Includes bibliographical references and index.

Part I. The rise and fall of Herbert Hoover -- He did not choose -- A political diptych -- Flashpoints, and a landslide -- "Hoover the silent" -- Bright with hope -- The Wall Street Frankenstein -- The special session -- The crash -- The president's hair shirts -- "The peculiar weakness of Mr. Hoover" -- Part II. War on a thousand fronts -- Challenging facts -- Friction at the Fed -- The ground gives way -- Playing politics with human misery -- The ghost of Grover Cleveland -- Credit crunch -- The Gibraltar of world stability -- Reconstruction -- Part III. The bitter end -- Roosevelt rising -- The conflicted candidate -- Evil magic -- President reject -- Interregnum -- The sound of crashing banks.