Endgame

The End of The Debt Supercycle And How It Changes Everything

By: John Mauldin

Narrated by: Sean Pratt

Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

"We all know we have seen the end of an era, and now we have courtside seats to watch the Endgame unfold. We are watching the end of Act I: The Debt Supercycle. Now we will get to see how Act II: The Endgame plays out."—John Mauldin & Jonathan Tepper (Chapter 1)

Hundreds of books have been written about the financial crisis that engulfed the world after Lehman Brothers went bankrupt. But what if the bigger financial crisis is ahead of us, not behind us? As John Mauldin and Jonathan Tepper deftly illustrate in this controversial audio book, the crisis was more than a half-century in the making. The Great Financial Crisis, however, was merely Act I. Act II has now begun.

The massive household deleveraging and historic shift of private debt onto government balance sheets now underway all over the world represents the end of a 60-year global Debt Supercycle. We have now entered the Endgame, a time when bankruptcies and defaults (disguised as "restructuring") will not be of households and companies but of governments. The stakes are now higher. The coming crises will offer policymakers few good choices and many bad ones. It will require extraordinary clarity and courage from leaders, courage that so far is largely completely lacking. Yet, despite the authors' dark forecast, the message in Endgame is not all gloom and doom. The book lays out positive steps governments can take to weather the worst of the stormy days ahead, minimize the inevitable pain and discomfort most of us can expect to experience, and chart a bold new course to sustained economic growth and prosperity. It also offers investors an abundance of useful analysis and expert advice on how to protect their assets during the worst of it and prosper from the many new opportunities that will emerge globally as they present themselves.

In Part 2, the authors take listeners on a country-by-country tour—including the United States, UK, European countries, and Japan—clearly explaining the problems each country faces, as well as the good and bad policy options open to each, and the investment pitfalls and opportunities likely to be found in each national economy.

Whether you call it the Great Recession, the Great Financial Crisis, or the Global Debt Crisis, what we are experiencing is unlike anything seen in 80 years. Now is not the time to succumb to panic and superstition. It is a time for courage and intelligent decision making informed by the brand of rational analysis and wisdom you'll find in Endgame.

©2011 John Mauldin (P)2011 Gildan Media Corp

A must read book, great author, great narrator

If you could sum up Endgame in three words, what would they be?

I was rivetted by this book from start to finish. This is a must read/listen for anyone who wants to understand the global financial crisis that occured in 2008/2009 and the impending crises that will come in the near future. The financial outlook for every country is bleak and it is important for every well educated citizen to understand this.

Get This Now, and Understand How Bad Things Are

There are a lot of titles about the economic crisis, and I've listened or read most of them. While almost all of them are very good, this title stands above the rest. You will not listen to hope, change, or promises here. Rather, you will get the crap scared out of you if governments, in particular ours in the USA, do not act NOW to stop spending like drunken sailors and pay down the massive debt that has been rung up for years and years.

Does this mean that grandma gets thrown into the snowbank and our kids grow up illiterate? No. What it does mean is that our economy (and others) cannot sustain current spending and debt and this needs to be fixed soon, or things will get so much worse that 2008 will be remembered as 'good times' a few years from now. Structural change now, or we go bust...a MUST listen.

The Best Explanation of what's Happening Now

Would you listen to Endgame again? Why?

I will listen to it several more times.
This is a brilliant assessment of our current problems
which the national media does not understand.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The author's logic and conclusions are undeniable. This is not a doom and gloom book, although what we will face in this decade is gloomy. This work is both elegant and brilliant.

What about Sean Pratt’s performance did you like?

This was an ok reading, not great, not bad. The reader makes a concerted job to do a good reading. A better adaption of the book is preferred.

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

No, unless you have all day. Listen to this is 45 minutes chunks of time. This is an incredible amount to absorb. I work in Financial Services and I have to listen to some passages more than once.

Any additional comments?

This is a must for anyone who is concerned about where our country is headed, what will happen to us in the next decade, how we got in the mess we are in now and how to get out of it.

This is 5 star writing.

A bit out of date

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Read it sooner

Has Endgame turned you off from other books in this genre?

No

Which scene was your favorite?

How about most ironic scene? For that it would be the author using California as an economy as a mess and Brazil's economy as a success story.

Did Endgame inspire you to do anything?

Read topical books sooner.

Heavy, but fascinating.

I will be honest and say that if I hadn't just completed an economics course at college, a lot of this book would go right over my head. However, I found this book absolutely fascinating. John Mauldin doesn't pull any punches and in many ways his outlook for the global and US (and Australian) economic future is bleak, but if you have an appreciation of economics, this book is really interesting and covers a broad range of topics. At 9.6 hours it's getting towards the long side, but Sean Pratt is easy to listen to and I enjoyed the subject matter, so this wasn't an issue. I enjoyed the book so much I even went to John Mauldin's website to read his blog.

Very good book to understand the current crisis

What did you love best about Endgame?

It's very well written and will help you understand what and why things happened and what is the effect right now in the world and what are the possible outcomes.

C

Intereresting to some degree... H h h h h h h h h h h h g

Engaging, disturbing and helpful

What made the experience of listening to Endgame the most enjoyable?

Mauldin explains principles of macro-economics in a way that gives great depth of understanding and yet is comprehensible to a non-economist. Additionally, Pratt voices the book at a perfect pace and speaks clearly and carefully, making complex passages easy to follow.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

Maudlins "just-the-facts" no hype approach makes a very convincing argument that we will have to face the costs of past excess and foolishness soon.

Macro Economics Done (Relatively) Easily!

What does Sean Pratt bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Pratt was awesome. His voice and tone were perfect for this text.

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

Ah yeah... we're so screwed. Economic armgedon is coming and few in North America and Europe know what's coming or have the willingness to take the required medicine. I'm the furthest thing from an economist, so this book was extreamly instructive though tough to follow at times. On the whole however, the author gets his points across with clarity. A great and sobering listen if you want to better understand the fiscal malaise that most of the developed world is experiencing. However, if you prefer the ignorance is bliss approach to your life, best not to listen.

Would I laugh or cry. I'm not quite sure...

On the Fence

I liked the presentation of the information. As a numbers person it gave another perception and was thought provoking. I think it may be very difficult for some to follow the material, even though it is being read very well. I found myself backing up from time to time, just to get a clearer understanding. The use of numerous acronyms added nothing to the book, and probably should've been avoided. I must admit that if I were trying to read this book, I would not have finished it, it is not something that would keep me turning the pages. At the same time I am glad that I found it on Audible, and find it well worth the time to be read to, especially for the people who want a better understanding (or opinion) of our current world financial crisis and how everyone and everything really does matter as we are all connected.