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Profits, Prophets, Coaches and Kings
- Author
- Jared Diamond
- Narrator
- Christopher Ragland
- Publisher
- Penguin Books Ltd
- Publish Date
- 1 September 2026
- Run Time
- 9 hours 59 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
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What to expect
From the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning, multimillion-copy bestselling classic Guns, Germs and Steel, a landmark study of leadership across politics, religion, business, and sports—seeking to decode how and why leaders matter.
Can one person change the world?
In his acclaimed and influential books Guns, Germs, and Steel and Collapse, Jared Diamond transformed our understanding of what makes civilizations rise and fall. Now, in Profits, Prophets, Coaches and Kings, he studies leaders throughout time to answer the question: do the actions of individuals truly influence history? Or is humanity subject to larger historical, technological, cultural, geographical forces, far beyond the influence of individuals, no matter how powerful they may seem?
On 13 March 1930, a truck sped into an intersection, headed straight for another car’s right front door. The passenger of this chauffeur-driven car happened to be Adolf Hitler. If the truck had hit the door, Hitler would have been crushed and killed. But the chauffeur managed to accelerate, and Hitler survived. Would tens of millions of people have died in the Holocaust and World War Two if the chauffeur had been slower to react? Some believe Hitler was unique in his evil abilities, while others think the war was guaranteed by the harsh conditions imposed on Germany post-war.
Do leaders like Hitler, Margaret Thatcher, Genghis Khan, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Belichick, or Christ really change our world? If yes, what qualities and circumstances are required of a leader to make their mark?
Drawing on his deep study of the life and career of a diverse cast of leaders famous and obscure– from Botswana president Seretse Khama, to environmentalist Rachel Carson, to legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden–Diamond reveals how leadership effectiveness is determined by a range of complex interrelated factors. Understanding these successes and failures and the opportunities leaders did (or did not) seize illuminates the influence of today's leaders and helps us to reflect on the value of our votes, our faith, our passions, and the people who happen to steer our ship.
With the same remarkable scope of Diamond's classic bestsellers, Profits, Prophets, Coaches and Kings takes readers on a rich journey through the lives of humanity’s most well-known characters to reveal how time, place, and person can come together to change the course of history.
'A must-read from the grand master of analytic history' - Peter Turchin, author of End Times
© Jared Diamond 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026
Critics Review
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Jared Diamond's erudite, engaging and thought-provoking book takes us a huge step forward toward understanding how circumstances and individual talents, determination and strategy make leaders that have the potential to change our world (hopefully for the better)
Daron Acemoglu, Nobel Laureate and co-author of Why Nations Fail
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We live in turbulent times, and our societies look to exceptional individuals to navigate us out of crisis. But do leaders matter? And, if yes, what determines a leader’s success? A must-read from the grand master of analytic history
Peter Turchin, author of End Times
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Praise for Jared Diamond
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An undisputed global star of comparative history
The Times
See more reviews See fewer reviews
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One of the few people who have changed the way we see human nature and our history
Independent
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Wears the mantle of a modern-day prophet
Guardian
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One of the most interesting and arresting writers of our age
Mail on Sunday
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The most considered, courageous and sensitive teller of the human story writing today
Independent on Sunday
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A master of at least nine academic disciplines, from anthropology to ornithology, and the subject of his books is never less than everything
Sunday Times
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“Thought-provoking… with a staggeringly broad view of the world.”
The Daily Mail
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- Jared Diamond
- Narrator
- Christopher Ragland
- Duration
- 9 hours 59 minutes
- Release Date
- 1 September 2026
- ISBN
- 9781837313150
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Penguin Books Ltd
- Genre
- Political science and theory, Political leaders and leadership, General and world history, Social and cultural anthropology
Synopsis
From the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning, multimillion-copy bestselling classic Guns, Germs and Steel, a landmark study of leadership across politics, religion, business, and sports—seeking to decode how and why leaders matter.Can one person change the world?In his acclaimed and influential books Guns, Germs, and Steel and Collapse, Jared Diamond transformed our understanding of what makes civilizations rise and fall. Now, in Profits, Prophets, Coaches and Kings, he studies leaders throughout time to answer the question: do the actions of individuals truly influence history? Or is humanity subject to larger historical, technological, cultural, geographical forces, far beyond the influence of individuals, no matter how powerful they may seem?On 13 March 1930, a truck sped into an intersection, headed straight for another car’s right front door. The passenger of this chauffeur-driven car happened to be Adolf Hitler. If the truck had hit the door, Hitler would have been crushed and killed. But the chauffeur managed to accelerate, and Hitler survived. Would tens of millions of people have died in the Holocaust and World War Two if the chauffeur had been slower to react? Some believe Hitler was unique in his evil abilities, while others think the war was guaranteed by the harsh conditions imposed on Germany post-war.Do leaders like Hitler, Margaret Thatcher, Genghis Khan, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Belichick, or Christ really change our world? If yes, what qualities and circumstances are required of a leader to make their mark?Drawing on his deep study of the life and career of a diverse cast of leaders famous and obscure– from Botswana president Seretse Khama, to environmentalist Rachel Carson, to legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden–Diamond reveals how leadership effectiveness is determined by a range of complex interrelated factors. Understanding these successes and failures and the opportunities leaders did (or did not) seize illuminates the influence of today's leaders and helps us to reflect on the value of our votes, our faith, our passions, and the people who happen to steer our ship.With the same remarkable scope of Diamond's classic bestsellers, Profits, Prophets, Coaches and Kings takes readers on a rich journey through the lives of humanity’s most well-known characters to reveal how time, place, and person can come together to change the course of history.'A must-read from the grand master of analytic history' - Peter Turchin, author of End Times© Jared Diamond 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026
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