Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining for awhile; falls off near the end...
Review: Liar's Poker is a funny look at life on Wall Street; especially the life of lower-level employees getting their start in the financial world. Michael Lewis uses the personal experience of his financial career in the Salomon Brothers bond program to tell the larger story of the rise and fall of the entire firm during the 1980s. Along the way he tells some funny stories and gives the reader an interesting, inside look at the fast-paced life on Wall Street. But in the end, the book starts to drag and Lewis's cynical view of the securities industry begins to get tiresome. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to know what a trader's life is like inside a major Wall Street firm. It is an interesting, initially humorous read that is appropriately not much longer than 200 pages in length.
Rating: 
Summary: Superior Trading Floor Expose
Review: Liar's Poker is to the 80s what Frank Partnoy's F.I.A.S.C.O is to the 90s, with the notable exceptions that Liar's Poker is well written, it's funny and its author obviously understood what was going on. Where Partnoy (unwittingly) portrays himself as an impressionable geek, Lewis by deliberately painting himself that way is a disarming and likeable narrator. If skulduggery on the trading floor is your bag, then this is the book for you - give Partnoy's feeble impression the swerve.
Rating:
Summary: Half insight to sales/trading and half a history lesson
Review: Michael Lewis told his story and the story of the fall of Salomon Brothers just like it happened. I loved this book at the beginning and the middle, but my interest started to fade toward the end. Much of the end of the book is devoted to the fall of Salomon Brothers, just not interesting stuff. The story itself (excluding the last few tedious chapters) is entertaining and halarious. Lewis' history with Salomon Brothers is recounted and told excellently. If you would like to get a glimpse inside a mighty Wall Street investment bank and its workings, I highly recommend this book. Only reason for four stars, I've read better....
Rating: 
Summary: Survival of the cunning
Review: Liar's Poker is one of the most insightful accounts of the investment banking world that one could read about without being an insider. It is in most respects a brutal story about the ruthlessness and total lack lf scruples that govern the world of high stakes finance but nevertheless an insightful account for the consequences of the explosive surge in bond markets from 323 billion at the end of the 70ies to 7 trillion by mid 80ies, following the FED's decision in late 1979 to let the rates float. With uncanny precision, methodical approach, and copious amounts of humor, Michael Lewis takes us on an insider tour de force of the investment banking business as embodied in the Salomon Brothers, Lewis' employer between 1985-87, during their time of fame and what made that company great, or shall we say notorious. Salomon greatly capitalized on the golden opportunities in bond markets starting with mortgage bonds, going through all related exotic instruments and derivatives, and ending with the junk bonds. Greed, ambition, and deceit were ranked top priorities at all organizational levels and duping the clients for corporate gains was the norm to attain success, recognition, fat bonuses, and promotions. Last but not least every was in pursuit of the much coveted title of Big Swinging Dick (women qualified for that title too) and even the occasional Balls of Brass title, the culmination of all deceitful selling techniques to uninformed/disinformed investors (read victims). The portraits of the Salomon high rollers are scary but at the same time comical; John Gutfreund, the CEO of Salomon, Lewie Ranieri, the mortgage bond superhero, who started from the bottom, in the mailroom and made it to be the top Swinging Dick (for a very short period though...nobody lasted too long), Michael Milken of Drexel Investments, their sworn enemy, all of them are unforgettable. Michael Lewis writes with insight and chilling realism. He cuts deep into what the deal is all about without fear of exposing the dirty, even illegal side of the business he was part of during the mid eighties, including his own role in ripping the naive investors off as a senior bond salesman. Overall great reading; witty, sarcastic, satirical and captivating from start to finish. The reading is easier if you understand finance, especially bond pricing and bond market mechanics, otherwise it may become a little cumbersome. Liar's Poker particularly makes great reading for all Wall Street aspiring candidates, it's good to be prepared, you seldon know what awaits around the corner...
Rating:
Summary: Great synopsis of Wall Street in the 80's
Review: This is a wonderful read. It tells the history of eighties finance through the vantage-point of one firm, Saloman Brothers. Lewis' writing is lucid and engaging, it reads like a novel, but is very informative.
Rating:
Summary: And you thought that traders were glamorous?
Review: Lewis spins a rollicking tale around the formative years of a niche in the bond market which still exists today. Aside from simply teaching the lay person a very basic lesson in finance, Lewis gives us glimpse onto the trading floor that we may or may not want to see. Investors will shudder and those ambitious souls with iron stomachs (you'll have to read the book)will pack their bags for the city to become traders. I originally read this book because of its relevance to my job in the asset-backed bond industry. For those just starting out in the business, it is a must read. For anyone else who enjoys a well-written yet hilarious trip to The Street, I highly recommend Liar's Poker.
Rating:
Summary: fun, exciting and educational
Review: after reading various books on finance/investing/money, i found it highly refreshing to read a story-based book... one that encapsulates the joys and spoils of being a bond trader during the days of michael milken, salomon brothers and the likes. gaining an inside perspective of how the market functions and who the money movers are is truly educational... being blind to the stories in this book is like trying to sail in the ocean without a mast! although i found the book to be gauged in the days when bonds were hot and exciting, the overall reading experience was great. from bonds, to mortgages, to interest rates, to the federal reserve, to bust... worth your time. enjoy...
Rating:
Summary: First of its kind. Best of its kind. (for 8/90's and 21st .
Review: You can neglect all the reviews and go straightly to any local bookstore to read the first chapter which describes the game "Liar's Poker". You will buy it then, I bet. It's not a trading book which I had expected, but a true story told by a saleman in Salomon Brothers about how the bankers "stole" or sometimes "robbed" investors shamelessly. Though I still found two chapters quite boring, the rest are really interesting. Even you may not like the story, you will learn to be more careful when your private or personal banker calls you for a deal or two! Finally, I must agree with Management Today's comment "Should be made a legally required component of every MBA course"
Rating:
Summary: First of its kind. Best of its kind. (for 8/90's and 21st .
Review: ...It's not a trading book which I had expected, but a truestory told by somebody in a Salomon Brothers about how the bankers"stole" or sometimes "robbed" your moneyshamelessly. Though I still found two chapters quite boring, the restof nine are really interesting. Even you dont like the story/history,you will learn to be more careful when your private or personal bankercalls you for a deal or two! Finally, I must agree with ManagementToday's comment "Should be made a legally required component ofevery MBA course"
Rating:
Summary: A definite must-read for an undergrad.
Review: As soon as I opened this book, I was not able to put it down. I read it for a few hours non-stop, until I finished it. Although Wall Street has changed a great deal, since the time period described in Lewis' book, I think it is still very entertaining and informative. I only wish I read this as a freshman. The book pretty much walks you through the Wall Street culture of the 80's. I wish he knew more about derivatives, so he could get into the causes of the '87 crash. If you're thinking of working on Wall street, be it sales or trading, and haven't read this book yet, read it.
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