A brilliantly illuminating and darkly comic tale of the ongoing financial and political crisis in America
The financial crisis that exploded in 2008 isn't past but prologue. The grifter class--made up of the largest players in the financial industry and the politicians who do their bidding--has been growing in power, and the crisis was only one terrifying manifestation of how they've hijacked America's political and economic life.
Matt Taibbi has combined deep sources, trailblazing reportage, and provocative analysis to create the most lucid, emotionally galvanizing account yet written of this ongoing American crisis. He offers fresh reporting on the backroom deals of the bailout; tells the story of Goldman Sachs, the "vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity"; and uncovers the hidden commodities bubble that transferred billions of dollars to Wall Street while creating food shortages around the world.
This is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the labyrinthine inner workings of this country, and the profound consequences for us all.

Reviews

Rolling Stone contributing editor Taibbi (The Great Derangement: A Terrifying True Story of War, Politics, and Religion) lucidly deconstructs the high-finance shenanigans of Wall Street and political power brokers that have fleeced the U.S. economy to the tune of billions of dollars. The outrageous, unchecked greed and power of financial industry behemoths like Goldman Sachs (the "Vampire Squid" of the title) and AIG are meticulously and succinctly described. The evidence of actually criminal, or at least morally criminal, financial misdeeds should spark fury in the average person, but Taibbi concedes that it is exceedingly difficult to get anyone to pay attention to the real stories behind corporate bailouts, the mortgage scam, lax financial regulation, and health-care reform as well as those who stand to profit at the expense of the rest of us by exploiting the industry to their advantage. VERDICT Taibbi's glib prose is punctuated with just enough irreverence and wit to allow him to appeal to more casual readers while providing sufficient detail to satisfy those looking for a serious discussion of the high-level manipulation of the economy. Recommended for anyone interested in understanding the economy and how it got that way.-Donna L. Davey, NYU Libs., New York (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

"A stinging new history of the financial crisis that heralds a return of Menckenesque, dirt-under-the-fingernails American journalism."--"GQ
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"A relentlessly disturbing, penetrating exploration of the root causes of the trauma that upended economic security in millions of American homes . . . a full-scale indictment of Wall Street and Washington."--"The""New York Times Book Review"

"Matt Taibbi is [Hunter S.] Thompson's heir. . . . ["Griftopia"] is the most lucid, justifiably angry description of what happened and what continues to happen to our nation's economy."--"Seattle Post-Intelligencer"

"Taibbi chronicles the corruption of the political process with indignation and dark humor. The takeaway? Be angry, but blame the right culprits."--"Time"