76 of 81 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Recommended Additional Reading, December 1, 2000
After reading a review of two new books about Alan Greenspan, I was eager to learn more about this enigmatic man. The question: which book? The long and short of it is that I bought both, and here's why I enjoyed Justin Martin's Greenspan far more than Bob Woodward's new book that is receiving a fair amount of fanfare. Martin's book gives us a vivid picture of Greenspan's early years and the winding path he took to becoming the most powerful economic force on Earth. At each turn, you realize that Greenspan's decisions, while primarily personally motivated, ultimately led Greenspan to a position, which has great influence over our lives today. What would the "new economy" look like if Greenspan had stuck it out as a professional Saxophonist? To me, it is far more interesting to learn about what made the man than to follow a detailed narrative on the Fed (Woodward's book) most of which is recent history and well documented. When Martin explains Greenspan's policy, its implementation and its ultimate influence on the world's economy, we feel we know the man behind it all. If you're really interested in Greenspan (like I am) it wouldn't be a mistake to buy both books, but, by all means, be sure to read Martin's first.
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72 of 80 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One Very Good Reason NOT To Be The Next President, November 19, 2000
I thought it was never going to happen after reading a series of books about Alan Greenspan and The Federal Reserve. Prior books seemed to have had as their goal convincing any reader that a PHD in Pure Math was required to understand The Federal Reserve. Those who felt readers needed to have the English Language explained to them authored a book I recently reviewed. Just as I believe there are literally millions of Americans who have learned more about The Electoral College in the last 10 days than they did during how ever many years of school they attended, anyone who reads this book will find that The Federal Reserve while far from a simple agency performing simple tasks, it is understandable to anyone who has an interest in learning.
Mr. Bob Woodward has assembled a highly readable book, together with a brief index of terms, which makes this work invaluable. This would be so at any point in our History. But as we now have more Families and individuals whose finances are directly related to the financial markets, the book is important for everyone to read.
During the campaigns the voters are warned/scared into thinking of the evil that will befall them if a given Candidate becomes President, and appoints Supreme Court Justices. The congress that will assemble in January is so balanced, especially the Senate, that no matter who eventually wins, what was an election and now is a disgrace, is not going to get any judges confirmed that are at either end of Constitutional Interpretation.
But what of The Chairman Of The Federal Reserve? Mr. Greenspan is currently in the midst of a remarkable 4th term as Chairman, and many would argue a Chairman whose performance has been unprecedented. At 74 years of age how much longer will he want this position? He comments that having the job "is like eating peanuts" in that a person cannot stop, and I hope he does not. However I don't believe immortality is amongst his skills, and whoever is President when he ceases to be The Chairman, is going to have a huge problem.
Mr. Woodward explains why this is so by using some of the very public, and some not so public events/crises that any reader will have knowledge of, if not all, then some of the events he describes. October 1987 is familiar, it also moved into the background rather quickly for such an event. This book will rewrite those days of 1987, and explain just how close to a true financial disaster it was. After you read what went on to restore the markets, you will be pleased that firstly, you didn't know how bad it really was, and secondly, that Mr. Greenspan was at the helm.
Other events that are reviewed are, Mexico's idea of running an economy, and the US Bankers that lent your money to the Country, and how that situation was delicately finessed. The LTCM near disaster, while perhaps not as familiar to some, lays bare the wonderful world of arbitrage. For it is here that 5 cents gets you a dollar, winning is spectacular, and the consequences of losing are almost difficult to fathom. If you count stocks as a form of gambling, arbitrage make stocks look as safe as keeping the money in your mattress.
The book is full of actual transcriptions of various Federal Reserve meetings. This brings the reader into the room as a witness to a Chairman who not only clearly understands the economy better than anyone, but who is also a master politician and consensus builder. Universally liked he is not, as several Vice Chairman learned. The Federal Reserve has become Mr. Alan Greenspan, and since he was first appointed by President Reagan, then President Bush, and finally President Clinton, you will learn why.
I found his relationships with the Presidents he served to be fascinating, and I was surprised by the President he felt best understood the economy. The material if accepted by the reader may cause one to reevaluate some long held beliefs about a variety of powerful Washington figures.
This book works as Bob Woodward is as knowledgeable about Washington D.C., and has access to the players that is possibly without peer. He has earned the credibility he brings to his work over decades of writing, and the meticulous notes he includes give even more validation to the reader who requires it.
A book for all to read, for when was the last time a specific Supreme Court case directly and immediately affected your life? When was the last time The Chairman of The Federal Reserve changed your net worth with 2 words?
Remember "Irrational Exuberance"?
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30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Much ado about nothing, December 25, 2000
I found the book Maestro an easy read, but in the end I came away with the impression Woodward's attempts to liven up the often dry matter of macroeconomics as off the mark. To me it reflected another mixed attempt at livening up the dismal science, and the major source of its weakness. For instance, there were severeal references to instances where Greenspan would be concerned that if a certain policy action did not happen, the whole system would "crack" or fall apart. While the 1987 crash and events surrounding the LTCM failure in 1998 were in that category, attempts to sensationalize many other policy dilemmas in this manner between 1987 and 2000 implies either Woodward's lack of a grasp on how complicated economic policy is on an ongoing basis, or is just an attempt to stir the reader's attention.
The other major flaw in the book is the author's numerous attempts to portray Greenspan as some kind of statistical and probability driven humanoid. The (sad?) truth is that every well-trained economist thinks in the mathematical and probabilistic way described, and the good policy economist is one who can temper it with judgment, based on the unseen. Greenspan's genius to me is not his logical style of thinking, but rather his ability to temper it with a good dose of common sense and judgment. And his other genius us clearly his political savvy. Woodward does not emphasize enough the relative importance of these two attributes. The author instead seems enthralled by Greenspan's logical thought process, which to any economist or scientist is only a necessary but not sufficient condition for sound analysis. In any event, Greenspan's policy choice is unidimensional, of raising or lowering interest rates, to maintain growth with low inflation, in a country that has the best available economic data in the world. His genius is not in figuring out what the correct policy is, but rather in seeing the correct policy implemented and building a consensus around it.
What the book does do quite well is demystify the man behind the myth, and shows his insecurities as well as his dilemmas. At some places, it alludes to things that can not be proven (such as his role if any in Felix Rohatyn's failed bid to be Vice Chairman but strongly suggesting Greenspan may have pushed some levers). This comes across as more a starry eyed fan's perpetuation of a mythical figure rather than a hard journalistic hypothesis that we would expect from someone with the immense stature of Bob Woodward.
Overall, the book is interesting to read, but not satisfying in understanding either Greenspan's economic skills, or his ability to carry out policy.
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