The Big Short
by Michael Lewis
The handful of outsiders who saw the subprime collapse coming and bet against it: Burry, Eisman, Lippmann, Cornwall Capital. Lewis makes credit default swaps readable and the story is a masterclass in contrarian conviction and its costs.
Read it if…
you want to understand 2008 and what it takes to be right alone.
See the book →
Skip it if…
you want personal finance; this is narrative.
Try instead: Flash Boys →
Three things you will actually use
- Being early looks like being wrong.
- Incentives explain most 'stupidity'.
- Do the reading nobody else does.
Do this first
Read the Michael Burry chapters and note how he handled being early.
Our verdict
Right, alone, early.
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