Liar's Poker: Pre-Reading I Actually Enjoyed

I just about had a panic attack the day my MBA pre-reading assignments arrived in my inbox. In case I haven't made this clear, I am easily intimidated by almost everything associated with my MBA, and the pre-reading was no exception.

So how delighted was I to see this on the list:

My boyfriend had bought and read this book earlier this year, and had already recommended it to me. Even though it was "optional" pre-reading (as opposed to the Econ textbook, Excel self-test, and math practice questions - none of which I have attempted yet) I started with it, and it was the perfect introduction to all this business stuff.

What's great about this book (besides the fact that the author, Michael Lewis, is married to Tabitha "MTV News" Soren - what a blast from the past that revelation was!) is that it reads like a gossiptastic, scandalicious novel. Except it's non-fiction. Which of course makes it that much more enjoyable.

Liar's Poker tells the true story of Lewis' four years at Wall Street giant Salomon Brothers in the 80s, as he rose from a trainee to a "Big Swinging Dick" (his language, not mine) trader. As fate would have it, the four years he slaved away for Salomon witnessed the firm's tumultuous fall from their powerful perch on Wall Street.

Importantly for me, Lewis actually explains and defines things for those of us on the outside. I now have a much better sense of what a bond actually is, and what a trader actually does. Valuable stuff for me, going into my program next week. At least I won't be totally clueless!

A highly recommended read for anyone! Enjoy!