Follow the Money, by David McWilliams

David McWilliams has a relaxed writing style that tells a complex story in terms of named characters to whom the reader can easily relate. His message goes beyond saying "I told you so" in explaining what happened to Ireland's economy and how so many of the country's resources were misallocated into the home construction industry. He also proposes a solution.

The Merchant of Ennis is the high flying property developer, beloved in his community for his achievements on the hurling field when he was a young lad when he represented the local team, and the son of a respected local businessman who passed away lately and was buried in the blaze of publicity that goes with funerals in Ireland where everyone who knew the deceased shows up.

Breakfast Roll Man -- the businessman who sees the brewing storm, liquidates his assets, and gets out of the country before it all blows up.

Shylock -- the conniving financier who can spot the loopholes in the system to be exploited for his own personal gain, and sees the opportunities in working for one of the new banks that have no qualms about who they lend to.

The Godfather -- the banker who has friends in high places in government, and who runs one of a new generation of banks who mysteriously make unprecedented profits unseen in the industry. He needs people like Shylock to do his dirty work.

The Dons -- the old fashioned bankers who adhered to such quaint ideas as building a relationship with the borrower and getting to know them to assess their ability to pay back any loans or mortgages, but are soon compelled to adopt the shady practices of the Godfather just to keep up.

The junkie -- the credit addict going on shopping expeditions in England and running up high bills on fashion labels.

Fin Boy -- who just dropped €6,000 on a car and was living in his own flat in Skerries, dolled up in the latest fashion items and had scored with a local supermodel. Mind you, he was a bit concerned about all his mates getting laid off, and if he didn't meet his sales quota he'd end up the same way. Sure sales were slow and not as many people were coming into the store anymore, but this would pass. Right?

Miss Pencil Skirt -- the young advertising executive who's going places, living the dream of a chic urban apartment and a designer job, finds herself out of work and considering having to move in with the folks.

These characters all tell a story of a financial system riven with cronyism and lack of oversight, shady practices that weren't tolerated elsewhere else but were tolerated in Ireland, hence attracting the attention of the rip-off merchants who flocked to Ireland to fleece the country like loan sharks.

McWilliams tells the story, and at times can be a bit irritating with his name-dropping of important people and his certainty that he was right all along. But if you can get past that you can see a writer making a very good case. Rather than leaving the reader despairing, he actually proposes a radical solution.

The short version of the solution is to let the banks fail, and eject from the Euro hence regaining control of interest rates. He explains that Ireland's presence in the Eurozone masked a lot of problems that usually get brought to everyone's attention when the value of the national currency starts acting strangely. Reinstating the Punt would allow us to devalue the currency and make exports more competitive, rather than turning Ireland into a debt-servicing machine for the next generation.

Nobody wants to talk about such a bold move openly for fairly obvious reasons. Who would want to weaken confidence in the Euro? But there could still be a day of reckoning for the single currency.