Book Review: Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country

This book, Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country by William Greider has been out for quite some time, but given the current state of the economy and the Fed, if you haven't read this book, now is the time. At almost 800 pages there is a lot a material to digest, but the time you'll invest will pay significant dividends.

The book details much of the history and formation of the Fed and gives tremendous insight into the real workings of this non government entity. If you didn't know that the Fed isn't part of the United States Government, well, that's just shows how much you need to read the book!

At it's worst the book reads like a history textbook, and at it's best, a murder mystery. I had no idea how fallible and unaccountable the Fed really is. Sure, the President and the Senate control the appointment of the Governors but they serve for 14 years!

If you don't understand why our currency continues to slide in value, or what motivation the Fed has for screwing over the average American, you simply must read this book.

On the other hand, maybe you're just too busy or too cheap to read the book. In that case, you can still read up on the Fed online, and here are some excellent references. They don't have the detail of the book, but are informative never the less.