During the decade from 1982 to 1992, Texas banks failed at a rate unprecedented in United States history. In all, 506 Texas commercial banks failed, including seven of the ten largest banks in Texas. In this fascinating insider's account, Joseph M. "Jody" Grant, former chairman and chief executive officer of Texas American Bancshares, Inc. of Fort Worth (the seventh largest), tells the story of the collapse of Texas' major banks. He vividly re-creates the three-year struggle to save his own organization, Texas American Bancshares. A crucial player in Grant's story is the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Encouraged by the FDIC to pursue a daring merger with San Antonio's National Bancshares of Texas, Grant and his fellow bankers endured months of agonizing negotiations which culminated in a decision by the FDIC that had devastating and costly consequences. This sobering account makes a compelling case against the FDIC's handling of Texas' financial crisis. Grant's book will be thought-provoking reading for everyone in the financial community, as well as for students of Texas history and of business and government relations.