American Sucker

In early 2000 the bottom dropped out of the life of writer David Denby when his wife decided to leave him. Propelled to make some money quickly, and seized by the 'irrational exuberance' of the stock market, then approaching its peak, Denby enthusiastically joined the investment frenzy. Over the next few months he listened raptly to bullish stock analysts, dreamy hi-tech gurus and boastful heads of companies. He plunged into a season of mania and was swept forward on currents of hope, greed and hucksterism - with cataclysmic results. American Sucker is a mesmerising account of those years of madness. What begins as a money chase and an engagement with rampant capitalism soon becomes an encounter with such timeless issues as love, envy, true value - and life and death itself. This is a classic tale of the bubble related not by a market guru or an investment professional but by a witty, perceptive and eloquent outsider.

In this Bracingly Honest, Page-Turning Memoir, what begins as a manic money chase-desperate to hang on to his home after his marriage breaks up. David Denby realizes he can buy out his wife's share only if he can first make a killing in the stock market-ultimately becomes an unforgettable encounter with such eternal issues as envy, love, death, sanity, and happiness. American Sucker is a singularly compelling tale of the high-tech bubble related not by a market guru or an investment professional but by a witty, perceptive, and eloquent outsider.