A Crash Course on Crises - by Markus K Brunnermeier & Ricardo Reis (Hardcover)

About the Book

"With alarming frequency, modern economies go through macro-financial crashes that arise from the financial sector and spread to the broader economy, inflicting deep and prolonged recessions. A Crash Course on Crises brings together the latest cutting-edge economic research to identify the seeds of these crashes, reveal their triggers and consequences, and explain what policymakers can do about them. Each of the book's ten self-contained chapters introduces readers to a key economic force and provides case studies that illustrate how that force was dominant. Markus Brunnermeier and Ricardo Reis show how the run-up phase of a crisis often occurs in ways that are preventable but that may go unnoticed and discuss how debt contracts, banks, and a search for safety can act as triggers and amplifiers that drive the economy to crash. Brunnermeier and Reis then explain how monetary, fiscal, and exchange-rate policies can respond to crises and prevent them from becoming persistent. With case studies ranging from Chile in the 1970s to the COVID-19 pandemic, A Crash Course on Crises synthesizes a vast literature into ten simple, accessible ideas and illuminates these concepts using novel diagrams and a clear analytical framework."--Amazon.com

Book Synopsis

An incisive overview of the macroeconomics of financial crises--essential reading for students and policy experts alike

With alarming frequency, modern economies go through macro-financial crashes that arise from the financial sector and spread to the broader economy, inflicting deep and prolonged recessions. A Crash Course on Crises brings together the latest cutting-edge economic research to identify the seeds of these crashes, reveal their triggers and consequences, and explain what policymakers can do about them.

Each of the book's ten self-contained chapters introduces readers to a key economic force and provides case studies that illustrate how that force was dominant. Markus Brunnermeier and Ricardo Reis show how the run-up phase of a crisis often occurs in ways that are preventable but that may go unnoticed and discuss how debt contracts, banks, and a search for safety can act as triggers and amplifiers that drive the economy to crash. Brunnermeier and Reis then explain how monetary, fiscal, and exchange-rate policies can respond to crises and prevent them from becoming persistent.

With case studies ranging from Chile in the 1970s to the COVID-19 pandemic, A Crash Course on Crises synthesizes a vast literature into ten simple, accessible ideas and illuminates these concepts using novel diagrams and a clear analytical framework.

Review Quotes

"Designed as both a complement to existing macroeconomic textbooks and a present-day primer for policymakers, [A Crash Course on Crises] is brief, direct and accessible. It will likely adorn the reading lists of financial economics courses for years to come."---Rémi Meehan, International Affairs

"A Crash Course on Crises packs a serious punch, covering a substantial amount of theoretical ground illustrated by real-world examples drawn from four continents and almost 100 years."---Anjalika Badalai, Society of Professional Economists

"'Economies sometimes go through macro-financial crises.' Indeed, they do, as we have so painfully learned in recent decades. In this excellent and blessedly brief book, two distinguished scholars bring students and busy professionals up to date on the best thinking about how these crises originate and unfold and how policymakers need to respond. A valuable guide for those who need to understand what contemporary economics has to say on this vital topic."---Martin Wolf, Financial Times

"A Financial Times Best Book of the Year: Economics"

"A must-read."---Ashoka Mody, Project Syndicate

About the Author

Markus K. Brunnermeier is the Edwards S. Sanford Professor of Economics at Princeton University. His books include The Resilient Society and The Euro and the Battle of Ideas (Princeton). Ricardo Reis is the A. W. Phillips Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics. He is a winner of the 2021 Yrjö Jahnsson Award and advises many central banks.