false 33757068 986060 113576 1591840538 9781591840534 90 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171679587m/113576.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171679587s/113576.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/113576.The_Smartest_Guys_in_the_Room_The_Amazing_Rise_and_Scandalous_Fall_of_Enron 3.88 478 The Smartest Guys in the Room is ambitious, grand in scope, and ruthless in its dealings. Unlike Enron, the Texas-based energy giant that has come to represent the post-millennium collapse of 1990s go-go corporate culture, it's also ultimately successful. Penned by Fortune scribes Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind, the 400-page-plus chronicle of the scandal digs deep inside the numbers while, wisely, maintaining focus on the "smart guys" deep-frying the books. The likes of paternal but disengaged CEO Ken Lay (dubbed "Kenny Boy" by George W. Bush, one of many prominent public figures with whom he rubbed shoulders), cutthroat man-behind-the-curtain Jeff Skilling, and ethically blind numbers whiz Andy Fastow vividly come to life as they make a mockery of conventional accounting practices and grow increasingly arrogant and bind to their collective hubris. They're not a likable lot, and the writers find it difficult to suppress their astonishment and revulsion with the crew who rapidly went from golden boys and girls of the financial world to pariahs when the bill finally came due. The authors' unrepressed sarcasms are more than often unnecessarily given the scope of the outrage. Enron's leading lights were or a time celebrated for their ability to concoct nearly unfathomable business schemes to hide mounting shortfalls and keeping track on their machinations can be a chore, but, by sticking hard to the story behind the fall, McLean and Elkind have reported and written the definitive account of the Enron debacle. --Steven Stolder]]> 65798 3.87 546 104 21284 3.86 554 106 2003 0 2008-11-14T07:29:42-08:00 96768 464 2008-11-14T07:29:42-08:00 0 2008-11-13T08:41:58-08:00 93979 285 2008-11-13T08:41:58-08:00 0 2008-11-12T13:34:57-08:00 91785 275 2008-11-12T13:34:57-08:00 0 2008-11-10T13:31:05-08:00 85635 240 2008-11-10T13:31:05-08:00 2 2008-11-01T08:51:37-07:00 64838 200 2008-11-01T08:51:37-07:00 0 2008-10-30T11:20:11-07:00 61465 193 2008-10-30T11:20:11-07:00 0 2008-10-29T07:44:30-07:00 58591 158 2008-10-29T07:44:30-07:00 0 2008-10-26T17:30:52-07:00 52073 137 2008-10-26T17:30:52-07:00 0 2008-10-24T20:59:38-07:00 48751 128 2008-10-24T20:59:38-07:00 0 2008-10-23T21:57:22-07:00 46543 118 2008-10-23T21:57:22-07:00 0 2008-10-22T07:48:40-07:00 41999 102 2008-10-22T07:48:40-07:00 0 2008-10-20T14:16:47-07:00 38173 70 2008-10-20T14:16:47-07:00 0 2008-10-18T14:48:26-07:00 34468 52 2008-10-18T14:48:26-07:00 0 2008-10-17T12:13:00-07:00 32593 42 2008-10-17T12:13:00-07:00 0 2008-10-16T12:37:07-07:00 30458 30 2008-10-16T12:37:07-07:00 0 2008-10-15T06:25:07-07:00 27612 20 2008-10-15T06:25:07-07:00 4 0 false Thu Nov 13 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Sep 24 15:29:56 -0700 2008 Fri Nov 14 07:38:01 -0800 2008 more...]]>