subtle intonation is fine, but this kind of narration is not. i wish narrators would stay out of the way in expository works, and let the words speak for themselves. it's incredibly aggravating and distracting narration.

, or gesticulating (aurally) urgently about a fairly straightforward idea. worse, the narration is like a cranky grandfather wagging his finger and slowing down. i happen to agree with much of Stiglitz' analysis, but so far, i've learned nothing of value. through two chapters, the book is mainly a scold, providing little to no data to support the claims, but rather giving a schematic overview, along with a number of value judgments. the clip provided for Freefall provides no clue of how the narrator overacts and belabors simple points. there are a couple of books i would dearly love to have audio versions of, but the narration is so intrusive that i can't buy them (for any who are familiar, the reader Stephen Hoye is a particularly glaring example of a bad narrator). i always listen to the clips of a book before making a decision on whether to buy it because i am quite sensitive to the quality of the narration. that said, the reason for the slow progress is bad narration. I've only managed to get through two chapters of the book so far, so anything said here is based on a limited sample. Stiglitz explains how America exported bad economics, bad policies, and bad behavior to the rest of the world, only to cobble together a haphazard and ineffective response when the markets finally seized up.ĭrawing on his academic expertise, his years spent shaping policy in the Clinton administration and at the World Bank, and his more recent role as head of a UN commission charged with reforming the global financial system, Stiglitz outlines a way forward, building on ideas that he has championed his entire career: restoring the balance between markets and government, addressing the inequalities of the global financial system, and demanding more good ideas (and less ideology) from economists.įreefall is an instant classic, combining an enthralling whodunit account of the current crisis with a bracing discussion of the broader economic issues at stake. In this forthright and incisive book, Nobel Laureate Joseph E. The current global financial crisis carries a 'made in America' label.

Freefall by Joseph E. Stiglitz