{"product_id":"how-to-rule-the-world-theo-baker-9780593832837","title":"How to Rule the World | Theo Baker","description":"\u003csection class=\"product-description\" style=\"color: #1a1a1a; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.6;\"\u003e\n  \u003ch2 style=\"color: #2c3e50; font-size: 1.75em; margin-bottom: 15px; border-bottom: 2px solid #2c3e50; padding-bottom: 5px;\"\u003eHow to Rule the World: An Education in Power at Stanford University\u003c\/h2\u003e\n  \n  \u003ch3 style=\"color: #2c3e50; font-size: 1.25em; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003eAccolades \u0026amp; Praise\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cul style=\"margin-bottom: 20px; padding-left: 20px;\"\u003e\n    \u003cli style=\"margin-bottom: 5px;\"\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAward Winner:\u003c\/strong\u003e Winner of the George Polk Award for investigative reporting.\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli style=\"margin-bottom: 5px;\"\u003e\"Poignant, maddening, and genuinely hilarious, \u003cem\u003eHow to Rule the World\u003c\/em\u003e is to be devoured—and fast...\" — Mark Leibovich, #1 \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestselling author of \u003cem\u003eThis Town\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n  \u003ch3 style=\"color: #2c3e50; font-size: 1.25em; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003eExtended Synopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cp style=\"margin-bottom: 15px;\"\u003eSlush funds. Shell companies. Yacht parties. This is life for Silicon Valley’s favored teenagers. Seventeen-year-old Theo Baker arrived for freshman year at Stanford University as a tech-obsessed coder, stepping into what seemed like paradise with Rodin sculptures next to nuclear laboratories and inventors lounging with Olympians. But Baker soon discovered a culture that embraced corner-cutting and vested infinite excess in the hands of kids with few safeguards.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp style=\"margin-bottom: 15px;\"\u003eStanford, he realized, was less a school than a business whose primary product was students—especially those earmarked as the next trillion-dollar startup founders. At the helm was Marc Tessier-Lavigne, a superstar neuroscientist. When Baker joined the student newspaper and began investigating the president's record, he uncovered never-reported allegations of research misconduct spanning two decades.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp style=\"margin-bottom: 15px;\"\u003eOnly one month into college, Baker began receiving anonymous letters, going on stakeouts, and dodging high-powered PR teams. By the end of the year, Tessier-Lavigne was out as president. \u003cem\u003eHow to Rule the World\u003c\/em\u003e is a shocking, hilarious, and moving debut that offers an unprecedented inside view of Silicon Valley's ultimate training ground.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n  \u003ch3 style=\"color: #2c3e50; font-size: 1.25em; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cp style=\"margin-bottom: 15px;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTheo Baker\u003c\/strong\u003e is an investigative journalist and the winner of the prestigious George Polk Award for his college newspaper reporting that brought down Stanford’s president. He is a graduate of Stanford University.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n  \u003ch3 style=\"color: #2c3e50; font-size: 1.25em; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003eReader Targeting\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cul style=\"margin-bottom: 20px; padding-left: 20px;\"\u003e\n    \u003cli style=\"margin-bottom: 5px;\"\u003eReaders of gripping investigative journalism, institutional exposés, and real-life political drama.\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli style=\"margin-bottom: 5px;\"\u003eFans of sharp, witty memoirs exploring higher education and tech culture.\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli style=\"margin-bottom: 5px;\"\u003eThose interested in accountability, ethics, and the inner workings of elite universities.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n  \u003ch3 style=\"color: #2c3e50; font-size: 1.25em; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003eBibliographic \u0026amp; Physical Specifications\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cdiv class=\"table-responsive\" style=\"overflow-x: auto; max-width: 100%; margin-bottom: 25px; -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch; border: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n    \u003ctable style=\"width: 100%; min-width: 650px; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 0.95em; table-layout: fixed;\"\u003e\n      \u003cthead\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"background-color: #f8f9fa; border-bottom: 2px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 12px 10px; color: #2c3e50; width: 30%; font-weight: bold;\"\u003eSpecification\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 12px 10px; color: #2c3e50; width: 70%; font-weight: bold;\"\u003eDetails\u003c\/th\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003c\/thead\u003e\n      \u003ctbody\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eISBN-13\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003e9780593832837\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eSKU (ISBN-10)\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003e0593832833\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003ePublisher\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003ePenguin Press\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003ePublication Date\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eMay 19, 2026\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eFormat\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eHardcover (Hardbound, Dust Jacket Included, Used Condition)\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003ePage Count\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003e352\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eBISAC Categories\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eBIOGRAPHY \u0026amp; AUTOBIOGRAPHY \/ Personal Memoirs; EDUCATION \/ Higher\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n        \u003ctr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0;\"\u003e\n          \u003cth style=\"text-align: left; padding: 10px; background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;\"\u003eDimensions \u0026amp; Weight\u003c\/th\u003e\n          \u003ctd style=\"padding: 10px; color: #1a1a1a; vertical-align: top;\"\u003e9.3 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches \/ 19.19 oz\u003c\/td\u003e\n        \u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003c\/tbody\u003e\n    \u003c\/table\u003e\n  \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n  \u003ch3 style=\"color: #2c3e50; font-size: 1.25em; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003eFrequently Asked Questions\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cp style=\"margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhat is How to Rule the World about?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt is an investigative memoir by George Polk Award winner Theo Baker detailing his freshman year at Stanford University, where his reporting for the student newspaper exposed research misconduct that led to the university president's resignation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp style=\"margin-bottom: 10px;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWho wrote this book?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe book is written by Theo Baker, a Stanford graduate and award-winning student journalist.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp style=\"margin-bottom: 15px;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIs this book based on true events?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYes, it is a factual, firsthand account of real investigative reporting and institutional events at Stanford University.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n  \u003cscript type=\"application\/ld+json\"\u003e\n  {\n    \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n    \"@graph\": [\n      {\n        \"@type\": [\"Book\", \"Product\"],\n        \"@id\": \"https:\/\/bustdownbooks.com\/products\/how-to-rule-the-world-theo-baker-9780593832837#book\",\n        \"name\": \"How to Rule the World: An Education in Power at Stanford University\",\n        \"author\": {\n          \"@type\": \"Person\",\n          \"name\": \"Theo Baker\"\n        },\n        \"description\": \"Read How to Rule the World by Theo Baker. 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