"Conspiracy of Fools : A True Story" by Kurt Eichenwald

Forget Grisham. Forget Finder. Kurt Eichenwald delivers the real deal. Carefully researched, coupled with a number of years of experience as an investigative journalist, Eichenwald tells the unbelievable (but true) saga of the biggest bankruptcy in US history - Enron's. Illuminated by the perverse machinations of a former CFO, the story details the sins of capitalism - deception of the greedy, disillusionment of the powerful, and the carelessness of those who are suppose to be impartial. Masterfully constructed, the book reads like a novel, capturing the essence of what went on behind close doors and never failing to remind of the perils of blind trust.

But here is where it gets tricky. If one is to compare the book to say the documentary film "The Smartest Guys In the Room", one would be amazed to find there are gaps in Eichenwald's book. Although he mentions about Enron's young traders, he conceals additional details of Enron's evil culture of greed and complete lack of ethical standards. The book lacks fairness in revealing the true enemies in disguise. When I finished reading it, I wondered whether Skilling was truly blindsided by the `hedge-fund' affairs. How could a CEO, who brought on board the creator of the affairs, be so ignorant of the huge losses Enron was amounting ($40+ billion)? The mere fact that Skilling resigned before the actual bankruptcy took place is a clear indication that he was aware of the deals since their inception.

Oh, well, in spite of these gaps, I highly recommend this book for its creative depiction of the historical facts. I never thought a real story could be delivered with the same intensity and thrill as Grisham's fictional accounts.

-by Simon Cleveland