Cretinism of power and financial illiteracy of many citizens is not a unique Russian phenomenon, in Europe things are no less impressive. World-renowned journalist Michael Lewis investigated the causes of the economic problems of European countries and what he writes is amazing. Just imagine: Icelandic fishermen suddenly got tired of doing their ancient fishing and they decided that they were well versed in banking, so they turned the country into a hedge fund that suffered a crushing crash. In Greece, where tax fraud has reached fantastic proportions, monasteries have become the soul of corruption, and the government has not actually kept track of spending, public debt has reached $ 1.2 trillion. In Ireland, the flow of cheap foreign money gave rise to a boom in real estate, the economy began to resemble a giant pyramid, and the country went bankrupt. Germany has become the largest creditor of bankrupt countries. Michael Lewis, as always, turns a story about seemingly boring and difficult to understand things into an action-packed novel with exciting scenes and bright characters.