The Monopolists reveals the unknown story of how Monopoly came into existence, the reinvention of its history by Parker Brothers and multiple media outlets, the lost female originator of the game, and one man's lifelong obsession to tell the true story about the game's questionable origins. Most think it was invented by an unemployed Pennsylvanian who sold his game to Parker Brothers during the Great Depression in 1935 and lived happily--and richly--ever after. That story, however, is not exactly true. Ralph Anspach, a professor fighting to sell his Anti-Monopoly board game decades later, unearthed the real story, which traces back to Abraham Lincoln, the Quakers, and a forgotten feminist named Lizzie Magie who invented her nearly identical Landlord's Game more than thirty years before Parker Brothers sold their version of Monopoly. Her game--underpinned by morals that were the exact opposite of what Monopoly represents today--was embraced by a constellation of left-wingers from the Progressive Era through the Great Depression, including members of Franklin Roosevelt's famed Brain Trust. 
A fascinating social history of corporate greed that illuminates the cutthroat nature of American business over the last century, The Monopolists reads like the best detective fiction, told through Monopoly's real-life winners and losers.

The Monopolists: Obsession, Fury, and the Scandal Behind the World's Favorite Board Game

Biographies & Memoirs

Pilon, Mary

Professionals & Academics

Bloomsbury USA

The Monopolists reveals the unknown story of how Monopoly came into existence, the reinvention of its history by Parker Brothers and multiple media outlets, the lost female originator of the game, and one man's lifelong obsession to tell the true story about the game's questionable origins. 
Most think it was invented by an unemployed Pennsylvanian who sold his game to Parker Brothers during the Great Depression in 1935 and lived happily--and richly--ever after. That story, however, is not exactly true. Ralph Anspach, a professor fighting to sell his Anti-Monopoly board game decades later, unearthed the real story, which traces back to Abraham Lincoln, the Quakers, and a forgotten feminist named Lizzie Magie who invented her nearly identical Landlord's Game more than thirty years before Parker Brothers sold their version of Monopoly. Her game--underpinned by morals that were the exact opposite of what Monopoly represents today--was embraced by a constellation of left-wingers from the Progressive Era through the Great Depression, including members of Franklin Roosevelt's famed Brain Trust. 
A gripping social history of corporate greed that illuminates the cutthroat nature of American business over the last century, The Monopolists reads like the best detective fiction, told through Monopoly's real-life winners and losers.

Monopolists

Bloomsbury Adult

From the NYT bestselling author of The Monopolists, the "fascinating" (People) story of Olympian Kevin Hall and the syndrome that makes him believe he stars in a television show of his life.
Meet Kevin Hall: brother, son, husband, father, and Olympic sailor. Kevin has an Ivy League degree, a winning smile, and throughout his adult life, he has been engaged in an ongoing battle with a person that doesn't exist to anyone but him: the Director. In the tradition of Kay Redfield Jamison's An Unquiet Mind, journalist and NYT bestselling author Mary Pilon's The Kevin Show reveals the many-sided struggle--of Kevin, his family, and the medical profession--to understand and treat a psychiatric disorder whose euphoric highs and creative ties to pop culture have become inextricable from Kevin's experience of himself.
Kevin suffers from what doctors are beginning to call the "Truman Show" delusion, a form of bipolar disorder named for the 1998 movie in which the main character realizes he is the star of a reality TV show. When the Director commands Kevin to do things, the results often lead to handcuffs, hospitalization, or both. Once he nearly drove a car into Boston Harbor. His girlfriend, now wife, was in the passenger seat.
Interweaving Kevin's perspective--including excerpts from his journals and sketches--with police reports, medical records, and interviews with those who were present at key moments in his life, The Kevin Show is a bracing, suspenseful, and eye-opening view of the role that mental health plays in a seemingly ordinary life.

The Kevin Show: An Olympic Athlete’s Battle with Mental Illness

Arts & Literature

America's top gymnasts have been show stoppers at the Summer Olympics for decades - the women's artistic team won nine medals in 2016 alone. But beneath the athleticism, smiles, sponsorship deals, and haul of gold medals was a dark secret: a story of sexual abuse and trauma that, when revealed, became one of the biggest scandals in the history of American sports.&nbsp; In early 2018, Larry Nassar, the former doctor for USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University, was sentenced to serve out the rest of his life in prison after pleading guilty to a variety of sex crimes. In a show of unparalleled force, more than 150 young women - from gold medalists to former Michigan State University athletes to old family friends - confronted the once beloved Nassar in court, sharing their pain and resolve. Many of them took legal, financial, and career risks to speak out.&nbsp; But these women's stories also reveal a stranger, more far-reaching truth: that the institutions responsible for protecting them - from the United States Olympic Committee to local police departments - had known in some form about the abuse for years, and had not put an end to it. Twisted tells the harrowing story of these crimes and how Larry Nassar got away with them for as long as he did.&nbsp; New York Times best-selling author Mary Pilon and Carla Correa chronicle the scandal from its inception, tracking the institutions that Nassar hid behind, the athletic culture that he benefited from, and the women who eventually brought him to justice. In this Audible Original, you'll hear directly from these people - including the voices of coaches, parents, industry leaders, and the survivors themselves - as they grapple with the truth about Nassar and describe what it took to bring him down. As we mention in Twisted, here are some resources for yourself or a loved one who may need information or confidential support.&nbsp; <ul> <li>Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline: 1-800-422-4453.</li> <li>Darkness to Light: 1-866-FOR-LIGHT or text "LIGHT" to 741741. The organization works to empower adults to recognize and prevent child sexual abuse. The website includes a guide to grooming and red flag behaviors.</li> <li>RAINN and the National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673. Its website also has a chat feature.</li> <li>National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255.</li> <li>Army of Survivors: The organization led by the survivor Grace French includes a guide to the basics of trauma.</li> </ul>

Twisted: The Story of Larry Nassar and the Women Who Took Him Down

Correa, Carla

True Crime

Audible Studios on Brilliance Audio

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Pilon, Mary. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Pilon, Mary

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Pilon, Mary. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Monopolists: Obsession, Fury, and the Scandal Behind the World's Favorite Board Game

Monopolists

The Kevin Show: An Olympic Athlete’s Battle with Mental Illness

Twisted: The Story of Larry Nassar and the Women Who Took Him Down