An exploration into the economic success (and failures) behind how nations thrive or comes crashing down. The author deep dives into 15+ years of research going back to ancient empires and correlates them to modern day economies. I've done a significant amount of travel (thanks to Delta flight benefits) and the question always piqued my interest. Especially as trends suggest we are in a historical period of change between two major global superpowers.

Moral of the story, we'd all be much better off if we learned a little bit from failure.