First published 2014
Timothy Geithner chronicles his role in managing the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. As president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and later Treasury Secretary under Barack Obama, Geithner made controversial decisions to prevent economic collapse. He details the rescue of Bear Stearns, the weekend Lehman Brothers failed, the AIG bailout and bonus controversy, and battles within the Obama administration over crisis response. The memoir traces his path from childhood abroad through early Treasury work fighting 1990s international crises to his leadership during the 2008 meltdown. Geithner explains the political costs of unpopular but necessary interventions, including fights over financial reform, unemployment responses, deficit battles, and European economic troubles. He reveals how a small group of policymakers operated under extreme uncertainty and pressure. The book exposes the personal toll of public service while defending decisions that saved the financial system but lost public trust.
Genres: history, business, economics, biography-memoir, 21st-century, finance, academic, american-history
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: insider-perspective, personal-toll
Setting: United States
Period: 2000s, 2010s
592 pages · Hardcover · Crown Publishers (Random House)