Iceland's amazing boom then bust, III

Former student Olafur Arnarson who wrote a book on Iceland's amazing boom then bust, and who helped us write a new chapter on bubbles for the second edition of our textbook, is going to be talking about the Icelandic bubble tonight on 20/20.

For centuries, Iceland was a simple fishing society, largely shut off from mainland Europe. The people survived off the sheep in the meadows and the fish in the sea. For cultural sustenance they had elaborate sagas -- intricate tales of fairies and goblins, heroes and ghosts -- that would inspire J.R.R. Tolkien and other fantasy writers.

Then a modern saga began to unfold -- that of a nation of fishermen who became millionaires, only to lose it all and return to the seas.

Watch the full story Friday on "20/20" at 10 p.m. ET

In the early 21st century, Iceland experienced one of the most spectacular cycles of boom and bust in history.