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deschatjes's review against another edition
4.0
Hard to believe all that was already 10 years ago. Well written and interesting view on how the last financial crash happened and the hubris surrounding it
mastersal's review against another edition
5.0
Read this in one sitting on a flight and kept laughing. Gentleman next to me was very confused as to why I was laughing at what should, and is, tragic. This is a testament to Mr. Lewis’ writing. I do remember a lot of what he discussed and I recommend this to a lot of people.
5 stars!
5 stars!
joshknape's review against another edition
4.0
This is a great book for anyone who wants to understand what behaviors caused the debt crises in various nations but does not have a background in finance or economics. It's not a very technical book. It studies several countries or other places that were and still are key to the debt crises in Europe and America, and concludes that in these places--Iceland, Greece, Ireland, Germany, and California--the horrible financial decisions that led to unsustainable debt and to recession (except in Germany, which is not loaded with debt but financed excessive spending in other countries with easy credit, and will now probably be on the hook for bailing Europe out). were influenced by flaws peculiar to their national or regional character. It's fascinating, particularly Lewis's analysis of the German national character (which, be warned, is disgusting in some respects).
rickwren's review against another edition
3.0
Sure it was simplistic and even childish to boil down complete economies into sustained book sections and given character, attitudes, and attributes. To make an entire country behave as an individual really does cheat the system. But the measure of a book is how much it makes you think about the topic and how much more you understand it after you've read it then you understood it before. Doesn't provoke conversation? Does it make you research? Do you spend time trying to find out more?
If he would have put everything there was to know about Iceland, Greece, Germany, and the United States financial systems into a single volume it would have been too big to pick up. So Michael Lewis is a commercial writer. So what?
Iceland is a very small country and those people who were in charge were naïve. Their naïveté was exploited by the big bankers from New York and London as they attempted, mostly successfully, to a great and pillage these descendents of the Vikings. Iceland turned it around, and eventually they punished some of the bankers and through the entire system out of the country and are quite well on the road to recovery. The national character is what Michael Lewis presents a and his presentation makes sense.
Greece is a country filled with corruption, incompetence and laziness. Is this true? Michael Lewis made it sound believable as he described both the before and after of the the financial meltdown. The kleptocracy is amazing. Even after everything that happened they have no interest in changing. I especially loved his time in the monastery. That whole story kept me enthralled.
Germany, as a nation to rigid to understand what was changing about the markets, kept thinking that everyone else was going to play by the rules. They kept buying up the debt and didn't see that the debt was going bad because that was what was in the manuals. It's funny to think about and very simplistic to assume that an entire country's culture can be boiled down to simple actions, but it does work as a metaphor for what happened and how Germany was left holding the bag.
The United States, of course in this tale of woe, comes off as the conmen – the swindlers of the world's money. I just wish I had some of it. It's not a flattering portrayal, but it again works for the metaphor.
That's what this book was. It was metaphors that worked to describe what happened in as simple terms as the general public understand.
If he would have put everything there was to know about Iceland, Greece, Germany, and the United States financial systems into a single volume it would have been too big to pick up. So Michael Lewis is a commercial writer. So what?
Iceland is a very small country and those people who were in charge were naïve. Their naïveté was exploited by the big bankers from New York and London as they attempted, mostly successfully, to a great and pillage these descendents of the Vikings. Iceland turned it around, and eventually they punished some of the bankers and through the entire system out of the country and are quite well on the road to recovery. The national character is what Michael Lewis presents a and his presentation makes sense.
Greece is a country filled with corruption, incompetence and laziness. Is this true? Michael Lewis made it sound believable as he described both the before and after of the the financial meltdown. The kleptocracy is amazing. Even after everything that happened they have no interest in changing. I especially loved his time in the monastery. That whole story kept me enthralled.
Germany, as a nation to rigid to understand what was changing about the markets, kept thinking that everyone else was going to play by the rules. They kept buying up the debt and didn't see that the debt was going bad because that was what was in the manuals. It's funny to think about and very simplistic to assume that an entire country's culture can be boiled down to simple actions, but it does work as a metaphor for what happened and how Germany was left holding the bag.
The United States, of course in this tale of woe, comes off as the conmen – the swindlers of the world's money. I just wish I had some of it. It's not a flattering portrayal, but it again works for the metaphor.
That's what this book was. It was metaphors that worked to describe what happened in as simple terms as the general public understand.
daeus's review against another edition
4.0
Sort of an international followup of 'The Big Short' focusing on Iceland, Ireland, Greece, and Germany. The absurdity and contrast of how different cultures reacted to cheap credit and their own financial crisis was fascinating. Sometimes it was a bit broad and had more general commentary on humanity than 'The Big Short,' but I found it pretty thought provoking.
Quotes:
- “What happened was that everyone in Ireland had the idea that somewhere in Ireland there was a little wise old man who was in charge of the money, and this was the first time they’d ever seen this little man,” says McCarthy. “And then they saw him and said, Who the fuck was that??? Is that the fucking guy who is in charge of the money??? That’s when everyone panicked.”
Quotes:
- “What happened was that everyone in Ireland had the idea that somewhere in Ireland there was a little wise old man who was in charge of the money, and this was the first time they’d ever seen this little man,” says McCarthy. “And then they saw him and said, Who the fuck was that??? Is that the fucking guy who is in charge of the money??? That’s when everyone panicked.”
harlando's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting. It's a little too unfocused to be 'good.'
I had not heard about the Greek monks who made billions by trading real estate with the Greek government.
He has an interesting diversion into the German cultural and linguistic focus on shit and assess.
He ends with US municipalities, mostly in California, and their looming financial problems. I read this in early 2022 (published 2011) and did a quick check up on what happened in the intervening period. Not much. Some municipal entities have filed for bankruptcy, notably Detroit and a county in Alabama, but not that many. California does have 3 of the 5 largest.
I had not heard about the Greek monks who made billions by trading real estate with the Greek government.
He has an interesting diversion into the German cultural and linguistic focus on shit and assess.
He ends with US municipalities, mostly in California, and their looming financial problems. I read this in early 2022 (published 2011) and did a quick check up on what happened in the intervening period. Not much. Some municipal entities have filed for bankruptcy, notably Detroit and a county in Alabama, but not that many. California does have 3 of the 5 largest.
harlando's review against another edition
Interesting. It's a little too unfocused to be 'good.'
I had not heard about the Greek monks who made billions by trading real estate with the Greek government. Rich monks are always a bad sign. I think a great book project would be tax exempt organizations in the US. We have a lot of them, churches, charities, fraternal organizations, ect. Most of them probably either do good, or do minimal harm, but given the total a lot have to be corrupt.
He has an interesting diversion into the German cultural and linguistic focus on shit and asses.
He ends with US municipalities, mostly in California, and their looming financial problems. I read this in early 2022 (published 2011) and did a quick check up on what happened in the intervening period. Not much. Some municipal entities have filed for bankruptcy, notably Detroit and a county in Alabama, but not that many. California does have 3 of the 5 largest. Looking at an inflation adjusted chart of all municipal debt (USA facts) it spiked sharply from 00 to 10, but has declined somewhat since. Puerto Rico is still having problems in 2022 and I would guess that several of the worst off in 2011 are still precarious today.
I had not heard about the Greek monks who made billions by trading real estate with the Greek government. Rich monks are always a bad sign. I think a great book project would be tax exempt organizations in the US. We have a lot of them, churches, charities, fraternal organizations, ect. Most of them probably either do good, or do minimal harm, but given the total a lot have to be corrupt.
He has an interesting diversion into the German cultural and linguistic focus on shit and asses.
He ends with US municipalities, mostly in California, and their looming financial problems. I read this in early 2022 (published 2011) and did a quick check up on what happened in the intervening period. Not much. Some municipal entities have filed for bankruptcy, notably Detroit and a county in Alabama, but not that many. California does have 3 of the 5 largest. Looking at an inflation adjusted chart of all municipal debt (USA facts) it spiked sharply from 00 to 10, but has declined somewhat since. Puerto Rico is still having problems in 2022 and I would guess that several of the worst off in 2011 are still precarious today.
full_quieting's review against another edition
4.0
Lewis visits Iceland, Greece, Ireland, and Germany, and then comes home to the U.S., interpreting the financial woes of ten years ago (now) in the context of each nation's culture. Sometimes the descriptions are over the top, but what actually, unarguably happened in each case is also over the top.
The last chapter is chilling, maybe because I live in San Jose. It was as if the book knew that I personally was reading it. The profiles of San Jose and Vallejo are sobering. Four rather than five stars, only because I have no idea why this is called Boomerang. Great read though.
The last chapter is chilling, maybe because I live in San Jose. It was as if the book knew that I personally was reading it. The profiles of San Jose and Vallejo are sobering. Four rather than five stars, only because I have no idea why this is called Boomerang. Great read though.