Booms and busts are not endemic to the free market, argues the Austrian theory of the business cycle; they come about through manipulation of money and credit by central banks.
In The Austrian Theory of the Trade Cycle and Other Essays, Austrian giants — Mises, Rothbard, Haberler, and Hayek — explain and defend this theory against Keynesianism and other alternatives. Roger Garrison's new introduction masterfully places the Austrian theory in its context and traces its intellectual development in the hands of these four essayists.
If you seek to understand the vicissitudes of the market at the hands of politicized puppet masters, read this monograph to acquaint yourself with the Austrian cure and its classic champions.