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Billionaire Wilderness: The Ultra-Wealthy and the Remaking of the American West Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Editors' pick Best Nonfiction
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A revealing look at the intersection of wealth, philanthropy, and conservation

Billionaire Wilderness takes you inside the exclusive world of the ultra-wealthy, showing how today's richest people are using the natural environment to solve the existential dilemmas they face. Justin Farrell spent five years in Teton County, Wyoming, the richest county in the United States and a community where income inequality is the worst in the nation. He conducted hundreds of in-depth interviews, gaining unprecedented access to tech CEOs, Wall Street financiers, oil magnates, and other prominent figures in business and politics. He also talked with the rural poor who live among the ultra-wealthy and often work for them. The result is a penetrating account of the far-reaching consequences of the massive accrual of wealth, and an eye-opening and sometimes troubling portrait of a changing American West where romanticizing rural poverty and conserving nature can be lucrative - socially as well as financially.

Weaving unforgettable storytelling with thought-provoking analysis, Billionaire Wilderness reveals how the ultra-wealthy are buying up the land and leveraging one of the most pristine ecosystems in the world to climb even higher on the socioeconomic ladder. The affluent of Teton County are people burdened by stigmas, guilt, and status anxiety - and they appropriate nature and rural people to create more virtuous and deserving versions of themselves. Incisive and compelling, Billionaire Wilderness reveals the hidden connections between wealth concentration and the environment, two of the most pressing and contentious issues of our time.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

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  1. Part of series
    Princeton Studies in Cultural Sociology
  2. Listening Length
    12 hours and 26 minutes
  3. Author
    Justin Farrell
  4. Narrator
    John Chancer
  5. Audible release date
    March 3, 2020
  6. Language
    English
  7. Publisher
    Princeton University Press
  8. ASIN
    B0837784WB
  9. Version
    Unabridged
  10. Program Type
    Audiobook
  11. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 12 hours and 26 minutes
Author Justin Farrell
Narrator John Chancer
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date March 03, 2020
Publisher Princeton University Press
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B0837784WB
Best Sellers Rank #24,952 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#37 in Environmental Conservation
#127 in Nature & Ecology (Audible Books & Originals)
#223 in Human Geography (Books)

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
296 global ratings

Customers say

Customers have mixed opinions about the content. Some find the book fascinating, while others say it lacks analytical rigor and original insight. Opinions are mixed on the writing style, with some finding it well-written and well-researched, while other find it repetitive and over-explaining.

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ContentWriting style
20 customers mention "Content"13 positive7 negative

Customers are mixed about the content. Some find the book fascinating, with good research and explanations. They also say the author is thoughtful and open-minded. However, others say the book lacks analytic rigor and original insight, and the author's bias is deeply entrenched.

"...forces that are causing this disparity, he is still thoughtful and open-minded toward the subjects of his research - the uber rich of Jackson Hole...." Read more

"Fascinating insight into the super rich and their choice of philanthropy...." Read more

"...points to the thrust of the book, it is surprising that there is scant analysis as to whether (and to what extent) conservation easements, land..." Read more

"Great insights and format of interviews and synthesis of the findings...." Read more

8 customers mention "Writing style"4 positive4 negative

Customers are mixed about the writing style. Some find it well written and well researched, while others say it's repetitive and tiresome.

"...How to donate to improve your back yard and social life....The author is repetitive and the book could have easily been ½ the size...." Read more

"...Written as an academic book so it is somewhat repetitive but this reinforces the central message of money and inequality in small western towns." Read more

"...It's very well written and I'd recommend it to others." Read more

"...to make successful individuals seem insincere, illegitimate and foolish are tiresome...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

New Haven 28
5.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful and fair
Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2020
Verified Purchase
Great book!

With insight into large societal trends, Justin Farrell creates a thoughtful account of the escalating wealth disparity in Teton County. Critical of the forces that are causing this disparity, he is still thoughtful and open-minded toward the subjects of his research - the uber rich of Jackson Hole. Indeed, the book is unique in trying to tease out how exactly the rich see themselves - their anxieties and worries - and why they have come to that point of view. Ultimately, his sympathies lie with those shut out and excluded from the wealthy's world and his concern rests with the way the wealthy are privatizing the public goods of Teton County. But even arriving at this point, he is able to give the ultra rich a fair shake. The research is aimed not at building enmity, but rather understanding between the ultra wealthy and everyone else. That understanding holds great potential - not just for Teton County, but for the United States as a whole.

Clear eyed and fair - and infused with a great love for this part of the country - the reality that the book details is still disturbing. That is what makes it such an important contribution.
20 people found this helpful
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P. cook
4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating condemnation of the philanthropy of the super rich
Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2020
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Fascinating insight into the super rich and their choice of philanthropy. How to donate to improve your back yard and social life....The author is repetitive and the book could have easily been ½ the size. It was definitely worth the read.
14 people found this helpful
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Randall Douty
5.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat academic, repetitive but needed message
Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2022
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Great insights and format of interviews and synthesis of the findings. Written as an academic book so it is somewhat repetitive but this reinforces the central message of money and inequality in small western towns.
2 people found this helpful
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Chris Kartalia
2.0 out of 5 stars Where are the Interviews?
Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2020
Verified Purchase
I read about this book from an article online, and immediately downloaded it, expecting anonymous interviews from some of society's wealthiest and most secretive, compiled and analyzed by an impartial Yale PhD. It is not that at all. It is neither entertaining enough to be for popular consumption, nor academic enough to impress with data and rigor.

There are no interviews at all -- only brief accounts of them.

Instead of providing transcripts (or even detailed retellings), allowing the reader the space and respect to interpret them by one's self, the author inserts dialogue snippets ad-hoc to support his conceptual framework, which comes across as being pre-formed.

This pre-formed conceptual framework frequently reveals itself in loaded word choice. For example, when working-class people expressed (on multiple occasion) measures of gratitude and respect for the rich and the opportunities they provide, the author labels these replies as "scripts", as if working-class people are not informed and/or authentic in their thoughts, feelings and opinions. Or, when the author remarks that wealthy people are "appropriating" frontier art and style of dress, we are suggested to believe that the wealthy are causing a social transgression or trauma by trying to fit in to the norms and aesthetic of their particular environment.

However, such word choices and the attitudes they reveal could have been overlooked if they were surrounded by a penetrating and insightful analysis. That is not to be found in this text.

A central point of the book is that the real estate activities of the wealthy in Teton County (often made with an explicit or implicit appeal to conservation and environmental interests) have made life much harder for the less-well-off. Another key point is that the wealthy of the county are much more interested and involved in "gilded philanthropy" than structural change. Given the importance of these points to the thrust of the book, it is surprising that there is scant analysis as to whether (and to what extent) conservation easements, land trusts, certain environmental restrictions, zoning, and other legal impediments to housing development are wise public policy, if they only serve to inflate land values, driving out working and middle class people. These are the very "structural" questions that require exploration, and deserve a sober analysis of the many tradeoffs required. However, this line of interrogation quickly goes down libertarian pathways; I wonder if the author's choice to leave them unexplored was (to borrow a concept) due to conscious or unconscious bias.

The book is also sorely lacking empirical financial data regarding the condition of the working class in Teton County, which the author frequently suggests are dire. For example, what is the average hourly wage and take-home pay of a housekeeper, nanny, landscaper, or house builder? What are the average rents? How many people are there per household? What are the rates of alcoholism, drug abuse, domestic abuse? How have these changed over time? If the author wants better conditions for the working people of Teton County, which I believe he does, he ought to make it clear just how bad they are to begin with.

I would have liked this book to be a interesting and comprehensive retelling of subject interviews, (with anonymous transcripts provided), and some dry economic and policy analysis. However, it was a mishmash of undergraduate-level journalism, casual conceptualizing/theorizing, with a few charts thrown in. I have no animus against this author, I was just expecting something better.
165 people found this helpful
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Tom buzbee
3.0 out of 5 stars Research paper?
Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2020
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Incredible level of detail. Too much in places perhaps. I scanned some sections as it sometimes felt like textbook. Impressed by how thoroughly the material was prepared.
One person found this helpful
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B. Thomas Henry
5.0 out of 5 stars A rare look into billionaire philanthropy
Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2023
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Informed by unique field research, the author pulls back a curtain on the mirage of congeniality and connectedness across the economic divide in Teton County. Encompassing the actions, motivations, beliefs, and perceptions of ultra high net worth individuals based on multiple interviews, the author builds a case that not all is as it seems in Jackson Hole.
2 people found this helpful
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