Obama's Former Top Economist Christina Romer Says Milton Friedman Book Best on Great Depression

Former Council on Economic Advisers Chair Christina Romer explains her favorite book on the great depression:

I frequently tell students: If you buy only one economics book, it should be A Monetary History. The book is obviously important for our understanding of the Great Depression, but its impact goes far beyond that. Friedman and Schwartz show us that monetary events and monetary policy have affected real output throughout American history. That's a fundamentally important finding. It tells us that a monetary development that affects aggregate demand has an impact on the things we care about, like employment, unemployment and how much we produce in the economy. The other thing that Friedman and Schwartz do is show us how to use historical evidence on policymakers’ motivation and thinking to help establish a causal relationship between money and output.

For the best book on the great depression : click on this classic from Murray Rothbard.