(1)A vivid history of the economics of greed told through the stories of those major figures primarily responsible. "Age of Greed" shows how the single-minded and selfish pursuit of immense personal wealth has been on the rise in the United States over the last forty years. Economic journalist Jeff Madrick tells this story through incisive profiles of the individuals responsible for this dramatic shift in our country's fortunes, from the architects of the free-market economic philosophy (such as Milton Friedman and Alan Greenspan) to the politicians and businessmen (including Nixon, Reagan, Boesky, and Soros) who put it into practice. Their stories detail how a movement initially conceived as a moral battle for freedom instead brought about some of our nation's most pressing economic problems, including the intense economic inequity and instability America suffers from today. This is an indispensible guide to understanding the 1 percent.
(2)
In this bracing, page-turning account of his stranger-than-fiction baptism into the corrupted ways of Washington, Neil Barofsky offers an irrefutable indictment, from an insider of the Bush and Obama administrations, of the mishandling of the $700 billion bailout fund. In vivid behind-the-scenes detail, he reveals proof of the extreme degree to which the US government officials bent over backward to serve the interests of Wall Street firms at the expense of the broader public-and at the expense of effective financial reform.
(4)
'For years, I tried to read every new novel about 9/11. Some were thoughtful, but I always came away unsatisfied, feeling that the authors had worked hard but had somehow fallen short. As I read the stunning first section of Peter Bergen's new book, I realised I had been looking in the wrong genre. But be warned you'll read the longest war and weep'
The Scotsman 22/2
'So the war is not over. Yet weariness of it, a change of American Leadership, the emergence of other pressing problems and a widespread suspicion that the terrorists' capability was exaggerated have made it less prominent. That makes Mr Bergen's readable and well-reported appraisal timely'
The Economist 8/2
'Bergen has, through his books, journalism and lecturing, established a reputation as one of America's foremost al-Qaida experts. Bergen, with this detailed, serious, scrupulously fair, perceptive and sometimes startling work has made a significant contribution to us doing exactly that'
The Observer 6/2
'This is a gripping and disturbing book. It reminds us that wars have a logic of their own that escapes the control of politicians and generals'
The Sunday Express 30/1
"For readers interested in a highly informed, wide-angled, single-volume briefing on the war on terror so far, The Longest War is clearly that essential book."
--Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
"For years, I tried to read every new novel about how 9/11 affected our lives. Some were very thoughtful, but I always came away unsatisfied, feeling that the authors had worked hard but had somehow fallen short. As I read the stunning first section of Peter L. Bergen's new book on the war between the United States and Al Qaeda, I realized I had been looking in the wrong genre. None of the novels were as effective or moving as "The Longest War," which is a history of our time. … "The Longest War" is one of the most important accounts on the subject to appear in years. But be warned: You will read it and weep."
-Thomas E. Ricks, The New York Times Book Review
"The Longest War is Mr. Bergen's magnum opus…. essential reading."
--The Washington Times
"His important history of the war on terrorism….The greatest strength of "The Longest War" is that it provides a detailed history of what has occurred since al-Qaeda first appeared on the terrorist scene. Uniquely, it tells the history from three sides: the Americans involved in prosecuting the war; ordinary Muslims, the vast majority of whom remain unmoved by bin Laden's siren call; and the many terrorists and sympathizers whom Bergen has sought out in the field or whose voluminous writings he expertly synthesizes. "The Longest War" is also a very good read."
--Jessica Stern, Washington Post
"The Longest War is ambitious both in scope and aims…you need to understand al-Qaida, and Bergen, with this detailed, serious, scrupulously fair, perceptive and sometimes startling work has made a significant contribution to us doing exactly that."
--Jason Burke, The Guardian
"The Longest War is by far the best and most comprehensive book on the conflict so far."
--Christina Lamb, Sunday Times
"A grippingly important work that belongs on the shelf alongside The Looming Tower and Ghost Wars."---The Daily Beast
The Longest War is his history of a daunting subject that succeeds where other books have failed. That's because the author was one of the few people onto al-Qaeda years before the instant experts cropped up. And he is still there watching, long after most of those so-called experts packed it in and moved on.
--Colin Freeze, The Globe and Mail
"A revelatory, pull-no-punches history of the War on Terror, from before 9/11 to the present day…One of the deepest and most disturbing investigations of one of the defining issues of our era."-Kirkus, starred review
‘Based on dozens of interviews and thousands of documents, this book is a well-researched introduction to the subject’
Daily Telegraph 19/3
(1)'The former US Treasury secretary gives a gripping account of how he battled to prevent complete meltdown in the financial system, with plenty of illuminating detail.'
(Financial Times )
