A very good summary of the causes of the Great Recession -- makes complex financial concepts understandable, and illumnates the motivations of the various characters. It struck me as off that the author metioned Barney Frank three times. Never as an actor in the events unfolding, but in reminders that he was the leader of the House Financial Services Committee and a major booster of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These reminders are incongruous and seem if someone had dropped them in at the last minute to give the book a sense of political "balance", instead of blaming everything on Republicans.