--- product_id: 17018702 title: "The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality" price: "€ 44.87" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17018702-the-great-escape-health-wealth-and-the-origins-of-inequality store_origin: HR region: Croatia --- # The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality **Price:** € 44.87 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality - **How much does it cost?** € 44.87 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.hr](https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17018702-the-great-escape-health-wealth-and-the-origins-of-inequality) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description A Nobel Prize–winning economist tells the remarkable story of how the world has grown healthier, wealthier, but also more unequal over the past two and half centuries The world is a better place than it used to be. People are healthier, wealthier, and live longer. Yet the escapes from destitution by so many has left gaping inequalities between people and nations. In The Great Escape , Nobel Prize–winning economist Angus Deaton―one of the foremost experts on economic development and on poverty―tells the remarkable story of how, beginning 250 years ago, some parts of the world experienced sustained progress, opening up gaps and setting the stage for today's disproportionately unequal world. Deaton takes an in-depth look at the historical and ongoing patterns behind the health and wealth of nations, and addresses what needs to be done to help those left behind. Deaton describes vast innovations and wrenching setbacks: the successes of antibiotics, pest control, vaccinations, and clean water on the one hand, and disastrous famines and the HIV/AIDS epidemic on the other. He examines the United States, a nation that has prospered but is today experiencing slower growth and increasing inequality. He also considers how economic growth in India and China has improved the lives of more than a billion people. Deaton argues that international aid has been ineffective and even harmful. He suggests alternative efforts―including reforming incentives to drug companies and lifting trade restrictions―that will allow the developing world to bring about its own Great Escape. Demonstrating how changes in health and living standards have transformed our lives, The Great Escape is a powerful guide to addressing the well-being of all nations. Review: A once-in-a-decade book about economic and social development - This is an important book by one of the foremost development economists in the world. It is highly readable, indeed written in an entertaining manner. Deaton paints on a vast canvas in time and space, embracing both developed and developing worlds. His theme is how in the course of history, and especially during the past three decades, hundreds of millions of people managed to escape abject poverty. He brings new insights into the sequencing and the many interwoven and often counter-intuitive linkages between growth and quality of life, especially health and longevity. His story begins when we were all hunters/gatherers and ends in 2013 in the unresolved aftermath of the financial crisis. One of Deaton's main themes is that economic growth does not necessarily produce improved quality of life, especially when income is distributed very unequally - as is the case in today's United States. So for example, in spite of lower economic growth in France than in the United States, because of a less unequal distribution of income, "all but the top 1 percent of the French population did better than all but the top 1 percent of the American population". (p. 260) In discussing the relationships between rich and poor countries, I very much like Deaton's implicit framework, which distinguishes "us" (the people of the North), "we" (the Northern governments), aid recipients ("their governments"), and "they" (the people of the South). This helps to cut through a lot of semantic and conceptual confusion, especially when discussing "development assistance". The book concludes with a chapter about how to help those left behind the "Great Escape" from poverty. While I tend to agree with his main thrust: that foreign aid works best where it is least needed, i.e., where governance is reasonably good, and works worst in poorly-governed countries where the people are most miserable. But from all I have seen, the evidence on aid effectiveness is inconclusive, largely, as Deaton notes, because the data are so bad. Deaton is very critical of aid, but illustrates his argument with selected examples, when one can almost always find counter-examples. However, one can only agree with his observation that increased flows of money don't help - quite the opposite - when recipient countries lack basic capacities and/or are poorly governed. Although he doesn't say it quite this way, Deaton implies throughout much of the book that while is quite easy for development experts to come up with lists of conditions that are necessary for successful development - including for example respect for the Rule of Law and sound macroeconomic policies - nobody has yet come up with a list of sufficient conditions. Review: An excellent evaluation - The author puts forward ideas, based on extensive research, that challenge the way that we think about international aid as well as endeavours around international health programs. His ideas can form the basis for better programs ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #1,237,476 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #45 in Health Law #113 in Income Inequality #137 in Development & Growth Economics (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.4 out of 5 stars 548 Reviews | ## Images ![The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81qPuRP1kBL.jpg) ## Available Options This product comes in different **Media Language, Media Format** options. ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A once-in-a-decade book about economic and social development *by G***N on October 16, 2013* This is an important book by one of the foremost development economists in the world. It is highly readable, indeed written in an entertaining manner. Deaton paints on a vast canvas in time and space, embracing both developed and developing worlds. His theme is how in the course of history, and especially during the past three decades, hundreds of millions of people managed to escape abject poverty. He brings new insights into the sequencing and the many interwoven and often counter-intuitive linkages between growth and quality of life, especially health and longevity. His story begins when we were all hunters/gatherers and ends in 2013 in the unresolved aftermath of the financial crisis. One of Deaton's main themes is that economic growth does not necessarily produce improved quality of life, especially when income is distributed very unequally - as is the case in today's United States. So for example, in spite of lower economic growth in France than in the United States, because of a less unequal distribution of income, "all but the top 1 percent of the French population did better than all but the top 1 percent of the American population". (p. 260) In discussing the relationships between rich and poor countries, I very much like Deaton's implicit framework, which distinguishes "us" (the people of the North), "we" (the Northern governments), aid recipients ("their governments"), and "they" (the people of the South). This helps to cut through a lot of semantic and conceptual confusion, especially when discussing "development assistance". The book concludes with a chapter about how to help those left behind the "Great Escape" from poverty. While I tend to agree with his main thrust: that foreign aid works best where it is least needed, i.e., where governance is reasonably good, and works worst in poorly-governed countries where the people are most miserable. But from all I have seen, the evidence on aid effectiveness is inconclusive, largely, as Deaton notes, because the data are so bad. Deaton is very critical of aid, but illustrates his argument with selected examples, when one can almost always find counter-examples. However, one can only agree with his observation that increased flows of money don't help - quite the opposite - when recipient countries lack basic capacities and/or are poorly governed. Although he doesn't say it quite this way, Deaton implies throughout much of the book that while is quite easy for development experts to come up with lists of conditions that are necessary for successful development - including for example respect for the Rule of Law and sound macroeconomic policies - nobody has yet come up with a list of sufficient conditions. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ An excellent evaluation *by P***T on October 24, 2015* The author puts forward ideas, based on extensive research, that challenge the way that we think about international aid as well as endeavours around international health programs. His ideas can form the basis for better programs ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Authoritative, Brave, and Critical *by H***S on August 16, 2015* This book authoritatively presents what we know about the causes and pace of improvement in health across the world in the past few centuries. The argument is replete with reference to the literature that the reader can follow up. His message is that we have the technology and the will to reduce health inequalities around the world, but simple charity and aid to poor countries are part of the problem, not part of the solution. Deaton does present some important ways the rich healthy countries can help the poor, who are mostly oppressed by dictators and corrupt regimes. He shows clearly in the final, and most important chapter of this book (it appears that many of the reviewers on Amazon did not get that far) that the cost of dramatically improving the health of the poor around the world is absurdly low, but transfers from rich to poor countries go into the pockets of the criminal oligarchies that run the poor countries. This is not the first book to recognize, document, and reveal this sat situation, but it is to my mind the most authoritative. Angus Deaton is a truly remarkable scientist. I have nothing but contempt for his ignorant and superficial detractors. ## Frequently Bought Together - The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality - Deaths of Despair and the Future of Capitalism - Economics in America: An Immigrant Economist Explores the Land of Inequality --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17018702-the-great-escape-health-wealth-and-the-origins-of-inequality](https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17018702-the-great-escape-health-wealth-and-the-origins-of-inequality) --- *Product available on Desertcart Croatia* *Store origin: HR* *Last updated: 2026-08-14*