Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 21-25 of 76
 Clear and Insightful Exposition October 9, 2009
Thomas P. Burkes (Louisiana)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Liaquat Ahamed does an excellent job of presenting a clear exposition of a highly complex subject.
Breat Book!!! September 28, 2009
Mike De Anda (san jose,ca usa)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
This book gives a detailed and helpful insight on the history and monetary policy of the four major central bankers responsible of the financial collapse that entailed into the great depression
A 'Lord' of History Writing September 17, 2009
Thomas M. Sullivan (Lake George, NY USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
There have been enough thoughtful reviews of this book that I won't rehash the content. I will say only that in all my many, many years of history reading, I have very seldom, if ever, encountered a work that is simultaneously more wonderfully crafted and informative than this. Ahamed is an absolutely splendid writer who is able to explain to the general reader even the most arcane of financial concepts and strategies without a hint of condescension and tells the tale of the Great Depression with compassion, humor and incisiveness. What is most unsettling, of course, is the inescapable conclusion that the four principal characters, all experienced, thoughtful, and generally well-intentioned men, did not understand either the interconnection or the gravity of the financial threats they were trying to quell. One wonders whether their present-day counterparts will be any more successful in re-establishing the world's financial equilibrium. However they fare, you will better understand what is going on, and what is being done to address evolving issues, if you afford yourself the pleasure of reading this marvelous book.
 The Human Side of International Monetary Economics September 17, 2009
Reader (Arlington, Virginia)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
"Lords of Finance" is an odd book. It uses the biographies of central bankers (and of Keynes) as a device to retell and popularize the monetary history of the 1920s and early 1930s. The story begins with World War I and Germany's Great Inflation, moves on to international squabbles over debts and reparations, and ends with the Crash of 1929 and the collapse of the world economy. The vista is huge.
In spite of its breadth, "Lords of Finance" is lively and well-written, with touches of droll humor. It is also eerily topical: 2008 was not the first time the global financial establishment imploded under the weight of debt-fueled speculation and financial contagion. However, the sheer timeliness of the book may have caused other Amazon reviewers to overstate its value. For me, the biographic structure is very artificial, and results in the economics getting buried beneath anecdotes and period atmospherics (menus, wine lists, etc.). What economic details there are are based on secondary sources. Too often I thought I was reading Vanity Fair rather than scholarly history.
Bottomline: "Lords of Finance" captures the quirky human dimension of policymaking, showing how even experts can be badly informed, arrogant, or driven by sentiment. However, it breaks no new historical ground and won't be read 10 years from now. Prospective buyers should wait until it is remaindered. In the meantime, they might want to read classics like Barry Eichengreen's "Golden Fetters" or Charles Kindleberger's "The World in Depression." (Galbraith's "The Great Crash" is also superb. It is as super-readable as "Lords of Finance" but is only half the length!)
 Interesting and Intriguing September 7, 2009
Jason Carano (Concord, NH)
An interesting and intriguing account of the great depression of 1929-1933 based upon the actions of the four central bankers who tried to stop it. It is particularly relevant considering the current world wide financial chaos over the last year and the failure of world bankers and political leaders to deal with it. it is especially interesting if one is already somewhat familiar with the leading actors such as Churchill; Norman; Hoover; FDR; and Hitler
Showing reviews 21-25 of 76
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