Catching the Wolf of Wall Street

February 15, 2009
Belforts memoir (his recollection of events with some changed names and reconstructed dialogue) was written after serving almost two years in prison for securities fraud. The author recounts his meteoric rise on Wall Street, where he built one of the largest brokerage firms by age 27. He reflects upon his remarkable journey, explaining his core skill of training salesmen, especially stupid or naive young people, showing them how they can become rich. This is the story of a scam artist who enjoyed a lifestyle of parties, hookers, and drug dealing until the FBI took him away in handcuffs at age 36. It tells of his cooperation with the government and his life as an informant. In recounting what he acknowledges was his dysfunctional life, his apparent devotion to his children is a bright light. This sordid saga will either become popular as a cautionary tale of greed and treachery or it will become romanticized as glamorous excess and celebrity.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)