Dayen's book provides a good inventory of monopolies, monopsonies, and conglomerates, however, beyond cataloging these entities, the book falls short of delivering truly groundbreaking insights.

In my view, the author missed a significant opportunity by allocating too much time to personal stories and to vilifying corporations without sufficiently exploring the political and economic mechanisms that enable and incentivize the creation of such powerful entities, such as:
- Lobbying
- Licensing and regulatory barriers
- Exclusive rights and patents
- Subsidies and tax incentives
- Tariffs and import restrictions
- Nationalization of key industries
- Price controls
- Trade policies

As a result, by the time Dayen addresses these critical factors, the discussion feels relegated to a mere footnote. It's comparable to visiting a doctor who meticulously details all your symptoms but offers only superficial treatments like MRIs and aspirin...

While the personal narratives add depth and relatability, it reeks of populism. Understanding the underlying structures that allow monopolies and conglomerates to thrive is essential for comprehensively addressing the challenges they pose to the economy and society, but you won't find much of that here. However, if you want to learn about the single mom with a recidivist boyfriend in prison who can't get good signal for video calls...

Overall, "Monopolized" serves as a decent overview of powerful market players but falls short of providing the in-depth analysis needed to fully grasp and tackle the complexities of modern economic power dynamics.