An engaging, authoritative and accessible study of globalization—in the vein of A History of the World in 6 Glasses—told through the fascinating histories of six different balls used in sports.
BOUNCE: The Story of Globalization
by William Milberg
The New Press, late 2026/early2027
(via The Gernert Company)
Globalization is the central economic issue of our time: it’s tied to everything we buy; impacts elections; leads to the wholesale collapse (or revitalization) of a town, or a city, or a region, with jobs going someplace else, coming in, or never coming back. It’s a primary reason behind the Trump administration’s tariffs, which are causing major economic upheaval. Yet for all its significance, globalization is still widely misunderstood. It’s too complex, too diffuse, with too many moving parts – its design makes individuals feel powerless. In BOUNCE, a Professor of Economics examines the history of six sporting balls as a way to understand the story of globalization, how it has evolved, and how the decisions that society has made and is currently making, continue to shape it.
The golf ball, the baseball, the football, the soccer ball, the tennis ball and the basketball: each has a complex and fascinating history that parallels the evolution of globalization. Balls have been used in games for hundreds of years and each one tells us unique and vital things about this evolution: the golf ball uncovers the dynamics of the first wave of globalization, with colonial powers seeking rubber in the plantations of Africa, Asia and South America, and the importance of machine technology and innovation. The football shows how labor unions provided the “countervailing power” needed to stand up to growing industrial corporations, prompting steady growth in pay and economic security for the average worker. Milberg, Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research where he directs the Heilbroner Center for Capitalism Studies, slices each ball open, dives deep into its story, and spins a narrative revealing how each microhistory is inextricably linked to the greater economy.
Globalization has been a series of choices by individuals, corporations, governments, countries. Understanding the history of these game balls helps us to better understand the consequences of those choices and where we want the economy to go.
Professor Milberg’s research focuses on the history and philosophy of economics. He has written extensively on global value chains and their implications for economic development, jobs, finance and intellectual property.
William Milberg is Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research, where he also directs the Heilbroner Center for Capitalism Studies. His recent project at the Heilbroner Center is on the economic causes and consequences of the multinational retreat from liberal democracy. Milberg has worked as a consultant to the International Labour Organization and the World Bank and lectured at the World Trade Organization. Author of three academic books, Milberg served as Dean of the New School for Social Research from 2013-2023. He lives in Westchester, NY with his wife, his youngest daughter and his dog Lola.
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