Stress Test

Reflections on Financial Crises

By: Timothy F. Geithner

Narrated by: Timothy F. Geithner

Length: 18 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times Bestseller

Washington Post Bestseller

Los Angeles Times Bestseller

Stress Test is the story of Tim Geithner’s education in financial crises. As president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and then as President Barack Obama’s secretary of the Treasury, Timothy F. Geithner helped the United States navigate the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, from boom to bust to rescue to recovery. In a candid, riveting, and historically illuminating memoir, he takes readers behind the scenes of the crisis, explaining the hard choices and politically unpalatable decisions he made to repair a broken financial system and prevent the collapse of the Main Street economy. This is the inside story of how a small group of policy makers—in a thick fog of uncertainty, with unimaginably high stakes—helped avoid a second depression but lost the American people doing it. Stress Test is also a valuable guide to how governments can better manage financial crises, because this one won’t be the last.

Stress Test reveals a side of Secretary Geithner the public has never seen, starting with his childhood as an American abroad. He recounts his early days as a young Treasury official helping to fight the international financial crises of the 1990s, then describes what he saw, what he did, and what he missed at the New York Fed before the Wall Street boom went bust. He takes readers inside the room as the crisis began, intensified, and burned out of control, discussing the most controversial episodes of his tenures at the New York Fed and the Treasury, including the rescue of Bear Stearns; the harrowing weekend when Lehman Brothers failed; the searing crucible of the AIG rescue as well as the furor over the firm’s lavish bonuses; the battles inside the Obama administration over his widely criticized but ultimately successful plan to end the crisis; and the bracing fight for the most sweeping financial reforms in more than seventy years. Secretary Geithner also describes the aftershocks of the crisis, including the administration’s efforts to address high unemployment, a series of brutal political battles over deficits and debt, and the drama over Europe’s repeated flirtations with the economic abyss.

Secretary Geithner is not a politician, but he has things to say about politics—the silliness, the nastiness, the toll it took on his family. But in the end, Stress Test is a hopeful story about public service. In this revealing memoir, Tim Geithner explains how America withstood the ultimate stress test of its political and financial systems.

©2014 Timothy F. Geithner (P)2014 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

A Financial Times Best Book of 2014

“He’s written a really good book — we might as well get that out of the way, as so much else about Timothy F. Geithner remains unsettled… There’s hardly a moment in Geithner’s story when the reader feels he is being anything but straightforward — a near-superhuman feat for someone who spent so much time in public life defending himself from careless and dishonest personal attacks. The decisions he made are easier to criticize than they are to improve upon. I doubt many readers will put his book down and think the man did anything but his best. On his feet he might have stammered and wavered. That in itself was always a sign he was unusually brave.” –Michael Lewis, New York Times Book Review

“An intimate take on the financial crisis… gripping… conveys in visceral terms just how precarious things were during the crisis, just how frightened many first responders were, and just what an achievement it was to avert a major depression… [Geithner] demonstrates that he can discuss economics in an accessible fashion, making the situation the country faced in 2008 and 2009 tactile, comprehensible—and harrowing—to the lay reader. Along the way, he also gives us a telling portrait of himself.” –New York Times

“A how-to manual for anyone faced with a financial crisis… Mr Geithner was known for his brutal candor, and as an author, he does not disappoint.” —The Economist

Book of the Decade!

Where does Stress Test rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Stress Test is the best book of those written to describe the 2007 to Present financial crisis!

What did you like best about this story?

Secretary Geithner's forthrightness is refreshing.

What does Timothy F. Geithner bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

When Geithner is reading his own book, you can imagine how he approached the challenges he faced. He is not hiding behind the voice of a professional reader when complimenting or disagreeing with others - including Presidents Bush and Obama.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Rebuilding America: One financial challenge at a time.

Any additional comments?

Solving National and global financial systemic challenges is not for the political elite. It is not for the stock market, banking experts, even Nobel Prize winning economists. It is for those with expertise in operating the system.

Impressive recollection of a complicated time

Where does Stress Test rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Geithner does a great job defending his decisions and actions during a very difficult time in our economic history. He outlines how they worked to generally select the "least bad option" and how their work required choosing a path rather than just railing against why every decision was wrong. He also admits to mistakes and provides a view of the financial crisis that can only be shared from his perspective.

What did you like best about this story?

Honest and open. Shed new light on the financial crisis

Which character – as performed by Timothy F. Geithner – was your favorite?

n/a

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

no. Too much to handle

Tim Geithner saved out ass.

What a great read about something that so recently almost destroyed our way of life. I really enjoyed the unvarnished, honest account about what it took to pull our economy out of the biggest economic nose-dive we've ever been in, bar none. Tim pissed off nearly everyone along the way, but had the courage to do what often was counter intuitive, and put our economy back on its tracks. I really enjoyed Tim ' s narration because it was like hearing a first person account of a terrifying event that I personally experienced and survived. During the meltdown, as I sat each day clinging to the news on CNBC, Jim Cramer, etc., I vividly recall fearing for my young families future... for my job, 401k, our savings. Now, we reap the rewards of his, and his team's, actions. Thank God this current Congress was not in power while Tim struggled to right the ship... they would have gone all-austerity on us, and a depression would have followed. To future Fed Chairman, please use this book as a template. the next time around!

This will make you think twice

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

It is always interesting to hear why things happened. In this soundbite era, with so called experts, who use buzz words and phrases like "i think, it's possible, i believe", to have a person who was in the thick of things, explain in tremendous detail, the ins and outs and the whys and wherefores of what happened, clarifies many issues.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Stress Test?

I find it interesting that Geithner is unapologetic for being himself. It's nice to see that even in the highest levels of government, the F-bomb is used.

Makes everyone seem more human.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

This is a tough one. I like it when the authors read their own stuff, especially when it is a personal memoir. One can hear the emotions associated with the passage being read.

On the other hand....sometimes the author is not really a great public speaker. In this case our author is want to repeatedly tell you that he is a dull public speaker, and he is not being modest. He has a very bland monotone voice. There is very little inflection, which really becomes noticeable on the rare occasion when he does liven it up (and that would only be for a few words). It's too bad, because on the rare occasion when he does liven it up, you can hear the potential for a more enlivening performance.

One other thing, the recording of this is a little uneven, it gets louder and quieter in spots. Obviously no shot at the author, but rather the production crew.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

You don't want to laugh or cry, more like scream and want to choke somebody.

It is a testament to greed and political corruption. Financial bigwigs who bought congress and the President so the rules could be abolished or quashed or ignored, then have the nerve to go to government to bail them out. Geithner is want to point out that the government's payments of corporate bonuses to companies who were the authors of their own fate, was distasteful, but only a infinitesimal percentage of the bail outs.

The reader gets a real idea of why this had to happen, however distasteful.

Honest Confession

What did you love best about Stress Test?

Geithner does a great job of explaining the the origin, trajectory, and soft landing of the latest financial disaster of free market capitalism. He is honest about the toll it took on him, his family, his failings, and his successes. Geithner is a vilified hero.

Wonderful!

Stress Test takes you through the financial crisis from before, during, and after. This book describes the US financial system from the inside/out. If you want to know more (the truth) on how our financial/government system works, this book will not disappoint you. It's a must read!

Great Read/ Listen

Unique & interesting perspective of the greatest crisis of our time-- to date. A must read/ listen for anyone in finance or business.

outstanding insight

great view into this monumental financial crisis straight from the horses mouth - I highly recommend it!

Very insightful

Insightful, behind the scenes, play-by-play narrative of the government response to the mortgage crisis. Even if you disagree with the author’s approach and general beliefs, you will still enjoy this book.

Amazing Man, Powerful Story, Beautifully Delivered

The author does a superb job retelling recent US financial history. His unique voice and terrific delivery make this a must as an audiobook. Timothy Geithner clears up personal misconceptions that I recall being reported in the press. It made me see him differently. We were lucky to have him in the right place at our sad time.