Monetary-policy

here some comments

1) spelling mistake found in the book(e.g. Sweeden)

2) paste the wrong paper note of picture (page779, 1961 issue, 10 dollars) this SHOULDN'T BE the NOTE...

my opinion of this book is: NOT PROFESSIONAL enough to handle such a silly mistake...

this is a very helpful and amazing book for any money collector, and I really happy with that book

I have got a Germany 1000 Mark Year 1910 Month 21 April. Any body have want this Contact for me. My E-mail Id: auction_k@usa.net

Without taking any sides in the often heated battle over competing macroeconomic models, Prof. Langdana presents a well-written, easy to understand dissertation on the driving forces behind macroeconomic policy. Appropriate for readers of all types, from economics students and practitioners to business people who have a vested interest in the performance of world economies. There is useful discussion and analysis in every chapter.

All bases are covered here, from Classical to Keynesian to Supply-side. Real life macroeconomic events such as the Great Depression are explored and analyzed through the lenses of the various models. The use of plain English and clear diagrams makes sophisticated macropolicy theories easy to digest.

Prof. Langdana's imaginative prose brings the theoretical alive, and his clever use of simulated "news articles" to enhance the text and provide real world relevance to the discussions is a superb educational technique. To sum this book up in a single word - HUGE!

This is required reading for anyone concerned with today's economic uncertainty. Written in concise format which introduces the reader to two very fundamentally different economic models complete with easy to understand graphs. Brilliantly highlights impacts of government policies intertwined with real world corporate decision making processes. Easily understood by Governors and Grandmas alike!

I am an employee at Merrill Lynch (I have my series 7,63,65,24,4) and currently studying for the CFA Level 1 Exam, however, my background is in Biochemistry and Biology so it is pretty obvious that I was behind relative to my peers with regards to our formal academic background. So I felt that I needed a book that that could clearly communicate the macroeconomic policies that govern this country. However, because the CFA level 1 is a difficult exam, I could not afford to have the author dilute the information or overly simplify the information. Fortunately, the literature provided in this book not only conveyed the information better, and clearer than the actual CFA preparatory classes that I had been taken, but it was such a fun book to read. The beauty of this book is that it provides actual contemporay and historic global examples to supplement the literature. Prior to reading this book I had read other books on macroeconomic policy that were so dry that I could not even finish the chapters (and I had read some pretty dry books during my days as an undergrade pursuing my double major in Biotechnology and Biology)but this book was the type of book that I did not want to put down from the moment I started reading it. Furthermore, this book also assisted me in getting a better understanding of the markets (equities and real estate) for future investments as well. After reading this book, I am such a sharper investor, I can now dissect the nonsense from the valid information that is being promoted on TV and in magazines. I highly recommend this book for everyone who is interested in getting a deeper understanding of how our government works, and how our economy works relative to the rest of the world.

The author started off with a respectable historical review of how the fed came about. It was eye opening and provided a lot of information which was not widely available. (For example, who were the shareholders of the fed).

The later chapters got wackier and wackier. He started making claims that he either neglected to or were unable to substantiate and thereby greatly diminished his credibility.

It was an entertaing and easy to read book. But I would classify if as part fact and part speculation.

I purchased this book a couple of years ago, lent it out to someone I don't remember so I'm buying it again! It's an easy-read, yet very detailed in its implications and suppositions. I THOROUGHLY enjoyed this book. Mr. Ford has an awesome amount of insight and unparalleled objectivity for such a subject as this. If you have a sincere desire in understanding how our society is as screwed up as it is, Mr. Ford has a couple of more than compelling reasons as to why. Definitely worth your time - enjoy!

Excellent read. Very clear and to the point. I could not stop highlighting all the solid and relevant information.

In general, this book provides information of how salary schedules and bonuses are determined. In addition, it describes a rather complicated, subjective process of how to determine what your salary should be, but later states that you cannot walk into your bosses office with this information and ask for a raise. There is some information, albeit very brief, of how to prepare for a job performance review and how to ask for a signing bonus with a potential future company, but most of it is common sense.

If you wish to learn how companies set up salary schedules and the like, read this book. However, if like me, you'd rather learn how to negotiate a better salary and benefits with your current or a future company, I'd recommend reading 'Get More Money on Your Next Job..' by Lee Miller.

This is the best book I have read about compensation, developing a pay structure and understanding how an organization sets pay. It is written to be interesting and understood by normal people with a slight inclination to learning how organizations set pay. Read just pages 30-70 and you learn most of what the book has to offer. To get the raise you need, read that section and then also research actual pay statistics for free on the web or if you are really serious, even buy premium salary reports that give the same numbers HR people use to evaluate "market pay" from salary sections of websites like Monster, AOL, Yahoo, Hotjobs, Careerbuilder and Salary.com. There are two numbers you need to know to calculate ranges of market pay: what do recruiters say you would earn by switching jobs (ask a headhunter or cruise above job boards to research) and what do HR managers report to surveys (look on salary sites). Having an opinion on these two numbers and then applying yourself to understanding the processes described in this book will make you a winner in the career long pay negotiation game. Good Job Mr. O'Malley. Buy and read this book.

G. Kent Plunkett, CEO, Salary.com

This is a brilliant distillation of the quagmire of complexity surrounding all forms of pay-for-work. And it is a very pragmatic book, based upon decades of field-work of an obviously gifted psychologist. It will empower you in a number of ways: (a) you will get paid what you're worth; (b) you will learn where you are on the continuum of workers economy-wide; (c) the astute reader will come away with concrete ideas about where he needs to grow himself to move to the next level professionally; (d) hiring managers and HR professionals will learn to use compensation as a tool for corporate continuity and growth (e) executives and management consultants will likely be provoked to reconceptualize and restructure compensation strategies toward proactively achieving enterprise-wide buyin toward the shared mission of the firm.

In his best selling study, Robert L. Heilbroner calls Economists 'The worldly philosophers'. That description certainly captures what Milton Friedman does in this book - he takes the seemingly simple concept of money, the unit of exchange we use daily and rarely reflect upon, and demonstrates how complicated the issues regarding it are.

(As an interesting aside, Heilbroner's original title for his book was 'the money philosophers' - a definition that fits Friedman in this book even better then his chosen title, even if it is too narrow to account for all of economics).

More then half of this collection of essays is about the so-called 'Crime of 1873' - America's decision, following the issuance of fiat money (that is, money irredeemable in specie) during the Civil War, to peg the dollar not to both silver and gold, but to gold alone. This seemingly arcane and academic topic was a major political issue in the 1880s and 90s, climaxing with the nomination of the silver Democrat, William Jennings Bryan to the presidency of the United States in 1896.

As the Unites States, along with most other 19th century nations such as Germany and France, followed Great Britain in adopting the gold standard, the price of gold rose in terms of other resources, so prices went down. Therefore there was a severe deflation causing much unrest and discontent.

The cure to the deflation came not through political or monetary means, however, but because of an invention of a method to extract gold from low grade ore. This increased the supply of gold, lowered its prices. Hence stopping the deflation, and killing the presidential ambitions of William Jennings Bryan.

The rest of the book describes various issues, from FDR's decision to 'help silver' which helped Communism in China instead (by increasing the cost of silver, overvaluing the Chinese currency and thus hurting Chinese exports and undermining the Chinese economy), to the policy of pegging a currency to the dollar (not a good idea as it subjects the country to the whims of the world economy. The policy was a grave failure to Chile and a great success to Israel, due entirely to external changes in the value of the dollar).

The theme of the later parts of the book is undoubtedly inflation. Friedman demonstrates his claim that inflation is "always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon" (p.104). Inflation is caused by government increasing the money supply, although one time price increases may be caused by unfortunate outside events (like Arabs reduction of the exportation of oil in the early 1979s).

Although Friedman is well known as an economic right winger, there is nothing in this account that should be displeasing to anyone from the left - Friedman's case is against mismanagement, not for small or big governments. Nor is there any argument about whether government spending should go to the military, to welfare, or to any other cause. Although Friedman's book is filled with stories of the political economy, its moral is politically neutral. Indeed, Friedman clearly discusses how inflation is often used by governments because direct taxation is unpopular (p.205) - can you say "read my lips, no new taxes"?

Furthermore, the economic analysis of some reviewers in Amazon is shaky. Friedman writes "all these adjustments [the negative effects of inflation] are set in motion by changes in the rates of monetary growth and inflation. If monetary growth was high but steady... the economy would adjust to it. ... Such an inflation would do no great harm " (p.222).

Although Friedman does not like inflation, he actually makes a case for it, at least at a low single digit level. Since people are usually sellers of few things and purchasers of many, they are more aware of the increase in the price of the commodity they sell then they are of the increase of general prices, especially when those changes are low. People like to see their income go up, as they feel it is a just reward for their efforts (p. 70).

'Money Mischief' is an interesting, challenging book. Its chapters vary from the extremely technical and difficult, (notably chapter 4, a counter-factual exercise estimating the effect of continuing bimetallism after 1873), to 'pop economics' chapters which are no less enlightening and easier to read.

The book ends with a discussion of the new experiment started in the 1970s - currency which is entirely unredeemable by any kind of good. Earlier economists thought that this was impossible, and would necessarily lead to high inflation, but Friedman is optimistic - he believes that aware and well informed public and decision makers can pressure the government against unduly increasing the money supply. Thus, widespread understanding of economics is the real cure for inflation.

I must confess of my unbounded admiration for Milton Friedman. He has contributed so much to our understanding of the effects of monetary policy and has been such a tireless advocate for freedom that I must admit I am not impartial in any way, so readers beware.

This book examines 10 different episodes in world history in which seemingly trivial policy choices towards money had profound, unexpected, and unforeseen consequences (usually very bad). They make enjoyable reading and are most educational.

The discussions are not all that technical and, to me, sparkle with wit and insight. This book can serve as a great introduction to how gold and silver money was abused, the effect that minting rights can have, how technology changes in mining precious metals caused a crisis of devaluation, what the heck bimetallism is and what the issues around it were (are), and most important, the risks of the kind of money we have (fiat money - because it is not tied explicitly to some kind of commodity and is therefore at the risk of somebody running the printing press too much). This is all great stuff. Enjoy!

There are several useful graphs and tables. Also, a reference list in the back can act as a bibliography for further reading.

Imagine a grand winning case that is laid before the Supreme Court to change the course of modern life around the world. Friedman starts at the very beginnings of money and traces its evolution in copious detail. As proceedings finally reach the summation which is the final chapter: "Monetary Policy in a Fiat World." I see the court in a unanimous wonderment over the masterful job that has been done by Friedman. Well, the court required is public opinion--- a bit more cumbersome.

In any nation at any point in modern history, inflation comes from only one source the national government, not by some physical event, war or deficit spending. He details how the cause of inflation is growing the money supply faster than the output of goods and services. In his fabulous review of money he chronicles the centuries of price stability that came to an end with the creation of paper money. This fiat money is not backed by a precious metal and it has spread becoming the only remaining currency in the world. He does not argue for the return to a precious metal standard as some have misrepresented.

He provides details in country after country of how governments hallucinate that the citizens will not blame the government. Inflation directly benefits the government at the expense of the citizens. In addition to the impact on your liquid assets, the government debt is paid back or refinanced with far less valuable inflated dollars. He shows how tax cuts only giving back the tax increases that come from bracket creep in an inflationary environment. Finally. People and the financial markets quickly learn that interest rates have to compensate for inflation plus a real above inflation.

In current times this means government ten year bond rates of six to eight percent or more. The last ten years was the most ideal time in a century to control inflation. However, inflation was still three to five percent per year. The only logical assumption is that in the next ten years inflation is more likely to be near five percent or more. The historical real return required on government bonds is viewed as about three percent hence the total yield of six to eight percent. Currently, it is slightly below the range. Home mortgages will tend to be a couple percent higher than the government bond. In the simplest terms, had the Federal Reserve controlled inflation to zero, mortgage rates would be half what they are today. Since Greenspan went into the job committed to zero inflation like no other Fed Chairman, there will be no realistic basis for trusting in any potential Federal Reserve policy to eliminate inflation. It would take many years of proof before bond markets would believe any such policy. Because of money mischief we are stuck with high interest rates for a very long time. Thanks to our Federal Government and no one else. The blame could not be more clear.

Many governments have fallen including democracies over the matter of inflation. As USA citizens learn about inflation, it follows that political views will change. One of Friedman's most valuable contributions is the mathematical proof and imperial evidence collection that a little inflation does not help reduce unemployment. It worsens employment. Specifically, while 3% inflation is a smaller crime against the people than 10% inflation, it is still a crime with no redeeming virtue. This is not a matter of theory or political philosophy. Thanks largely to Friedman, the proof is in and the public debate should draw to a close.

The crowning moment of the book is when he details the observations that fiat money as a global money system is only a few decades old and it remains to be seen if governments can be harnessed by citizens to stop inflation. Friedman causes us to appreciate that there is only one place to draw the line. That is at zero inflation. The wreckage of inflation is not just in the aggregate economy, the low income and the retired. The mismanagement of money in the case of the USA by the Federal Reserve eventually reeks havoc in the securities markets. While Friedman is the Federal Reserves most articulate and worthy critic, his goal is to strengthen the spine of the Federal Reserve by educating the public and the government. After reading this book you are likely to see the senators that rant that "only they care about the unemployed and the Federal Reserve must now and always pump up the money supply" as at best badly misinformed.

To label Friedman a conservative or a libertarian economist as some reviewers do is to suggest that you can dismiss the authors views as not mainstream and suspect. This convention has clearly crossed over from the liberal major market media of modern times. It is truly dastardly to degrade the standing of Milton Friedman. His great works should command everyone's study and one should allow your views to be challenged simply on the merits of Friedman's work. A Nobel Prize is not awarded as the result of some game. Friedman's contributions to the modern world are profound.

IN 2OO3, OVER 1.6 MILLION AMERICANS FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY. OVER 33% OF THE AMERICANS THAN OWN A HOME ARE ONE PAYCHECK AWAY FROM FORECLOSURE. Is it that hard to believe that America is fastly becoming a nation of debtors. Even more interesting, the government actually promotes it by slack regulations, unnaturally low interest rates, and a willingness to keep Americans spending. This book does a fantastic job in helping anyone understand just how bad it is, and just how blind we as Americans are to the situation. 4 STARS! - Mason Johnson, President, www.tomorrowsgold.com

This book is a follow-up to the authors' classic study of the bankruptcy issue As We Forgive Our Debtors. In this book, the authors look at the reasons debtors file for bankruptcy. Among the many interesting findings, the authors note the increased numbers of homeowners filing for bankruptcy. Not only are they filing because of other huge debts, but often they are resorting to bankruptcy BECAUSE of homeownership. Some resort to Chapter 13 in order to get caught up on mortgage payments, while others try desperately to hang on when it might have been more advisable to surrender the house. In short, homeownership is not seen so much as an asset as a liability.

The authors devote much of their book to the increased amount of credit card debt consumers in general and bankrupt debtors in particular carry and why this has happened. This is especially timely, as Congress seems well on the way of passing so-called bankruptcy "reform" that would benefit credit card companies to the detriment of debtors by forcing more of the latter into Chapter 13 or denying them bankruptcy access altogether.

This is a very readable, very well-researched book by three of the top experts on bankruptcy law in the United States.

This is an important book for women to read. It explores how our seemingly-secure middle class lifestyles may be shattered by a job loss or a serious accident or illness. The authors explain how credit card debt makes families particularly at risk. The most disturbing chapter to me was the description of what happens to women following divorce. The authors show that a divorced woman has a 300% greater chance of filing for bankruptcy than her married sister. Can it be, as the authors say, that a woman's economic success is still largely dependent on marrying--and staying married?

This book made me think about social class mobility in a different way. The authors study middle class people on their way down. They show how people with good educations and in decent jobs can have their lives turned upside down by a layoff, a job transfer, an illness, an accident, or a divorce. According to the authors, more than a million families each year are going to the bankruptcy courts for protection.

The book is well-written, lively and sometimes witty. A good, but disturbing, read.

Having heard about the publication of this book for some time, I was excited to see it available on Amazon. And the book did not disappoint!

Werner takes an unconventional view of the causes of the recession in Japan--at least to those of us who were educated in the US and taught that the lack of US style free market capitalism was the principal cause. He suggests very convincingly that the extraordinary Japanese stock market and real-estate bubble and subsequent long-term recession were in part caused and created by certain institutions and individuals, namely the Bank of Japan, and discusses the motives of the behavior of those institutions.

The book is a great read with clear and concise explanations of difficult concepts (economics, finance, banking, central banks and financial institutions, etc.) and extensive footnoting of research, quotes and facts (even many of the footnotes are a great read!). I'm sure many will find his claims controversial but any reader will have to admit the arguments are compelling.

Whether you agree with his premise or not (I happen to agree), this book is a great read for anybody interested in Japan, economics, policy making, or even just the stock market.

As a student of Richard Werner's while he was teaching at Sophia University in Tokyo, I more than once had my eyes opened on the reality of economics and towards the end of my class, the banking sector. I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in banking, credit, and the truth about the Japanese economy.

In "Princes of the Yen", Mr. Werner successfully makes the case that Japan's central bankers are in control of the economy and hence the country. His arguments are backed up substantial research including personal interviews.

In addition, Mr. Werner sheds light on how Japan's economic war continued long after its military war ended (Chapters 2 & 3).

Last but not least, "Princes of the Yen" provides a historical look at the development of money, credit and banking (Chapters 4 & 5).

Understandably, most of the book is devoted to the princes of the yen, and while I enjoyed Mr. Werner's treatment of Japan's central bankers, I also found his historical overview of money, credit, banking and the history of Japan's war economy to be immensely enlightening. In fact, I am still pondering the idea that money is credit, and that credit can be created out of thin air.

I strongly recommend "Princes of the Yen" to those with an open mind who have an interest in banking, money, economics and history. Rest assured that Toto won't fail to amaze you.

He makes some interesting points. And then repeats them over and over and over. He also gives no suggestion for implementing his solution, other than everyone with a loan suing the bank for loaning them illegitimate money. I believe he is currently incarcerated in a federal prison for tax fraud (claimed Texas was not really a state and therefore didn't have to file tax returns).

This book is written at a high school level but it is more
informative than most college textbooks on the subject
of money and banking...

The problem:

Every dollar in existence represents a dollar of debt owed by an
individual, a business firm, or a governmental unit. Few
understand that all our money arises out of debt and IOU
operations.

When a storekeeper secures a $10,000 loan from the bank, there is
no transfer of funds. The bank simply makes a bookkeeping entry
that increases the storekeeper's checking account by $10,000. By
doing so, the bank has just created new money. In addition, the
bank expects the storekeeper to repay the loan with interest on
the money it created by the bookkeeping entry.

In an all-debt or debt-dominant money system it is mathematically
and physically impossible to repay the aggregate debt, for only
money representing the principal is ever created. The interest
that must be repaid along with the principal debt is never
created. For some people to repay their principal and interest,
their interest must come from the principal created for other
people's debt. A deficit in the aggregate money supply thus
occurs making it impossible for other debtors to repay their
principal, much less principal and interest. Given such a money
system, it is only a matter of time before all the wealth of the
productive sector of society is transferred into the hands of the
money creators.

The solution:

Debt-free money, in the form of "US Notes."

The dollar bills in your pocket are called Federal Reserve Notes.
Under the present system, the US Treasury acts as a "print shop"
for the Federal Reserve. The Treasury only prints money when
asked to do so by the Federal Reserve System. Its order to print
money does not come from the President or Congress.

When the government wants money, it has only two choices, it can
either tax American citizens and businesses, or it must borrow the
money from somewhere. When the government borrows money from the
Federal Reserve, it issues an IOU (a bond) to the Fed, which then
creates checkbook money by means of a bookkeeping entry. This
newly created money is then lent to the government, at a price,
known as interest. In order to pay the interest on this national
debt, the government either collects taxes, or borrows more money.

The author proposes that Congress is legally entitled to order the
US Treasury to print US notes. He goes on to suggest that the
Treasury should be the only authorized source of money in the
United States, and it ought to answer to the government. In this
way, money would be created by government but no interest would be
owed. This in turn would eliminate the need for an income tax.

My thoughts:

The author's solution is similar to what Abraham Lincoln tried to
do when he issued "greenbacks" to fund the civil war.

Although the author's presentation of the problem is excellent, I
have misgivings about his solution. Once the government is given
the right to print fiat money, the potential for abuse would be
enormous. For instance, a left-wing government might decide to go
on a spending spree and propose all sorts of public works projects,
from socialized medicine to government ownership of entire
industries.

Unless equal attention is given to making sure that the power of
government to intrude into the lives of citizens and businesses
(both public and private) is limited, the author's solution might
just put us on the fast track to socialism, and we could end
up with the very tyranny we seek to prevent. In my opinion,
debt-free money issued by the government should only be attempted
if, and only if, constitutional safeguards ensuring limited
government are in place.

Ironically, socialism is precisely what the "money power" wants.
Since they control the government through indebtedness, they would
like the government to assume even greater control over the economy
and the lives of ordinary citizens.

Unfortunately, there are no easy answers. In the final analysis,
our social problems are not so much political or economic, as they
are spiritual:

'If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves,
and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then
will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal
their land.'

II Chronicles 7:14

Frederick Soddy wrote a book in the 1920's with the same title as my review. Dr. Soddy was writing about the monetary system in England and he reached the same conclusions as Dr. Jaikaran. Dr. Soddy also won the Nobel Prize in Physics for work involving the discovery of Isotopes. Dr Soddy was clearly a very bright man, but after reading his book I must tell you he was obviously better with numbers and physics than he was with the English language.

Jacques Jaikaran, on the other hand, can write. Dr. Jaikaran and Dr. Soddy reached identical conclusions about money and the way it works in our society, but after reading "Debt Virus" you'll have a clearer, more understandable picture than you will after wading through "Wealth, Virtual Wealth and Debt."

This is an important book that anyone who earns, saves, invests or uses "money" (obviously I mean everyone) ought to read.

I interviewed Dr. Jaikaran for a radio show I once hosted and have heard him speak back in 1995. He taught me more about money than I had previously learned in four years as an undergraduate, three years in law school and twenty five years of business. And, he did so in an engaging, easy to understand manner.

Dr. Jaikaran (he's a medical doctor by the way) learned about money, after becoming a successful surgeon, when he was invited to join a bank board. Being a responsible person, he actually read the materials he was given by the bank, the FDIC, the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve. Then after he resigned from the bank board and after the bank later failed, he translated all of that into English you and I can understand.

Dr. Jaikaran has made a compelling case that our civilization is piling up too much debt, causing debt inflation and creating dangerous monetary conditions. He also provides intriguing information about who owns the Federal Reserve (it's not who you think), how banking really works, the history of money, where our money comes, what banking systems might offer safer alternative systems from and other important facts. By the way, he's not a "gold bug" arguing for a return to the gold standard.

But, does any of this really matter to regular people like us? Well, if you paid attention to current events over the past five years, you will have noticed a series of currency crises in Thiland, Russia and Argentina. Those people we watched on television mobing banks, trying to get their money out of Argentina while it was still worth something and worried about the economic survival of their families, could easily have been you and me. Their system is basically the same as ours.

Dr. Jaikaran is a very bright, forthright and opinionated man with strong views on a variety of subjects. You may disagree with him about somethings, I do; however, I've not been able to find fault with his facts, logic or conclusions when it comes to money and debt.

If Dr. Jaikaran and Frederick Soddy are right about money and debt, and I think they are, then our monetary system is in grave danger.

I feel strongly enough about this that I've given this book to at least half a dozen people and suggested it to dozens of others. I would have given more away if I could find people willing to think about money, fractional reserve banking and debt.

The author is very good in leading the reader through how money and its avaliability play an important role in determining the economy of any country.
The banking industry and its role are covered as well - starting from a historical perspective to the present day. Our class was doing a chapter on the various reforms in the banking industry when the Enron-Anderson scandal happened. We had some very though-provoking discussions in the class based on the material in the text.
While I am not a complete stranger to economics, I took home a lot of valuable information by the time I was done with this course and this text book. I only wish the publishers had included a CD ROM of real-world exercises / problems that stimulate thought on issues to consider when determining monetary policy.

Highly recommended for both dummies and people familiar with economics. The author presents an unbiased, unpartisan, clear introduction to numerous aspects of monetary policy, financial institutions, and financial markets. Along with factual material the author presents important and profound generalizations and principles.

For once, there is an economist with a passion to teach and communicate well. Although it is supposed to be an introductory text in monetary economics, I return to it again and again to check my basic understanding of this subject.

This book is good overview on current status of the credit risk management. I recommend it to those who need to get quick overview on what it takes. It compares classic credit analysis with new approaches, explains the credit culture etc. However this can not be used as a single source of information. You will need additional books. Do not expect to get mathematical formulas in this book. There is only very few of them, which is benefitial here, because the book is easy to understand. What you will get is a vision on how the credit risk should be managed. If you seek specific advices on how to manage credit risk than there are better books like Managing Bank Risk: An Introduction to Broad-Base Credit Engineering from Morton Glanz.

While the recent comment "Comprehensive Resource on Credit Risk Management" is very good in many ways, I wish it explains more in the low yielding instruments, like the wit it shows in the treatment of high yield.

Overall this book is a good overview of credit risk managment issues and techniques. The treatment of high yield is particularly good, and much of this information is unique to this resource. The writing is accessible to beginners, and the content is a useful reference for experienced professionals.