Must-read Crisis Book

Today's mail brought my hot-off-the-press copy of the essential crisis reference, The Subprime Virus by Kathleen Engel and Patricia McCoy.  Subprime Virus chronicles the rise and fall of the subprime market and the regulatory (non) response, from the Clinton Administration through the 2007/2008 financial crisis, the bailout and the Dodd-Frank reform legislation.  The most vital contribution comes in Part III, where the authors relentlessly catalog the missed opportunities, systematic capture and complete failure of one regulatory agency after another, including the Federal Reserve, the banking regulators and the SEC.  The authors, of course, enjoy a unique credibility for having warned us early and often about the dangers of subprime lending and securitization, for both homeowners and investors. For those looking for an authoritative, scholarly and accessible account of the subprime crisis from its origins in the predatory lending of the 90's through the bubble, blow-up and bailouts, look no further.

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I never understood this crisis completely. But this article added a little more to my information and it surely makes me want to learn more about the whole thing.