1929: Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History—and How It Shattered a Nation

I liked it. Fantastic storytelling of an important historical event and its aftermath. Sorkin does a good job using narratives about individuals who shaped events and usually suffered adverse consequences: Charles Mitchell, for example. There's an interesting commentary about Presidents Hoover and Roosevelt, with the latter coming off looking flaky. The House of Morgan and its unique culture is studied too.

All in all, the story is well presented, demonstrating to me there was careful research and consideration of the facts. The style is non-judgemental too, which adds credibility to the presentation. I found that the Afterword offered some apt conclusions about events like the market crash of 1929:

"Ultimately, the story of 1929 is not show more about rates or regulation, nor about the cleverness of short sellers or the failures of bankers. It is about something far more enduring: human nature. No matter how many warnings are issued or how many laws are written, people will find new ways to believe that the. good times can last forever."

Recommended for students of history and economics. show less

A highly readable, entertaining look into what could be a rather dry subject. Starting from the beginning of the year, Mr. Sorkin takes us through the events, market manipulations, mini crashes and recoveries that ultimately lead up to Black Tuesday and the beliefs and denials that come after. It also, disturbingly, shows how much hasn't changed in today's world..."this time it is different".

Reasonably informative but a bit on the dull side. I thought the most interesting part was how Glass-Steagall came about. I think my main problem with the book is that there wasn't one single person in it that was likeable or with whom I could connect. They were all avaricious thoughtless jerks, just like today.

A riveting narrative of the most infamous stock market crash in history—one with ripple effects that still shape our society today.

A well-written non-fiction narrative about the market crash of 1929, but much of the book covers the subsequent years leading to the great depression. The author saw a need to pick a few villains and focus on them, and stock prices were documented in detail. What was missing were other important metrics like GDP, employment, unemployment rates leading up to 1929, including 1929 and following 1929.

4.8 Terrific! Sorkin is a very talented writer and this book is a page turner. Great look at the intricacies of the 1929 market crash and periods well before and after. Could have done a deeper look at signals we’re seeing in modern times.

I learned so much about the stock crash of 1929 that I did not know before. While I got somewhat lost at times in all the names, the information was excellent. Like so many people, I thought that Black Thursday was just one day with people losing loads of money and throwing themselves off buildings, etc. I was certainly wrong. It was a very complex situation that began before that day and continued for a few more years. I always appreciate learning something new, especially when it helps clear up a common misconception. Excellent read!