This time is different Eight centuries of financial folly

Reinhart (economics, Univ. of Maryland) and Rogoff (public policy and economics, Harvard Univ.) have compiled an encyclopedic analysis of the history of financial crises over the last 750 years. But their volume is not merely of historical interest. Rather, it has great relevance for anyone interested in understanding how the current financial crisis is likely to unfold. One of the authors' major findings is the similarity of these crises over time and across countries. One surprising discovery is that banking crises are more frequent in the advanced countries. Although the book concentrates on financial disruptions, the authors are clear that the financial system is not necessarily the cause of the disruption. Instead, finance tends to amplify the underlying problem and perhaps spread the instability to other parts of the world. The authors avoid using jargon, making this work accessible to undergraduate students. In addition, they disperse interesting stories about finance throughout the book, making it more enjoyable. Rich data appendixes add to the value of this volume. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduate through professional collections. M. Perelman California State University, Chico