"Too Big To Fail" - 540 Pages of Non-Fiction That Reads Like A Crime Novel

I just finished reading Andrew Ross Sorkin's "Too Big To Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System---and Themselves."  I cannot remember the last time I found such a long (540 pages) and comprehensive historical depiction so compelling.

Sorkin's skill in explaining - in layman's terms - the esoteric financial instruments at the center of the 2008 crisis, and the intersecting political, macroeconomic and financial interests surrounding the exploitation and/or regulation thereof, turns a subject-matter morass into a "page turner."  

Sorkin's storytelling ability is matched by his seemingly unparalleled access to the top levels of finance and government.  Time and again after reading about some top-secret negotiation I wondered, "How the hell did he get that information?"

The books covers a great deal of territory outlining the events leading to the rescue of Bear Stearns, AIG and a few other institutions you might not realize were on the precipice.  It details the personalities and organizational cultures that influenced the actions taken, and does so with a critical detail.  Sorkin did not trade access for editorial kindness.  Some finance stalwarts are made to seem all too fallible by Sorkin's characterization of events.  It is to their and the story's credit that they allowed themselves to participate in an unabashed account of the events.

This is not a weekend read, but it is definitely worth working through.  If for no other reason, it provides  insight into the irrationality of the economic crucible that is the capital markets, and the extraordinary measures required to halt the next Great Depression which could stem from it.