In 1990, Chernow published his first book, "The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance", which traces the history of four generations of the J.P. Morgan financial empire. The reviewer for "The New York Times" Book Review said, "As a portrait of finance, politics and the world of avarice and ambition on Wall Street, the book has the movement and tension of an epic novel. It is, quite simply, a tour de force." "The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance" was honored with the National Book Award for Nonfiction.