Book Description

This book's descriptive, balanced overview of the U.S. financial system, its primary institutions and markets, coupled with an introduction to international markets, creates a presentation truly reflective of today's global marketplace. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A good starting point for business and finance students
This book is updated to the latest development in financial market, institutions and structure.

It concisely presented the money and capital markets with a touch of history and functionality.

I particularly like the balanced view of the authors in their presentations. It successfully illustrates the functional as well as risk consideration of the markets and institutions.

This book should serve well for student studying in domestic financial market and also as a bridging link to international financial system. ... Read more

Book Description

In both the industrialized and developing worlds, a distinctive feature of the last two decades has been prolonged buildups and sharp collapses in asset markets such as stock, housing, and exchange markets. The volatility has sparked intense debate in academic and policy circles over the appropriate monetary and regulatory response to dramatic market shifts.

This book examines asset price bubbles to further our understanding of the causes and implications of financial instability, focusing on the potential of central banks and regulatory agencies to prevent it. The book grew out of a conference jointly sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and the World Bank Group in April 2002. ... Read more

Amazon.com

People panicked during a credit crunch or economic downturn on London's Lombard Street of the 1800s just as they do on Wall Street today. That's only one reason this reprint of the classic book by famed 19th-century economist Walter Bagehot offers lessons even now. First published in 1873, the book is a compilation of 11 essays that Bagehot wrote as the editor of The Economist, and includes his advice to banks for dealing with financial crises: "We must keep a great store of ready money always available, and advance out of it very freely in periods of panic, and in times of incipient alarm. Any notion that money is not to be had, or that it may not be had at any price, only raises alarm to panic and enhances panic to madness."

In terms of the U.S. savings-and-loan crisis and the Asian economic meltdown of the 1990s, Bagehot's words still ring as timely, even with the dated references to British politics of the time. For example, he proposed allowing unstable banks to collapse and advocated creating an independent finance professional to run the nation's central bank. Lombard Street, named after London's financial district and the birthplace of the money market, will be an eye opener for students and others interested in the history and workings of financial systems. --Dan Ring ... Read more

Reviews (3)

The human face of finance
Can a book about finance written in 1873 be helpful in a world with complex financial markets and plenty of information about how they work? The answer is yes. It is not that "Lombard Street" is a classic that one finds quoted many a time; the reader's interest should transcend historical inquiry or curiosity; "Lombard Street" should be read and revered by anyone interested in the underlying, abiding features of financial markets.

But what are those characteristics? Bagehot, then editor of The Economist, writes that credit centers on trust: "Credit means that a certain confidence is given, a certain trust reposed." And, banks always have on-demand liabilities that far exceed their readily available assets. In short, credit works on trust, and the system, in the absence of trust, can fall apart rapidly.

What follows from these premises is a careful examination of how the money market came about, what its uses are, how its operations are connected to trade and country's overall welfare, and, most importantly, how central banks can deal with financial crises. Written elegantly, "Lombard Street" is, at the same time, an introductory overview of the market and a trenchant analysis of its most salient features.

But what makes "Lombard Street" timeless is that it deals with finance in its human form. Bagehot talks about power, prestige and perception as much as he does about interest, discount, and credit. Trust is based on institutions and people: the human features of finance-trust, anxiety, mania, optimism-are timeless and apply to the financial markets of the nineteenth, twentieth, or twenty-first century. That is why "Lombard Street" is an ever useful introduction and guide.

A classic must-read
Walter Bagehot was the first editor of the now world-famous Economist magazine, which has in many ways remained faithful to the liberal philosophy (in a European sense)of its founder. Lombard Street might be difficult to read at first, but as with Charles Dickens once you get used to the style the tale is riveting. And his advice on how a central bank, as the lender of last resort, should behave in the face of a banking crisis remains valid to this day.

Very Thorough, yet Tough to Read
Wiley Investment Classics generally fall into two categories, tough and dreary reads full of information, and lively entertaining accounts which also educate. Unfortunately, Mr. Bagehot and Mr. Bernstein's text is the former. The book does an outstanding job of promoting the importance of a strong central banking system and the importance of strict credit control when combating financial crises. However, it does so amidst extremely repetitive and somewhat painful language. The authors provide outstanding quantitative and anecdotal evidence supporting their case, but they do so in such a way that makes the book a true labor to read.

This book would be very beneficial to anyone doing research on, or working for some kind of central banking organization. Otherwise, I would suggest looking to any of the other Wiley Investment Classics for a more interesting and educational read about finance. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is the first full length work in fourty years on the history of early American banking.It reveals new interpretations of early banking practices and why there was a need to change and progress with the times. This volume compares early banking with today's more advanced economic theory.Each section contains valuable research as well as contemporary findings and interpretations. ... Read more

Book Description

This treatise, written in 1923, by the renowned proponent of deficit spending, is devoted to the need for stable currency as the essential foundation of a healthy world economy.Describing the various effects of unstable currency on investors, business people, and wage earners, Keynes (1883-1946) recommends the implementation of policies that aim at achieving stability of the commodity value of the dollar rather than the gold value.Keynes's brilliant, clear analysis of the world monetary situation at the beginning of the twentieth century, with his many suggestions and his masterful elucidation of economic principles, stands as a vital primer for anyone interested in developing a better understanding of basic economics and its sociopolitical implications. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Some great old ideas, including the famous long run
The Preface of Monetary Reform by John Maynard Keynes is dated October 1923, in a time when there were few economists. As the Preface of this book states this dire aspect of the situation:

"Nowhere do conservative notions consider themselves more in place than in currency ; yet nowhere is the need of innovation more urgent. One is often warned that a scientific treatment of currency questions is impossible because the banking world is intellectually incapable of understanding its own problems. If this is true, the order of Society, which they stand for, will decay. But I do not believe it. What we have lacked is a clear analysis of the real facts, . . ." (p. vi).

There are charts in this book to provide the facts which Keynes was concerned about. Index Numbers of Wholesale Prices Expressed as a Percentage of 1913 on page 5 covers the years 1913 to 1923 (First half-year) for nine nations, looking most outstandingly bad for Germany, which has a final number of 765,000 for half of 1923, far larger than the maximum number of any other country. Italy was at 624 in 1920 and declined to 577 in 1921, still higher than the 510 monthly average that France had in 1920.

A chart at the top of page 18 with dates from 1815 to 1922 is supposed to illustrate "what a splendid investment gilt-edged stocks had been through the century from Waterloo to Mons, even if we omit altogether the abnormal values of 1896-97. Our table shows how the epoch of Diamond Jubilee was the culminating moment in the prosperity of the British middle class." (p. 18). But for people who were concerned about the tumble taken after 1914, things were not so great. "The whole of the improvement of the nineteenth century had been obliterated," (I'm looking at an old edition, so my page numbers might be way off from whatever book you might be able to buy today).

The basic information that is most important to Society as a whole is contained in Chapter I, The Consequences To Society of Changes in the Value of Money, considering separately the interests of the Investing Class, the Business Class, and the Earner. The power of any government which can produce money merely by printing it is considered in Chapter II, Public Finance and Changes in the Value of Money, particularly with respect to Inflation as a Method of Taxation. In order to show that a government might have some choice in such matters, Keynes also considers "Currency Depreciation versus Capital Levy." If this seems like an odd topic now, Keynes is reassuring that such a move might only be considered "when the State's contractual liabilities, fixed in terms of money, have reached an excessive proportion of the national income." This might happen (sooner or later) to any country which stops producing anything except educational opportunities, medical bills, entertainment and banking, in years when a high national debt must be refinanced at high interest rates.

Chapter III gives us The Theory of Money and of the Foreign Exchanges. Recently INFECTIOUS GREED by Frank Partnoy provided an example, early in his book, of how bankers still don't have any yardstick for figuring out how much they are making when Bankers Trust was trying to figure out how much profit it could declare on trading in the foreign-exchange markets by Andy Krieger in 1987. Being able to bet the assets of a large bank on the direction that a currency would go in 1987 allowed Andy Krieger to get a job with George Soros in April, 1988, where turnabout became his main play. "Krieger reversed the position, and bet against the pound. A single trade with Chemical Bank was for more than $1.8 billion." (Portnoy, p. 33). Really and truly, I think Partnoy blames Krieger for taking stable currencies and earning large bonuses by making them worth much less than they had been worth before he had the option to sell it at a given price. Part IV. The Forward Market in Exchanges in Chapter III of Keynes's MONETARY REFORM attempts to state three practical conclusions. First, hedging a risk won't work when the situation is so bad that there is "a fear of a sudden implosion of exchange regulations or of a moratorium." Partnoy seemed to think that the private trading in derivative contracts was where the big money was made, and public positions in an exchange could be fake positions hedging a bet in the opposite direction, but that there was no law against this kind of manipulation of the market for money. Keynes was more interested in stability. "With free forward markets thus established no merchant need run an exchange risk unless he wishes to, and business might find a stable footing even in a fluctuating world."

Second, there must be money from speculators in such a market for the market to function. "The wide fluctuations . . . have been due, not to the presence of speculation, but to the absence of a sufficient volume of it relatively to the volume of trade."

Third, high interest rates don't matter as much "unless the change in relative money-rates is comparable in magnitude (as it used to be but no longer is) with the possible range of exchange fluctuations.)" Possibly things have changed so much in the last 80 years that Keynes would phrase that differently today.

Chapter IV turns to "the United States, which has enjoyed a gold standard throughout, has suffered as severely as many other countries," but not as badly as Germany and Austria back then. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Martin Mayer's engaging examination of the much-talked-about but little understood U.S. Federal Reserve begins with the dramatic events of October 1998, a month in which the market closed "lock limit down" for the first time in almost a decade. At the same time, Alan Greenspan, the Fed's chairman, began radically reinventing his agency's role and its influence on the market. Indeed, while most of the rest of the world's countries were diminishing the role of their central banks, Congress was granting new powers and responsibilities to the Fed. Mayer's book--part history, part journalistic report, and all detailed analysis--looks at the significance of those powers, their benefits and risks, and what they mean to the markets. He also devotes chapters to the day-to-day inner workings of the Fed, its influence in international financial matters, and its possible role in coming years.

As a prolific author and respected economics scholar, Mayer has been immersed in the financial world for decades and provides both bird's-eye and long-range views of money's complicated maneuverings.Without his excellent storytelling abilities and fluid writing style, this book would be heavy going for anyone who doesn't speak the language of high finance. Though it is most definitely dense (and its structure somewhat erratic), Mayer manages to make a complicated subject accessible for those with more interest than actual knowledge. An informative look at a hitherto enigmatic but influential institution. --S. Ketchum ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Misleading Title
My main problem with this book is that the title really should have been "A Detailed History of The Fed." I think I was looking more for what the title implied, a book with a focus almost exclusively on modern times, and concentrating on the relationship between Fed actions and economic reactions. If this is what you, too, are seeking, don't read this book.

A secondary problem is that the recitation of Fed history that comprises nearly the entire book is almost unbearably dry.

This book's main (only?) good point is its detail. I personally found the amount of detail excessive and boring, but I can't fault the author for completion: the history that this book contains is broad and well-researched.

Badly written, packed with information
I bought this book in a bookstore, thinking it looked interesting. The testimonials seemed convincing. I wish I'd read these reviews first. Although the book clearly offers a wealth of information, I found it annoying to read. The author repeatedly interjects long parenthetical expressions in the middle of his sentences. By the time you reach the end of the sentence, it's hard to remember what he was trying to say. At times, it struck me as a stream-of-consciousness approach, or just laziness on the part of his editor. The problem isn't that the material is challenging. I have an MBA and expect to be challenged in books about banking and finance. But I expect far better writing than this. Mr. Mayer likely is a superb reporter and researcher, but in my view, his writing needs a heavier hand from an editor. I only read about 30 pages before tossing the book in the trash can. I hope to remember not to buy any more of his books by accident.

He should go back to high school and and retake Writing101.
My money is wasted in buying this book!

The Inside Story of the Fed, Just Like it Says
This book will be enjoyed by those who want to see the Fed as a very human institution with its own quirks and foibles. It helps to add a dimension of knowledge about the Fed that is hard to get anywhere else.

If you are a hard core economist with strong political views or an ardent fan of Friedman or Greenspan you won't like it. It shows the human side of many of the major figures.

I thought it was well done and enjoyed it immensely. I have read most of the major books on the Fed and read their open market operations briefs every day, and spend a lot of time on the various Fed websites.

This book is generally sound, and although there are those who would tend to dismiss Mayer, as he is not an economic scholar, the great strength of this book is that Mayer realizes that the Fed is not a university seeking truth. It is a political and financial institution not above the day to day fray, with its own sort of organizational politics.

I have also read most of the major books about Greenspan, and this one adds a dimension to his persona that connected the dots for me.

Not the Best Book on the Subject
"The Fed" by Martin Mayer is a look into how the Federal Reserve System has not only evolved since its founding in 1913 but also how it has reacted to changes in America's financial system, changes that have sometimes been wrought due to the Fed's own decisions.

Mayer is primarily a financial journalist who prides himself on personally knowing all the key players. Mayer has been actively involved in the formulation of the financial system that he reports on by having served on various Congressional and Presidential committees.

Mayer's knowledge of the Fed and its machinizations is first-rate; however, I felt that there should have been more output from this book. Mayer gives the reader lots of input on Fed decision making and the way in which it tries to influence the economy today. He even discusses the implications of certain decisions the Fed has made and not made regarding, primarily, bank supervision.

Those implications however are given no rational or backing. Mayer proposes them as if the reader should just accept them because they come from such an excellent source on the subject. I've never been one to blindly accept the determinations of others just because they are so-called experts.

As history, this isn't even all that extensive. Mayer would have done better if he had made this a history of the Fed instead of the limited policy discussion that it is. "The Fed" is certainly not the weakest book on its subject; but, it definitely is not the strongest. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A worthwhile read
Get this book if you intend to use the Internet to market your business in
any way. It is loaded with marketing ideas and there are enough of them so
that any small business entrepreneur can benefit in some way. There are
lots of examples of people and businesses that have actually done what the
author recommends, and lots of web sites to visit as a follow up. I got
about 6 great ideas out of this book. Two or three would have made it
worthwhile.

Do not order from Elephant Books
I would love to read this book because I heard it was amazing, BUT Elephant Books sent me the wrong book. Now they will not return my phone calls or numerous emails, and they were done in good taste so I do not understand why they would not return my messages. Just wanted you all to know so you do not get shafted like I did. Have a great day!

Helpful for small businesses
This is a nifty book. It givesa wide view of ways that a small business entrepreneur can use the Internet to market successfully. The dot.com craze may be over, but that doesn't mean that the Internet won't continue to be a long-term vital tool in marketing for small business. With this book, any budding or seasoned entrepreneur will gain a learn of get many wokrable strategies. ... Read more

Book Description

Currency Competition and Foreign Exchange Markets is a major new theoretical and empirical study of international currencies that focuses on the role the Euro (the future European currency) will play in the international monetary and financial system, along with the US dollar and the Japanese yen. In contrast to much of the existing literature that approaches the subject from a macroeconomic perspective, Philipp Hartmann develops a theoretical model that uses game theory, time series and panel econometrics, and links financial markets analysis with transaction cost economics. The resultsare presented with reference to political, historical and institutional considerations, and provide accessible answers topolicy makers, business people and scholars world wide. ... Read more

Download Description

The Asian financial crisis and the global economic turmoil that followed it have highlighted the need to avert financial crises and resolve them quickly if they do occur.This book addresses current concerns that existing institutional arrangements, including the Bretton Woods institutions, can no longer adequately cope with today's world of high capital mobility.It provides a critical assessment of competing proposals to better predict, forestall, and resolve international financial crises and outlines a practical and pragmatic agenda for reform.The recommendations are based on the belief that financial markets can malfunction, creating a compelling case for a financial safety net (and therefore a role for the IMF), but also creating problems of moral hazard that must be addressed. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Another Triumph!
Eichengreen clearly demonstrates a comprehensive understanding of the international financial structure. He provides conservative and realistic criticisms for the reformation of the IMF. The Institute for International Economics should be proud of his nonpartisan attempt to quantify economic and financial theory into reliable, real life circumstances. This publication, like many other publications by the institute, is overtly academic and may not represent the best option for readers with no formal backqround in economics or finance. It is perhaps most relevant for government and corporate policy makers, academics, and those with a serious interest in international finance. ... Read more

Book Description

This book puts forward the view that rational expectations have a key role in formulating economic policy and in determining economic activity, prices, interest rates, and employment rates. Arguing that economic policy crucially depends upon expectations about future government policies, the author supports his thesis by drawing on monetary theory as well as on the actual experiences of several post-World War II countries. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Measuring and Controlling Interest Rate and Credit Risk provides keys to using derivatives to control interest rate risk and credit risk, and controlling interest rate risk in a mortgage-backed securities derivative portfolio. This book includes information on measuring yield curve risk, swaps and exchange-traded options, TC options and related products, and describes how to measure and control the interest rate of risk of a bond portfolio or trading position.

Measuring and Controlling Interest Rate and Credit Risk is a systematic evaluation of how to measure and control the interest rate risk and credit risk of a bond portfolio or trading position, defining key points in the process of risk management as related to financial situations. The authors construct a verbal flow chart, defining and illustrating interest rate risk and credit risk in regards to valuation, probability distributions, forecasting yield volatility, correlation and regression analyses. Hedging instruments discussed include futures contracts, interest rate swaps, exchange traded options, OTC options, and credit derivatives. The text includes calculated examples and readers will learn how to measure and control the interest rate risk and credit risk of a bond portfolio or trading position. They will discover value at risk approaches, valuation, probability distributions, yield volatility, futures, interest rate swaps, exchange traded funds; and find in-depth, up-to-date information on measuring interest rate with derivatives, quantifying the results of positions, and hedging.

Frank J. Fabozzi (New Hope, PA) is a financial consultant, the Editor of the Journal of Portfolio Management, and an Adjunct Professor of Finance at Yale Universitys School of Management.

Steven V. Mann (Columbia, SC) is Professor of Finance at the Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina. Moorad Choudhry (Surrey, UK) is a Vice President with JPMorgan Chase structured finance services in London.

Moorad Choudhry (Surrey, England) is a senior Fellow at the Centre for Mathematical Trading and Finance, CASS Business School, London, and is Editor of the Journal of Bond Trading and Management. He has authored a number of books on fixed income analysis and the capital markets. Moorad began his City career with ABN Amro Hoare Govett Sterling Bonds Limited, where he worked as a gilt-edged market maker, and Hambros Bank Limited where he was a sterling proprietary trader. He is currently a vice-president in Structured Finance Services with JPMorgan Chase Bank in London. ... Read more

Book Description

Since the 1980s when the microfinance revolution began, much has been accomplished, but the field became more refined in the 1990s as a result of shifts in paradigms, strategies, and development practices. This volume addresses the three policy objectives that now occupy those who wish to use credit as a development tool: financial sustainability of microfinance institutions, outreach to the poor, and welfare impact.

Inevitable tradeoffs exist among these objectives, and the book advances an analytical framework that assists students of and experts in microfinance to identify the tradeoffs and synergies at the institutional level and in the policy environment. The book features a wealth of empirical data and innovative analytical studies, and critically discusses the role of public support for microfinance institutions (MFIs) in light of the social costs and benefits generated by such financial systems.

The book is organized into five parts. The first discusses the demand for and access to financial services by the poor, emphasizing that demand-oriented, pro-poor financial services are crucial in reaching the poor. The second is concerned with two of the criteria used to evaluate MFIs--outreach and financial sustainability. The third features innovative econometric studies seeking to evaluate the impact of MFIs at the household level. The fourth looks at the role of both public- and private-sector institutions in developing sustainable financial systems. And the fifth summarizes implications for policy and research.

Given the lack of sound, empirical literature on microfinance, this volume is sure to advance knowledge and research methodology in the field. ... Read more

Book Description

"With this clear and comprehensive guide, the reader has an excellent basis on which to build up an advanced credit risk management system. Ramaswamy provides clear answers to important questions such as tail dependence and relative credit risk measures while keeping the right balance between practical relevance and technical sophistication."
–Dr. Yue Sung, Head of Risk Control, Deutsche Bundesbank

"This book bridges the gap between theory and practice in the quantitative management of corporate bond portfolios. Different distributional assumptions are utilized and discussed in the context of practical portfolio management examples. I recommend this book to practitioners as a useful introduction to the quantitative issues of corporate bond portfolio management."
–Lev Dynkin, Managing Director
Lehman Brothers, Quantitative Portfolio Strategies

In Managing Credit Risk in Corporate Bond Portfolios: A Practitioner’s Guide, investment expert Srichander Ramaswamy skillfully explains how you can begin to measure and manage the relative credit risk of a co rporate bond portfolio against its benchmark. By combining risk management concepts with portfolio construction techniques, and examining the role that quantitative methods play in the integration process, this comprehensive guide provides much-needed answers to numerous corporate bond portfolio management questions. Filled with practical advice and challenging end-of-chapter questions, this book can help you become a better-informed and more efficient player in the financial system–whether you’re an institutional investor in need of important risk guidelines or a portfolio manager looking to rebalance positions. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Must Read for all 'Traditional' Fixed Income Managers
This book does indeed fill an important gap in the literature - in bridging the quant and the strategist.
Simply put, the author has assembled a very readable set of ingredients from which one could 'proficiently' manage a corporate bond mandate.
The chapters on credit portfolio risk measurement and optimization are very informative and leave the right questions open to interpretation and future research.
The collection of analytical and simulation based approaches and empirical results is excellent and useful for everyone - no matter what the level of experience or expertise of the reader.
The reason for 4 stars is that I feel too much time was spent on discussing the KMV approach (which although well-known, has a number of weaknesses), not quite enough time was spent on the development of simulation-based approaches, and the author does not attempt to integrate market and credit risks directly.
This being said - there is enough detail in this book to lead the inquisitive reader into these subjects in more detail with a great background.
Excellent book ... Read more

Book Description

Bringing together in one volume the most important writings of Andrew Leyshon and Nigel Thrift on money and finance, including the unpublished classic "Sexy-Greedy", this collection examines the economic, social and cultural manifestations that make up the multiple vision of money. Since the mid-1980s, attention to the role played by money and finance in the processes of social and economic change has become more pervasive across the social sciences. The documentation of monetary and financial matters reflect growing concern with the "power of money" and the ways in which this power has the force to influence the conduct of social and economic life across a range of geographical scales. Money/Space describes the economy of international money, linking it with the distribution of social power. It looks at some of the ways in which this world of money, exemplified by finance capital and financial markets, is discursively constituted through particular social-cultural practices. Money, it seems, is the great God of our age. It is also an economy, a sociology, an anthropology and a geography. Linking money with the emergent patterns of global spatial order, this collection examines the restructuring of financial markets in a range of spatial scales: global, national and local. ... Read more

Book Description

The harmonisation of many European policies and the advent of the Euro has dictated a shift in the approach of fixed income investment. Although the risk of foreign exchange rate fluctuations has been removed, the need to diversify portfolios has meant traders looking beyond their traditional geographic areas and at a greater range of bond markets than ever before.

This comprehensive book explains how the bond markets work in each country of the euro zone and details the features and specifications of each type. The straightforward structure allows comfortable comparison between bonds in the respective countries and provides wide-ranging information needed to make informed investment decisions.

An ideal reference source, this will prove a useful companion for all investors. ... Read more

Book Description

Managing Foreign Exchange Risk, Third Edition, is revised and updated to integrate three major issues that have become central foreign exchange considerations—the euro, emergingmarket currencies and crises, and the effects of technology on the mechanisms of trading. Professional money managers and traders, along with institutional investors, receive a detailed overview of the international monetary system and the mechanics of forex trading along with actual forex market conventions, real-world examples, and in-depth discussion of forward contracts, exotics, and overlay programs.

Reviews (3)

Fair Overview
The book is a fair overview of foreing exchange risk with lots of formulas.I couldn't find much on "advanced strategies for global corporations."For example, less than two pages are used to discusszero-premium collar programs.It might be OK for new global investors butit's got very little for corporate treasurers.

Useful introduction.
This book is a good intro to FX risk.Plenty of real world examples serve to drive key points home.Good deal for those looking to learn the basics very quickly but also provides insight into more sophisticated theory.

Updated Second Edition
This second edition has been greatly expanded with materials on the mechanics of the foreign exchange and options markets.The sections on theinternational monetary system have been updated, especially with respect tothe European monetary system. New sections have been added on exoticcurrency options, specifically on barriers, average rate, basket andquantos options. There are two new chapters, one on currency optionapplications and another on currency overlay management. ... Read more

Book Description

A century and a half of America's consumer economy in one easy-to-use volume.This second edition of the highly successful Value of a Dollar records the actual prices of thousands of items that consumers purchased from the Civil War to the present, along with facts about investment options and income opportunities.The first edition, published by Gale Research in 1993, covered the period from 1860 to 1989.This second edition has been completely redesigned and revised and now contains two new chapters, 1990-1994 and 1995-1999.Each 5-year chapter includes a Historical Snapshot, Consumer Expenditures, Investments, Selected Income, Income/Standard Jobs, Food Basket, Standard Prices and Miscellany.This interesting and useful publication will be widely used in any reference collection. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An Invaluable Research Tool!
This book is a highly detailed and simply invaluable research tool for writers, historians, teachers, etc. Some books give you a quick sampling -- ie, bread cost so much, milk cost so much, a car cost so much -- without giving you any more specifics or backing up their stated facts with sources. But THE VALUE OF A DOLLAR digs deeper, giving you comparisons (high end cars, low end cars), plus charts of how much people in various professions made (while Elvis made ten million in one year in the '50's, a secretary with typing and shorthand typically earned around $85 a week). You can check out the grocery section to see how fruits, vegetables, and all household staples stacked up against a person's basic salary and how much of their income went for basic necessities -- or look at the cost of entertainments (movies, theater tickets, sporting events, games) in any particular era. Simply fascinating reading, carefully documented (columns typically list which publications the prices or salaries came from). If you're a writer of any kind of history or historian of any kind, don't be without it!

GREAT BOOK
IT IS A GREAT BOOK. I USED IT FOR MY SCHOOL, ON A HISTORY PROJECT I FOUND EVERY THING I NEEDED IN FROM THE YEARS OF1955-1989-1999 I RECOMEND IT TO ALL PEOPLE! ... Read more