List of Best Books to understand on the Financial Crisis

The 2008 financial crisis is relatively fresh in everyone’s mind. It may leave you wondering if it could happen again.

To better understand the ‘Great Depression’ and to gain valuable insights into the dark and confusing time, explore the following books. It will not only equip you with the necessary knowledge but will also help you make your future Crisis less painful.

• Stress Test: Reflections on Financial Crisis

Author: Timothy Geithner

Stress Test: Reflections on Financial Crisis is a 2014 memoir by former United States Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner, written as an account of the effort to save the United States economy from collapsing in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.  It was listed for five consecutive weeks on The New York Times’ Non-Fiction Bestseller list upon its release in May 2014.

Available on: Amazon.in

• Too Big to Fail

Author:  Andrew Ross Sorkin

Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System—and Themselves, also known as Too Big to Fail: Inside the Battle to Save Wall Street, is a non-fiction book by Andrew Ross Sorkin. It depicts the events of the 2008 financial crisis and the collapse of ‘Lehman Brothers’ from the point of view of Wall Street CEOs and US government regulators. The book was released on October 20, 2009, by Viking Press.

It won the 2010 Gerald Loeb Award for Best Business Book and was shortlisted for the 2010 Samuel Johnson Prize and the 2010 Financial Times and Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year Award.

Available on: Amazon.in

• A Colossal Failure of Common Sense

Author: Lawrence G. McDonald and Patrick Robinson

A Colossal Failure of Common Sense: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers is a 2009 book written by Lawrence G. McDonald and Patrick Robinson. Just like the above, this book chronicles the events surrounding the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers in the context of the financial crisis around 2007–2010. The book is divided into a prologue, an epilogue, and twelve chapters.

This book was widely acclaimed by industry experts and still remains the most sought-after books, when it comes to understanding global financial Crisis.

Available on: Amazon.in

• Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World

Author:  Liaquat Ahamed

Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World is a book by Liaquat Ahamed. The book highlights the events that led to the Great Depression. It has been told through personal experiences of the heads of the Central Banks of the world's four major economies at the time: Benjamin Strong Jr. of the New York Federal Reserve, Montagu Norman of the Bank of England, Émile Moreau of the Banque de France, and Hjalmar Schacht of the Reichsbank. The text was published on January 22, 2009, by Penguin Press.

The book was well-received by critics and won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for History. Since the book was published amidst the financial crisis of 2007–2010, the book's subject matter seems relevant for the current financial events.

Available on: Amazon.in

• After the Music Stopped

Author:  Alan S. Blinder

After the Music Stopped is one of the best books about the financial crisis.  The book accounts the ‘why’, ‘how’ and ‘what’ aspects of the global financial crisis. This highly readable analysis takes you brilliantly through the construction of America's fragile house of financial cards, its sudden and dramatic collapse, and, as important, the difficult reconstruction and rehabilitation work that must still be done. Whether you are interested in current affairs or in history, read this book if you want an expert and well-written analysis of how economics and politics interacted to create one big mess, not just for America but also for the entire global economy.

Available on: Amazon.in

• The Greatest Trade Ever

Author: Gregory Zuckerman

The Greatest Trade Ever: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of How John Paulson Defied Wall Street and Made Financial History is a debut book by American journalist Gregory Zuckerman. The book was released on November 3, 2009, by Crown Business. The book investigates the reasons and consequences of the subprime mortgage crisis and the role that hedge fund manager John Paulson played in those events.  Superbly written and fast-paced, the book tells you how opaque and illiquid some financial instruments are, and how difficult it was for more knowledgeable bankers, back then, to say that the subprime emperor had no clothes. 

Available on: Amazon.in