|
AMERICAN SUCKER by David Denby is more than a memoir about the consequences of investing in tech stocks and the implosion of the dot-com industry; it's a tale of Modern American Greed.
Denby, a film critic for The New Yorker magazine, penned a story that is both hilarious and heartbreaking. With his marriage to bestselling novelist Cathleen Schine on the ropes in early 2000, Denby embarked to do all that he could to raise money to buy out his wife's share of their posh Manhattan apartment. His plan: invest in volatile tech stocks.
His goal was to raise one million dollars. At first Denby does extremely well with his investments making him money. Then the bottom drops out.The result: he admits to losing more than one million dollars!
Unlike your average personal investor, Denby had access to movers and shakers like Sam Waksal and Henry Blodget for expert advice. Denby writes about networking with Waksal, former chief executive of ImClone Systems, who is currently serving seven years in prison for insider trading, and Blodget, a former Merrill Lynch Internet analyst who was permanently banned from working on Wall Street in 2003 by the Securities and Exchange Commission and made to pay $4 million for stock market fraud.
Denby notes his ability to chinwag with key players like these came from his success as a writer in New York City's elite literary circles. One chapter entitled "Envy," describes his relationship with affluent couples. He also writes about his addiction to CNBC, Nyquil and the effects of pending divorce.
Also noteworthy about the memoir are Denby's ongoing references to Theodore Dreiser's classic 1912 literary masterpiece THE FINANCIER and its main protagonist, Frank Cowperwood. Denby mentions THE FINANCIER numerous times to compare Cowperwood, Waksal and Blodget.
Denby understands clearly that the actions of Waksal, Blodgett and the Enron debacle ruined lives and cost American workers millions of dollars. It is hoped that Denby's memoir --- and other accounts like it --- will ensure that this type of travesty never happens again.
--- Reviewed by David Exum
• Click here now to buy this book from Amazon.
© Copyright 1996-2010, Bookreporter.com. All rights reserved.
Back to top.
|
