Lords of Finance

This lovely book tells the story of the Great Depression, and how many errors (both political and economic) led to it, as well as World War II. The time span roughly covers the founding of the Federal Reserve system to Bretton Woods, and introduces many important historical figures. It is remarkable how the "conventional" experts failed: how astute John Maynard Keynes was, and FDR was the right person in the right place, and how the poor health of Benjamin Strong led to his premature passing from a critical position in the world's financial leadership. This book is a very easy read, and well worth it to show how hard it is to understand macroeconomics.