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The Devil's Casino: Friendship, Betrayal, and the High Stakes Games Played Inside Lehman Brothers
Das Scheitern von Lehman Brothers und die Entscheidung, die altehrw�rdige Investmentbank untergehen zu lassen, wird Jahrzehnte f�r Diskussionsstoff sorgen. W�hrend die meisten Analysten, Experten und Investoren sich auf ungesicherte Hypothekenkredite, ?faule? Sicherheiten und Abfindungen und Boni f�r die Managementebene fokussierten, konzentrierten sich einige wenige Blicke auf den ber�chtigten Vorstandsvorsitzenden bei Lehman, Dick Fuld. Denn es gibt eine gr��ere Geschichte, die in den Blickpunkt geraten wird, sobald sich der Tumult legt, und diese Geschichte hei� Warum wurde Lehman gestattet zu scheitern und wer genau setzte sich f�r den Niedergang ein? Welche Beweggr�nde gab es? Wussten die in den Untergang Lehmans verstrickten Akteure, was sie taten, und um die Konsequenzen? Oder opferten sie lieber die Bank, um so selbst ungeschoren davonzukommen ? mit katastrophalen Folgen. Nur Vicky Ward, eine Insiderin unter den Journalisten, Autorin f�r Vanity Fair und Kolumnistin beim Evening Standard, hat Zugang zu den Schl�sselfiguren und das notwendige Verst�ndnis f�r die Finanzwelt, um enth�llen zu k�nnen, was genau am Wochenende des 14. September geschah und zu welch schrecklichen Konsequenzen dies f�hrte. Es ging nicht so sehr darum, dass die Anteilseigner ausradiert wurden oder sogar die Fremdkapitalgeber, sondern es ging um die aufbrausende Schockwirkung, als sich zahllose Kunden und Gesch�ftspartner um ihr Geld betrogen sahen, und um eine Entwicklung, die zu dem anschlie�enden Chaos f�hrte, unter dem die Welt noch heute leidet. Wie konnte dies geschehen, w�hrend die Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Bear Stearns, AIG, Fannie Mae und Freddie Mac, um nur einige zu nennen, gerettet wurden? Warum wurde IndyMac gesch�tzt und WaMu in die Arme von Chase getrieben, Lehman aber erlaubt, in den Ruin zu gehen? Vicky Ward zeigt dies den Lesern in der d�nnen Luft der Wall Street, wo selbst die Top-Vorst�nde nach Luft schnappen, in einer Welt h�chster Eins�tze, in der es um das finanzielle �berleben geht. Von Hochzeitsfeiern bis hin zu Konferenzen, auf denen die Hauptfiguren, von denen man annahm, sie seien dort, nicht erschienen - Vicky Ward enth�llt, was an jenem schicksalhaften Wochenende und in den der Finanzkrise vorangegangenen wirklich geschah. Sie demaskiert die tats�chlichen Schl�sselfiguren und legt ihre Beweggr�nde offen. Sie stellt eine Welt dar, in der die sogenannten ?bad guys? letztlich gar nicht so �bel erscheinen, und die wei�en Ritter nicht so makellos sind, wie wir dachten.
288 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 53 reviews
April 6, 2017
Following Andrew Ross Sorkin's Too Big to Fail and arriving on bookshelves the same month as Michael Lewis' The Big Short, Vanity Fair writer Vicky Ward faced an uphill slog with the publication of The Devil's Casino. Thousands of readers no doubt assumed the book was one more of the dozens of volumes that purported to offer explanations for the biggest financial collapse in 70 years of world history.
That assumption was wrong. As Ward herself goes to pains to note, The Devil's Casino was an intimate, inside look at the people of Lehman Brothers, the venerable Wall Street investment bank whose record-setting bankruptcy is widely credited with triggering the meltdown of 2008. Like the close-up portraits of the rich and famous that often appear in the pages of her magazine, this book is nothing more, and nothing less, than a character study of homo sapiens wallstreetianus. The characters here were employed by Wall Street, or bound to the firm through marriage, but it's difficult to believe that a similar book about the people of any of the other Wall Street behemoths would read much differently.
When President Obama met with Bob Woodward after reading Obama's Wars, he suggested that Woodward had better sources than he did. Any of the principal players in the Lehman Brothers debacle might well have said the same thing about Vicky Ward. She conducted hundreds of interviews with Lehman employees, including virtually all the firm's top executives in its glory years as well as its endgame. She spoke, too, to a number of the wives of key executives, gaining an invaluable perspective on their home lives (or the lack of them), their marriages (and divorces), and their occasional activities outside the company.
To paraphrase one insider confiding to Ward, all in all this was a sorry bunch of rotten, greedy scoundrels at the helm of one of the world's most important financial institutions. There were exceptions, a (very) few of them notable for their restraint and honesty. By and large, however, this was a company -- and an industry -- that by its very nature tended to attract people interested in little but money, fame, and power.
After all, when you strip away the rhetoric, what else does Wall Street produce? The financial shenanigans practiced by the characters in Vicky Ward's unsparing portrait had precisely nothing to do with directing needed resources into worthy businesses. That definition of Wall Street's purpose is sheer myth. Instead, the work of the boys and girls of Lehman Brothers was all about self-aggrandizement.
That assumption was wrong. As Ward herself goes to pains to note, The Devil's Casino was an intimate, inside look at the people of Lehman Brothers, the venerable Wall Street investment bank whose record-setting bankruptcy is widely credited with triggering the meltdown of 2008. Like the close-up portraits of the rich and famous that often appear in the pages of her magazine, this book is nothing more, and nothing less, than a character study of homo sapiens wallstreetianus. The characters here were employed by Wall Street, or bound to the firm through marriage, but it's difficult to believe that a similar book about the people of any of the other Wall Street behemoths would read much differently.
When President Obama met with Bob Woodward after reading Obama's Wars, he suggested that Woodward had better sources than he did. Any of the principal players in the Lehman Brothers debacle might well have said the same thing about Vicky Ward. She conducted hundreds of interviews with Lehman employees, including virtually all the firm's top executives in its glory years as well as its endgame. She spoke, too, to a number of the wives of key executives, gaining an invaluable perspective on their home lives (or the lack of them), their marriages (and divorces), and their occasional activities outside the company.
To paraphrase one insider confiding to Ward, all in all this was a sorry bunch of rotten, greedy scoundrels at the helm of one of the world's most important financial institutions. There were exceptions, a (very) few of them notable for their restraint and honesty. By and large, however, this was a company -- and an industry -- that by its very nature tended to attract people interested in little but money, fame, and power.
After all, when you strip away the rhetoric, what else does Wall Street produce? The financial shenanigans practiced by the characters in Vicky Ward's unsparing portrait had precisely nothing to do with directing needed resources into worthy businesses. That definition of Wall Street's purpose is sheer myth. Instead, the work of the boys and girls of Lehman Brothers was all about self-aggrandizement.
May 15, 2017
A fascinating look at the rise and fall of Lehman Brothers, an investment bank that went bankrupt as a result of hubris and wild speculation in the real estate market and the people that rose and fell with it. I have read numerous books about the tragic effects of credit default swaps and other speculative financial “instruments” that, while the market continued to go up, made spectacular fortunes for people who came to believe they could do no wrong.
The author had access to the notes and journals of Joe Gregory (who ironically refused to be interviewed,) the company’s president. He began the journals in 2003 by encouraging executives to write up they perceptions of the history of the firm. He discovered a huge disparity (as any historian could have predicted) in their accounts and abandoned his goal of writing a history. Those piles of notes proved invaluable to the author.
The company, under its CEO Dick Fuld, who had worked his way up and was with them his whole forty year career, developed its own lavish lifestyle. "As a Lehman wife, you raised your kids by yourself. You had your babies by yourself in the hospital. And then you were supposed to be happy and pretty and smiling when there was an event, and you really would have liked to strangle somebody,” a senior executive's wife explained. Executives were told what to wear, what charities to donate to, how to spend their time, it was a nice little capitalistic oligarchy. " Lehman was the last of the Wall Street firms to go casual on Fridays.” They were extremely competitive and cutthroat. That single-mindedness lead Time to labeled Fuld as one of 25 executives in the country most responsible for the collapse of 2008.
Many people blame the catastrophe on the repeal of Glass-Steagal which had prohibited banks from speculating with their customer’s assets. That’s probably overly simplistic and hardly mentioned in this book that focuses more on the personalities than the precise speculative strategies that inevitably ballooned into an unsustainable bubble. All of Wall Street conspired to create more and more ways of loaning money and then turning those high-interest, often sub-prime, loans into ways of betting money. As long as prices went up everything was rosy; the collapse was spectacular.
The section on Paulson and Geitner’s roles in the “bail-out” is quite interesting. It probably won’t change any minds on whether Lehman should have been bailed out, too or not. And that’s probably my biggest complaint. I would have liked to see conclusions from the author (with evidence for or against) for whether it indeed should have been done. But then again, the book was more about Lehman and that would have widened the scope. It’s a fun, breezy, cautionary book about a sad time that hurt a lot of people but probably not those who should have been hurt. It was published in 2010 so don’t expect the longer view which I need to read.
The blame, however, ultimately belongs to all of us. We all want and need the stock market and Wall Street to thrive and support pension funds, etc., without which we would all be in terrible shape. That said, a return to more regulation would be in all our best interests.
And who said the monarchy was dead. It thrives in the business world. Trump should know.
The author had access to the notes and journals of Joe Gregory (who ironically refused to be interviewed,) the company’s president. He began the journals in 2003 by encouraging executives to write up they perceptions of the history of the firm. He discovered a huge disparity (as any historian could have predicted) in their accounts and abandoned his goal of writing a history. Those piles of notes proved invaluable to the author.
The company, under its CEO Dick Fuld, who had worked his way up and was with them his whole forty year career, developed its own lavish lifestyle. "As a Lehman wife, you raised your kids by yourself. You had your babies by yourself in the hospital. And then you were supposed to be happy and pretty and smiling when there was an event, and you really would have liked to strangle somebody,” a senior executive's wife explained. Executives were told what to wear, what charities to donate to, how to spend their time, it was a nice little capitalistic oligarchy. " Lehman was the last of the Wall Street firms to go casual on Fridays.” They were extremely competitive and cutthroat. That single-mindedness lead Time to labeled Fuld as one of 25 executives in the country most responsible for the collapse of 2008.
Many people blame the catastrophe on the repeal of Glass-Steagal which had prohibited banks from speculating with their customer’s assets. That’s probably overly simplistic and hardly mentioned in this book that focuses more on the personalities than the precise speculative strategies that inevitably ballooned into an unsustainable bubble. All of Wall Street conspired to create more and more ways of loaning money and then turning those high-interest, often sub-prime, loans into ways of betting money. As long as prices went up everything was rosy; the collapse was spectacular.
The section on Paulson and Geitner’s roles in the “bail-out” is quite interesting. It probably won’t change any minds on whether Lehman should have been bailed out, too or not. And that’s probably my biggest complaint. I would have liked to see conclusions from the author (with evidence for or against) for whether it indeed should have been done. But then again, the book was more about Lehman and that would have widened the scope. It’s a fun, breezy, cautionary book about a sad time that hurt a lot of people but probably not those who should have been hurt. It was published in 2010 so don’t expect the longer view which I need to read.
The blame, however, ultimately belongs to all of us. We all want and need the stock market and Wall Street to thrive and support pension funds, etc., without which we would all be in terrible shape. That said, a return to more regulation would be in all our best interests.
And who said the monarchy was dead. It thrives in the business world. Trump should know.
June 22, 2020
A great book that talks about the development and fall of the empire Lehman Brothers. It is felt that the author approach the writing of this book as a true historian and expert in his field. First, the book tells the story of four friends who have turned from good guys into bad guys. Secondly, the author uses many banking terms and shows the system of the bank from inside. The risks and problems of lending to our system, which made me think about the unreliability of our world, are very clearly shown. Indeed, in essence, fraud in banking can lead to another crisis. Therefore, all my money that I earned by gambling, check this, I invested in the purchase of real estate in order to protect myself from the consequences. In fact, the book shows that for the sake of money, people are ready to go to kill. That a decent person can turn into immoral. I definitely advise everyone to read this book.
October 25, 2010
Probably the best book post-Lehman collapse. Unlike other authors she was able to interview past senior management and paint a more complete / compelling picture of the individuals in management that shaped the company, from the early days, post glucksman to the fall. At the same time the book is well put together and entertaining.
March 13, 2011
I really liked this book, Lehman was personal for me, it affected my business dramatically and personally.
August 1, 2024
A WRITER CHRONICLES THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THIS INFAMOUS BANK
Vicky Ward is a contributing editor to Vanity Fair; she is also the author of 'Dynasty: Scandals, Secrets, and Successes of the Real Estate Royalty.' She wrote in the Prologue to this 2010 book, "When I started researching this book, I thought I'd be telling the lurid story of the final few months of America's fourth-largest investment house, Lehman Brothers... When it filed for bankruptcy, credit markets around the world trembled... I thought I would simply be telling the dramatic story behind that harrowing moment... What I had failed to realize ... was that the drama of the ending was no match for the saga of its life." (Pg. 1-2)
Recounting how one LB executive made $7 million in one year, she observes, "Despite that impressive number, he still seemed determined to never live large---although he seemed to have forgotten the promise he'd once made to himself: Only spend 10 years on Wall Street and then get out. Otherwise you will change." (Pg. 75)
She notes, "as Lehman celebrated its 150th anniversary at a black-tie gala in the Museum of the City of New York, it joined the S&P 500 Index and its stock price rose above $100 for the first time. Like the rest of the country, Lehman was prospering, and feeling mighty good about itself." (Pg. 140) After 9/11, "it was the only securities firm not to lay anyone off... Lehman had not only survived, it thrived." (Pg. 147)
However, as financial doom came over the horizon, she quotes a hedge fund manager, who said, "[CEO Richard] Fuld told us he's deliberately going to keep the balance sheet big... He thinks that this way, the government will have no choice but to save him." (Pg. 190) But ultimately, "No one was happy. The country was now in a recession and taxpayers appeared to be paying for the lavish lifestyles of the clowns on Wall Street who had dragged them into this mess." (Pg. 224)
This is an interesting historical study of Lehman, and its unfortunate but inevitable end.
Vicky Ward is a contributing editor to Vanity Fair; she is also the author of 'Dynasty: Scandals, Secrets, and Successes of the Real Estate Royalty.' She wrote in the Prologue to this 2010 book, "When I started researching this book, I thought I'd be telling the lurid story of the final few months of America's fourth-largest investment house, Lehman Brothers... When it filed for bankruptcy, credit markets around the world trembled... I thought I would simply be telling the dramatic story behind that harrowing moment... What I had failed to realize ... was that the drama of the ending was no match for the saga of its life." (Pg. 1-2)
Recounting how one LB executive made $7 million in one year, she observes, "Despite that impressive number, he still seemed determined to never live large---although he seemed to have forgotten the promise he'd once made to himself: Only spend 10 years on Wall Street and then get out. Otherwise you will change." (Pg. 75)
She notes, "as Lehman celebrated its 150th anniversary at a black-tie gala in the Museum of the City of New York, it joined the S&P 500 Index and its stock price rose above $100 for the first time. Like the rest of the country, Lehman was prospering, and feeling mighty good about itself." (Pg. 140) After 9/11, "it was the only securities firm not to lay anyone off... Lehman had not only survived, it thrived." (Pg. 147)
However, as financial doom came over the horizon, she quotes a hedge fund manager, who said, "[CEO Richard] Fuld told us he's deliberately going to keep the balance sheet big... He thinks that this way, the government will have no choice but to save him." (Pg. 190) But ultimately, "No one was happy. The country was now in a recession and taxpayers appeared to be paying for the lavish lifestyles of the clowns on Wall Street who had dragged them into this mess." (Pg. 224)
This is an interesting historical study of Lehman, and its unfortunate but inevitable end.
September 23, 2019
2.5/5
Not bad for a book on investment banking, something that 9/10 people find unspeakably boring.
This looks into the tenure and catastrophic collapse of Lehman Brothers, one of the banks that sent the U.S. and global economy into a spiral in 2008.
I appreciated the insight into the 2008 crisis, beyond the basic, "too many mortgages = bank collapses = U.S. government bailout = general economic chaos."
I learned that this was not the first time that the firm had courted disaster, that, in fact, there was a history of risky investments and eleventh hour dodges with disaster over the course of decades.
Ward gives Wall Street (at least inside Lehman Brothers and the trading floor) sort of a Wild West feel with the major players as cowboys in business suits, or maybe fraternity brothers with actual money.
That characterization was more than a little alarming when the figures start getting thrown around. Billions of dollars. Tens of billions of dollars. Hundreds of billions of dollars.
I learned that there had been warnings of trouble, but that warnings were ignored. I read about some truly Roman-esque, "et tu Brutus," power moves. But I also read about diversity programs and the earlier teamwork inside the firm and some early moves in the '80s that genuinely struck of efforts to be decent human beings.
That said, it is still a book about investment banking. There's a lot of names, a lot of business speak and a lot of technical talk that bogs down the narrative, but is also kind of critical to understand what exactly is going on and why it's important. It was probably as good as it was going to get, given the subject matter.
Not bad for a book on investment banking, something that 9/10 people find unspeakably boring.
This looks into the tenure and catastrophic collapse of Lehman Brothers, one of the banks that sent the U.S. and global economy into a spiral in 2008.
I appreciated the insight into the 2008 crisis, beyond the basic, "too many mortgages = bank collapses = U.S. government bailout = general economic chaos."
I learned that this was not the first time that the firm had courted disaster, that, in fact, there was a history of risky investments and eleventh hour dodges with disaster over the course of decades.
Ward gives Wall Street (at least inside Lehman Brothers and the trading floor) sort of a Wild West feel with the major players as cowboys in business suits, or maybe fraternity brothers with actual money.
That characterization was more than a little alarming when the figures start getting thrown around. Billions of dollars. Tens of billions of dollars. Hundreds of billions of dollars.
I learned that there had been warnings of trouble, but that warnings were ignored. I read about some truly Roman-esque, "et tu Brutus," power moves. But I also read about diversity programs and the earlier teamwork inside the firm and some early moves in the '80s that genuinely struck of efforts to be decent human beings.
That said, it is still a book about investment banking. There's a lot of names, a lot of business speak and a lot of technical talk that bogs down the narrative, but is also kind of critical to understand what exactly is going on and why it's important. It was probably as good as it was going to get, given the subject matter.
June 4, 2024
This compelling book chronicles the rise and fall of the Lehman Brothers empire with a meticulous historian's approach. The author’s expertise shines through as he delves into the complex world of banking with precision and clarity.
The narrative begins by exploring the journey of four friends who transition from well-meaning individuals to morally compromised characters. The author skillfully employs numerous banking terms, providing an insider’s view of the banking system. The book vividly illustrates the risks and pitfalls of lending, prompting readers to ponder the fragility and unreliability of our financial world.
The author effectively demonstrates how banking fraud can precipitate another crisis, making the book a sobering reminder of the consequences of financial mismanagement. Personally, this insight led me to invest my gambling earnings into real estate, seeking a more secure investment to shield myself from potential fallout.
The book also exposes the lengths to which people will go for money, showing how even decent individuals can become unscrupulous. It’s a stark portrayal of how financial greed can corrupt one's morals.
Overall, I highly recommend this book. It's a gripping and informative read that offers a profound understanding of the banking world and its impact on our lives.
Message me to get this book for free (Kindle Format). Only available on June 2024
The narrative begins by exploring the journey of four friends who transition from well-meaning individuals to morally compromised characters. The author skillfully employs numerous banking terms, providing an insider’s view of the banking system. The book vividly illustrates the risks and pitfalls of lending, prompting readers to ponder the fragility and unreliability of our financial world.
The author effectively demonstrates how banking fraud can precipitate another crisis, making the book a sobering reminder of the consequences of financial mismanagement. Personally, this insight led me to invest my gambling earnings into real estate, seeking a more secure investment to shield myself from potential fallout.
The book also exposes the lengths to which people will go for money, showing how even decent individuals can become unscrupulous. It’s a stark portrayal of how financial greed can corrupt one's morals.
Overall, I highly recommend this book. It's a gripping and informative read that offers a profound understanding of the banking world and its impact on our lives.
Message me to get this book for free (Kindle Format). Only available on June 2024
July 11, 2018
It's a bit dry. If the names - people and companies - aren't alive for you now, they probably won't be after this book. But for a detailed book on investment banking, meh, not a surprise.
They say journalism is the first draft of history. Then perhaps journalists writing books, based on interviews and primary sources, is the second draft.
The author paints the culture at Lehman Brothers as critical to its downfall in the GFC. She traces the history of Lehman, in increasing detail as the GFC approaches, focussing on the individuals involved, their human strengths and weaknesses.
It's just a book about office politics. Except that every now and then, I'd stop and take a reality check: billions of dollars, significant sums even in the USA economy, are just pawns in the game. The board they're playing on - and eventually trashed - is the financial heart of the world's economy.
For me the big take home was not about any individual's ethics, but that they had immense freedom to manage as they chose, protecting their own fears and pursuing their own goals, rather than tight accountability to the well-being of their clients or the health of the financial system.
They say journalism is the first draft of history. Then perhaps journalists writing books, based on interviews and primary sources, is the second draft.
The author paints the culture at Lehman Brothers as critical to its downfall in the GFC. She traces the history of Lehman, in increasing detail as the GFC approaches, focussing on the individuals involved, their human strengths and weaknesses.
It's just a book about office politics. Except that every now and then, I'd stop and take a reality check: billions of dollars, significant sums even in the USA economy, are just pawns in the game. The board they're playing on - and eventually trashed - is the financial heart of the world's economy.
For me the big take home was not about any individual's ethics, but that they had immense freedom to manage as they chose, protecting their own fears and pursuing their own goals, rather than tight accountability to the well-being of their clients or the health of the financial system.
January 21, 2026
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October 19, 2020
A very detailed memoir of how infamous "Lehman brothers" meltdown. Surprisingly it is a very interesting book despite all the complex financial jargon.
Also, readers get a real insight into the life of a successful investment banker. The amount of money they roll in is jaw-dropping. Do read this if you are running any kind of business. Some of the mistakes which the Lehman brothers did while they were riding on the wave are very well documented and we all can take a cent or two away.
Also, readers get a real insight into the life of a successful investment banker. The amount of money they roll in is jaw-dropping. Do read this if you are running any kind of business. Some of the mistakes which the Lehman brothers did while they were riding on the wave are very well documented and we all can take a cent or two away.
December 17, 2018
A solid story about the history of Lehman Brothers and why it ended up failing. Ward is good about painting the personalities of Lehman executives and outlining the fundamental decisions that brought things down. Very readable, so if you have an interest in the major parts leading to the Great Recession or business stories of success and failure in general, this is definitely a good choice.
June 4, 2024
This book mostly focuses on the management of the company, offering a good insight into some of the decisions that lead to its demise. I would have liked it to have spent a little time on fall out for the employees, those classic images we saw of workers carrying boxes of belongings out the front door.
May 2, 2024
good book
Overall a good read. 3.8/5 which I can’t put in stars, and like my linear algebra professor I don’t round up. My 5/5 is Den of Thieves by James Stewart so I rate against that for books in this genre.
Overall a good read. 3.8/5 which I can’t put in stars, and like my linear algebra professor I don’t round up. My 5/5 is Den of Thieves by James Stewart so I rate against that for books in this genre.
March 27, 2019
Excellent
As someone who has been exposed to investment banking only by being married to one for 26, I know very little. This book was interesting, enlightening and easy to read .
As someone who has been exposed to investment banking only by being married to one for 26, I know very little. This book was interesting, enlightening and easy to read .
September 10, 2023
Great read, very informative and from a seemingly unbiased lens. The story of the Long Island Panderosa Boys was all so interesting.
August 20, 2025
Decent detail on the financial issues, good depth on the people and emotions within the company, nice quick read though I didn't have too many take-aways
November 5, 2022
It's a good companion piece to the other accounts of the Global Financial Crisis. It provides a bit more about Lehman Brothers, though Big Short touched that a bit and Too Big to Fail did that in heaps. Interesting to find out about the wives side of the story, and a bit more detail about the power grabs, though I still think this book is best read as a companion piece.
October 14, 2011
Perhaps, it is my personal experiences with the financial industry that color my perceptions of this book or maybe the tale in it is so familiar now, when we feel it should not be, that I am tired of it and its very real implications. Devil's Casino tells the tale of Lehman Brothers from its early days up through 2007 when the mortgages began to sour. This book is a mix of facts and figures mixed with the personalities and interpersonal structure of the company. I feel like, had I read this a few years ago, I might have been more shocked and awed by the personality information. But more than anything, it felt like it was the same old story of executives who had everything and more and whose greed and the opportunity let them make choices that affected everyone negatively. Disgusting, yes, but shocking, not anymore. With non-fiction, I'm always nervous as to the bias involved. In here, there is not much to be found in these personalities that suggests redeemable qualities. Even though, at times, you do see where they were just a part of a bigger movement or following their peers, the main players as described in this book are so self-serving and obnoxious. The salaries and benefits described in this book reflect millions of dollars, money most of us wouldn't see in a lifetime. Whether it was meant to be biased against Lehman executives to this point or whether it is real, I believe the book describes one company's issue which was only a sign of the times. They weren't the only company doing this or a victim of an outcome that had been apparent and building for quite some time. It was interesting to see this dissection, but this book is only going to leave a bad taste in your mouth about the entire economic situation. Perhaps, it's too soon to want to read about it. The lost jobs and credit problems are still too real. If anything, this book suffers from being slow in places and the fact that we are not far enough from the far reaching affects of Lehman and other company's actions to swallow the lessons found in here.
August 6, 2016
Smutna opowieść o tym co pieniądze, żądza władzy i zwykłe pragnienie większego domu od sąsiada czy kolegi z biurka obok robi z człowiekiem. A także optymistyczna opowieść o tym, że niektórzy jednak radzą sobie z pokusami i pozostają normalni, bez względu na to czy zarabiają w tysiącach, milionach czy miliardach.
W zasadzie kryzysu 2008 jeszcze nie przetworzyłem a w kolejce jest więcej książek na ten ale mam za sobą już trochę tytułów o bańce 2000, o upadku Baringsa położonego przez jednego człowieka, nie mówiąc o tym że w czasie kiedy Kervielowi przybywało kolejnych zer po tej złej stronie bilansu, mogłem do niego pisać pocztą wewnętrzną. I wniosek (przyznaję, mało odkrywczy) jest taki że gdyby usunąć z tych książek nazwy firm, daty i szczegóły techniczne, to w zasadzie ciężko byłoby zgadnąć o który kryzys finansowy w historii ludzkości chodzi. Lessons learned nie działa.
Od strony technicznej - trochę zbyt dużo nazwisk i stanowisk które nic nie wnoszą. Trochę za dużo błędów typu przecinek i brak spacji za nim. I jak zawsze, za mało zdjęć.
W zasadzie kryzysu 2008 jeszcze nie przetworzyłem a w kolejce jest więcej książek na ten ale mam za sobą już trochę tytułów o bańce 2000, o upadku Baringsa położonego przez jednego człowieka, nie mówiąc o tym że w czasie kiedy Kervielowi przybywało kolejnych zer po tej złej stronie bilansu, mogłem do niego pisać pocztą wewnętrzną. I wniosek (przyznaję, mało odkrywczy) jest taki że gdyby usunąć z tych książek nazwy firm, daty i szczegóły techniczne, to w zasadzie ciężko byłoby zgadnąć o który kryzys finansowy w historii ludzkości chodzi. Lessons learned nie działa.
Od strony technicznej - trochę zbyt dużo nazwisk i stanowisk które nic nie wnoszą. Trochę za dużo błędów typu przecinek i brak spacji za nim. I jak zawsze, za mało zdjęć.
April 20, 2010
Two words, Name Soup! This book was written like the un-cool girl in a school who tries to impress everyone with her knowledge of what is going on with the cool kids. It was a list of names and anecdotes that leaves the reader sighing, "who cares!" The author never develops any plot with the numerous characters she name drops. I would not be surprised if the only people to like this book were insiders to Lehman Brothers. The same way an insider reflects fondly to the anecdotes contained within his/her high school yearbook. "Johnny sure did love almonds! Hahahah. good times!"
July 6, 2010
Nothing new here- People are greedy and stupid. The first bit of the book was a rehash of old stuff. Also, Stefan noted there were a number of factual errors when he read over my shoulder. For instance, Christian Meissner, who happened to be his old boss at Goldman, is AUSTRIAN, not German. If you want a good book about Wall Street, Liar's Poker or Barbarians at the Gate are MUCH better reads.
You can read the related Vanity Fair article and skip the book.
You can read the related Vanity Fair article and skip the book.
September 15, 2010
If you have read any business books, you will immediately recognize the creatures who populate this one - shrieking, viciously competitive vulgarians whose sole aim at work is to maximize the pool from which their stupifyingly large commissions will be drawn. Ward is a good writer but her attempt to portray Chris Petit as "flawed but saintly" didn't really persuade me. Interesting but by no means essential reading.
February 29, 2012
it was very interesting at the beginning but as u go through the pages u wud realize that there r way too many names and there is no real plot at all. just names names names and random incidents which doesn't give any sense to the plot( if u can guess one). At many places the author has repeated the same point but different words. def. She has ran out of ideas at mid way and stretched the whole book to give at least some pages to print....only Lehman bros people(EX of course) may enjoy...
June 30, 2013
Read the book for a class project. About as engaging as the topic can be, though this one took a very personal look at the players at Lehman Brothers and beyond as the financial meltdown (and before during the good times) commenced. Though it may seem incredulous, one can walk away feeling sorry for some of the players of this terrible game. When a friend turns out to be something else, it is a pain all too real and universally understood.
May 20, 2010
The first half, which is essentially a history of modern day Lehman, is pretty interesting. Ward does a nice job of explaining how it was Chris Pettit who actually made Lehman, not Dick Fuld. The second half, which explains Lehman's fall, missed the mark for me and seemed to lack the insightful information I expected. For a crash course on Lehman, it is a good book.
November 22, 2010
Ward has high ambitions for the book. She wants to cover a long period of time, understand the personalities of the major players, and explain the technical information. She doesn't quite pull it off. I got the sense that her book was guided more by who she was able to interview than any grand narrative. Thus, the book has a bit of a patchwork feel to it.
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