The Reading Room

Each month a member of the team reviews a book of their choosing, irrelevant of genre or publishing date.

Boom and Bust: A Global History of Financial Bubbles

William Quinn & John D Turner

Published: 2020, Cambridge University Press

The avoidance of buying into the peak of booms and selling at the bottom of a bust is one of key skills of any investor. But what causes them? This book attempts to answer that question by a close analysis of historical market manias.

The Election That Changed India

Rajdeep Sardesai

Published: 2014

The 2014 Indian general election has been regarded as the most important in Indian history since 1977, following Indira Gandhi’s imposed state of emergency in 1975. It starts in 2012, when Narendra Modi won the Gujarat state elections for a third time, but quickly set sights on the bigger prize, then covers the scandals that crippled UPA-II (United Progressive Alliance,...

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

Colin Freeman

Published: 2021

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is a narrative of tragedy, extreme hardship, and bravery. Using first-hand accounts taken from the survivors, Freeman tells the story of 3 cargo ships and their crews kidnapped by Somali pirates and held hostage for five years, and in some cases longer. Ultimately though it is a tale of humanity’s enduring spirit...