The Heartless Stone: A Journey Through the World of Diamonds, Deceit, and Desire

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Macmillan, Jun 12, 2007 - Business & Economics - 352 pages

An adventure story in the tradition of Susan Orlean's The Orchid Thief, The Heartless Stone is a voyage into the cold heart of the world's most unyielding gem.

When he proposed to his girlfriend, Tom Zoellner gave what is expected of every American man--a diamond engagement ring. But when the relationship broke apart, he was left with a used diamond that began to haunt him. His obsession carried him around the globe, from the "blood diamond" rings of Africa; to the sweltering polishing factories of India; to mines above the Arctic Circle; to illegal diggings in Brazil; to the London headquarters of De Beers, the secretive global colossus that has dominated the industry for more than a century and permanently carved the phrase "A diamond is forever" on the psyche.

The Heartless Stone goes beyond investigative reporting into the regions of the human heart that make the diamond empire possible. It has been called "a dazzling display of intrepid reporting" (Entertainment Weekly) and "an illuminating expose of a mineral and an industry" (The Wall Street Journal).

An American Library Association Notable Book

 

Selected pages

Contents

Dying Stars Central African Republic
1
Desired Results Japan
35
The Strong Man Brasil
68
The Cartel South Africa
96
The New Era Australia
133
Blood Diamonds Angola
155
The Stone Mills India
184
Midnight Sun Canada
219
Alchemy Russia
258
The Big Nothing United States of America
282
Notes on Sources
315
Acknowledgments
325
Index
331
Copyright

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About the author (2007)

Tom Zoellner is an award-winning magazine and newspaper journalist. He is a contributing editor for Men's Health magazine and has worked as a Metro reporter at the San Francisco Chronicle, The Salt Lake Tribune and The Arizona Republic. He was the 2002 recipient of the Knight Fellowship in Specialized Reporting. He lives in New York City.

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