Good piercing explanations; lots of so-so filler

This book stays breezy and reasonably entertaining. Being an Enron junkie, I would not miss it. And from that vantage, I enjoyed it a lot. It walks us around the physical place and through the details and trivia (some weirdly Orwellian) an Enronian would know. Then it does swoop occasionally to interesting deeper views and overviews, glimpses much deeper into the heart of darkness, the real sickness of the culture and especially the (avowedly) atrocious foreign projects, mostly as spoken by a more senior acquaintance "Mister Blue" while the latter was drinking $50 double shots of top-of-the-line booze and presumably staring darkly into the void. Here one will get glimpses and hear summations I hadn't heard elsewhere. I had I thought of that phrase "heart of darkness" right before the author quoted Conrad's book.
The end sort of peters out as we join the parade of terminated employees in a not-atypical dreary wandering away from the scene, into job fairs and wasting time online. The only special thing is, this guy was mistakenly left in the payroll and had access to messages and the physical place, so more is revealed as the defunct "Death Star" spins into bankruptcy outer space.
Stating the stock price and volume, and big events, as the author's personal adventure progressed day by day, works well. As far his participation in anything, he was developing a financial risk management product along the lines of bankruptcy insurance (but not a CDS, apparently) that didn't make it to prime time in his tenure.

3 people found this helpful

Compelling companion to your Enron library

Brian Cruver's book gives insight on the Enron scandal not found in other books, such as The Smartest Guys in the Room and Conspiracy of Fools. It's the insight of the low-level employee who just wants to go to work and be part of the Enron success story and ends up being a witness to/casualty of the collapse. It's helpful, but not essential, to read the other books first for details on the reasons why Enron fell apart because Cruver's take is more memoir than business analysis. You're not going to understand the ins and outs of the off-balance sheet transactions from reading this book alone. If that's your goal, read the others first. Having read the others and being ready to move past the financial minutiae, I found Cruver's take to be refreshingly lighter, snarkier and relatable.

His description of Enron employees helping each other with their resumes while watching ESPN on the expensive TV screens on the trading floor in the final days of the company's existence is both surreal and startlingly believable to anyone who's worked in corporate America. The narrator does an excellent job in matching the tone of Cruver's text. I actually rate him higher than the narrator of Conspiracy of Fools. If you have a fascination with the Enron story, as I do, this one is worth your time.

3 people found this helpful

Truth about the crooked E

Would you listen to Anatomy of Greed again? Why?

Yes, Cruver gives a humorous twist to a very heavy moment in U.S. financial history. He "Lay"s it out the Enron debacle in terms that everyone can understand.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Anatomy of Greed?

The beginning when Cruver is informed, on his first day that there was a mistake in the hiring and he was the wrong guy! But he could stay!

Which scene was your favorite?

Cruver's last trip to his shrink. Very funny.

If you could take any character from Anatomy of Greed out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Cruver, the author, he hired on thinking he would have a great future with Enron , but in a short amount of time he found himself on the street. Yet through it all he kept his sense of humor, (for the most part)

Any additional comments?

A must read for any student heading for the sometimes unethical world of capitalist corporate America

2 people found this helpful

Amazing look from in side Enron

This was an exciting listen. Very engaging. Well preformed. You can conne with the employees.