This book is a fascinating account of the financial disaster which overtook Southeast Asia in 1997. The author explains the causes, events, reactions, and effects of the Asian currency crisis. Starting with the crash of the Thai baht, Professor Tan traces the chain of events and details the economic, social and political consequences in the countries involved, plus the responses of the major economic institutions like the World Bank and IMF are described. He also includes a chapter on the Asian economic miracle in the years before the crash, and asks whether that sort of growth is sustainable anyway. The final chapters deal with the lessons to be learned and the possible paths to recovery. This book is essential reading for anyone in the fields of finance, economics, or politics, but it is also interesting and accessible to the lay reader with an interest in world economies.
