Vanity Fair presents 21 true stories of the new hard times Where did all the billions go? Commissioned by the editors at Vanity Fair magazine, The Great Hangover is an eye-opening collection of essays on the global economic crisis by fifteen of the most respected contemporary business writers in America, including: Bryan Burrough ( Barbarians at the Gate) on the atmosphere of uncertainty and fear that preceded the demise of Bear Stearns . Michael Lewis ( Liar's Poker) on Iceland's bizarre national implosion . Mark Bowden ( Black Hawk Down) on the decline of The New York Times and the threat to the ailing newspaper industry . Mark Seal on the defining figure of the seriously tarnished New Gilded Age: the Grand Master of Greed, Bernie Madoff . Along with compelling and sometimes hair-raising pieces from a dozen other Vanity Fair contributors on the recent recession's myriad villains and victims-and the worldwide impact of the financial downturn.