Michael D'Antonio's Book on the Hershey Empire

I wanted to start my blog with a book reference which holds great insights and knowledge not only about the chocolate industry, but also about a bit of the 19th and 20th century histories, and also brushes on comprehending and analysing the human nature.

HERSHEY, by MICHAEL D'ANTONIO, is a must read for anyone fascinated with the Hershey Empire and with the American craze for chocolate. D'Antonio's smooth writing takes you on a journey describing Mr. Hershey's life, difficulties and struggles to bring to America what in Europe was already a treasure: chocolate. He was NOT the first to produce chocolate in the USA, but for sure was the first to create the amazing industry that still holds its glory.

Embedded within a fascinating 19th and 20th century background, where we learn about American politics, railroad expansion, East and West diversities, and the rise of capitalism, this book holds sight of what Mr. Hershey was actually trying to accomplish: he wanted to build a community where everyone was equal, happy, employed, and satisfied with life. Interestingly enough, when company shareholders tried to sell the company in 2002 (five decades after the death of the founder), city residents were against it on the basis that such a move would "tear the soul out of the community", read The Wahington Post.

Fascinating as all the context of the Hershey mega-enterprise was and still is, what fascinated me the most was the in depth analysis D'Antonio undertakes to undestand, or maybe just explain, who Mr. Hershey really was. Sympathetic and ambitious, this was a man who was not scared of trying and going after what he thought could be grand. He was a man who never quit, exampled by his tenacity with trying to find the perfect milk chocolate recipe by spending months in his laboratory, and even going after sugar plantations in Cuba and milk producers in Pennsylvania to be able to control production of products that go into chocolate manufacturing. For all that he was able to accomplish, he was, after all, a human being. The book clearly protrays the sad reality of his relationship to his father, and the bipolar man he turned to when seing an employee rest. It also describes in length his bond to the Orphanage School he created, which he left all his wealth and fortune to, showing a man whose values and philosophies were far beyond that of wealth and fortune.

This is a text that teaches us much more than just about the foundation of Hershey. It gives us a deep hold of what an amazing man Mr. Hershey was, despite all his rage and troubled moments, and certainly makes us wonder what we could do to try to be a little bit similar to such an incredible man.

Praise for D'Antonio, whose captivating writing had me finish the book within a couple of days!