What Goes Up
The Uncensored History of Modern Wall Street as Told by the Bankers, Brokers, CEOs, and Scoundrels Who Made It Happen

by Eric J. Weiner

      Maybe my view is a bit warped by having worked in the securities industry myself, but I thought this book was as fun as it was informative. As the subtitle indicates, it's a collection of stories about the people who shaped the investment world while trying to make their own fortunes. Often they succeeded, and it was sometimes even legal. The stories themselves can be pretty entertaining, but the real fun comes with the way they're presented. Instead of the usual history, chronicling events from a third person distance, the author effectively puts you in the middle of a round table discussion. Each chapter begins with a quick overview of its theme, followed by a series of first person discussions from a number of people about what they saw, knew, heard, and did. Famous names become larger than life characters, as when Merrill Lynch founder Charlie Merrill is seen as both a Wall Street rebel and an inveterate ladies' man through the eyes of those reminiscing about him. While the reader will get an appreciative grin from seeing just how differently those involved view their own and others' roles in Wall Street's biggest successes and disasters.