PositiveThe Wall Street JournalMr. Orbanes isn’t a subtle enough writer to balance all the competing information: Some narratives feel underdeveloped, some characters disappear right as they become interesting and some of his judgments are questionable ... The author isn’t a professional historian; much of the book’s material is derived from his own conversations with people who knew the participants, and there are no footnotes to help the reader identify his source for any given piece of information ... But in a way that is also the point. Monopoly’s secret history was kept secret for a reason. ... A professional historian would never have been able to find this story; it had to be written by an insider, someone who has spent many hours around the table in the company of fellow specialists who love every nuance of the game. Mr. Orbanes is certainly that, and we have him to thank for recording some truly memorable acts that might otherwise never have come to light.
