beings who built this extraordinary machine. -- LIAQUAT AHAMED, author of Lords of Finance

Stocks get all the glory, but bonds rule the world. A Fabulous Debt is a compelling history of a powerful idea. -- JACOB GOLDSTEIN, author of MONEY

Robin Wigglesworth's deft treatment of fear and greed in bonds will entertain and educate you - and just might save your bacon as well. -- WILLIAM J. BERNSTEIN, author of A SPLENDID EXCHANGE

A delightful romp through 850 years of western history. And for once, a financial instrument is cast as the hero of the tale. -- SEBASTIAN MALLABY, author of THE INFINITY MACHINE

In this rip-roaring book, Robin Wigglesworth takes us from the bonds that funded Hamilton’s vision for America to Britain’s rise as a global power. Told with wit, colour, and insight, A Fabulous Debt is more than a finance book: it’s the story of how the modern world was built. -- ALEX EDMANS, author of THE MADNESS OF MARKETS

At last, thanks to Robin Wigglesworth, we have an engaging and colorful history of the bond market and the innovative financiers who launched, shaped, and improved it from its origins in the Middle Ages to the 21st century. This is a major contribution to financial history. -- RICHARD SYLLA, co-author of A HISTORY OF INTEREST RATES

Wigglesworth brings to life the unlikely cast of visionaries, rogues, and nation-builders who shaped the bond market over eight centuries. The result is a riveting history of the financial instrument that funded empires, defeated Napoleon, and quietly underwrites the modern world. -- WILLIAM GOETZMANN, author of MONEY CHANGES EVERYTHING

A readable, wise and panoramic history of the bond markets from their inception in Venice in 1172 through to the current day. And, given the imminent threat of yet another sovereign debt crisis, most timely. -- EDWARD CHANCELLOR author of THE PRICE OF TIME

Crucial reading to understand the global economy of the 2020s and how we got here. -- DUNCAN WELDON, author of BLOOD & TREASURE

I love the bond market for the many secrets it reveals on a daily basis about our global economy and the many, many individual components of it. But it also an enigmatic, mysterious and poorly understood phenomenon. Wigglesworth’s important work pulls the curtain back on the wonders and the risks inherent in a world awash in some $340 trillion of debt. -- WILLIAM COHAN, author of POWER FAILURE

OK that’s quite enough. Anyway, thanks to everyone who’s been willing to read an early copy so far, an even greater thanks to those that kindly endorsed it, and the greatest thanks of all to everyone that has already placed a pre-order.

And speaking of pre-orders, please consider doing so if A Fabulous Debt sounds like it might be up your alley.