My Years with Ludwig von Mises.pdf - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

Human Action. We are delighted that you are so enthusiastic over
the way the book looks."
On September 14, 1949, Human Action was published, and the
book created a tremendous impression all over the country. Almost
a hundred review copies were sent out, which may seem a small
number in comparison to the two hundred copies or more that
publi.shers are sendi.ng out these days. On October 10, 1040, Donaldson
wrote Lu: "Orders are keeping up splendidly, and we are
.today ordering a third printing."
That was three and a half weeks after publication. For the first
time life looked more hopeful to Lu. For years he had worked
hard. In spite of his career in Europe, his excellent reputation, his
respected writings, he had not found the same academic recognition
in the United States that he had enjoyed in Europe. His financial
position was-to say the least-modest and insecure, but Human
Action was even more of a success than his two former books.
Yale University Press did its utmost to answer all the inquiries
about translations into foreign languages. Human Action later appeared
in Italian, French, Japanese, and Spanish editions. Lu's
most ardent readers and admirers always have been in the Spanishspeaking
countries. Apparently the more subjugated a country is,
the deeper the longing for. freedom. As I write this, a Chinese
translation, soon to be published in Taiwan, is in preparation.
On January 9, 1950, Mr. Davidson informed Lu: "The Book-ofthe-Month
Club will list Human Action in the back part of its
monthly bulletin. This [is] technically, I believe, known as an
alternate selection which may be chosen by the Book-of-the­
Month Club subscribers in place of the book of the month."
Lu was never offended or hurt by contradictory reviews-if they
were based on knowledge and understanding. "The more they
attack an author," he used to say, "the more curious they make the
public. The only deadly attack is silence."
Following the publication of Human Action, Yale University
Press published a new enlarged American edition of Socialism,
which was first published in Germany in 1922 under the title Gemeinwirtschaft.
In 1953 Yale printed a new, enlarged edition of
The Theory of Money and Credit, followed in 1957 by Lu's Theory
and History: An Interpretation of Social and Economic Evolution
(next to Human Action, this book meant the most to Lu among his
own writings). All these books were translated into foreign
languages.
On May 17, 1959, there was a short notice in the New York
Times reporting that Norman V. Donaldson, director of Yale University
Press since 1945, "will become chairman of its governing
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