The Deal Maker: How William C. Durant Made General Motors

great story well told...worth the read for sure

The Deal Maker by Axel Maker is a wonderful history of the beginnings of General Motors and of the American auto industry. The book features GM founder William C. "Willie" Durant and how he, with wonderful imagination, put together America's largest auto company. The knew how to "make a deal" and did so bringing disparate entities together to form GM. In the means time, he wheeling and dealing caused him to be fired by the GM board. What did he do? He formed another company, one called Chevrolet, which was a huge success. Through Chevrolet, Durant purchased shares of GM and eventually owned enough to walk into a board meeting and inform those that he was "once again" in charge. He did well for a couple years but got caught in an industry downturn and lost ownership again. So, he formed another company, the Durant Corporation, and had a similar plan but lost some interest in the auto industry because he was buying and selling stocks. He made millions on the market, if not close to billions but lost it all in the crash of 1929. Throughout the book names of the other early leaders in the auto industry tell a wonder history. It seems that many of them worked together at one time or another. The book a lot about Flint, Michigan and how "Willie" Durant put it on the map. A must read for any interested in American business especially the auto industry

I really liked this book. Covers a lot of old cars and is full of well researched info. Excellent book!

Fascinating book not only about William Durant, but also about the birth of the auto industry in the United States. I highly recommend this book.

great read nice GM history book from the early formative years a great addition to my automotive library