The Greatest Trade Ever: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of How John Paulson Defied Wall Street and Made Financial History Audiobook

" Book describes How Paulson navigated the very tricky bet he placed against the housing market which made him a record amount of money in a short time (4 billion) and made him one of the wealthiest men on Wall Street. Book gives some significant information which helps you to understand Wall Street. "

" The Greatest Trade Ever is an absorbing read; an adroit journalist, Zuckerman finds the drama in the figures and events as they apparently unfolded (a skill shared by documentarians and fiction writers, working at their best), avoids the trap of wealthy white guy porn and manages to explain credit default swaps in a concise way understandable to people who do NOT work in the securities trading industry (including and especially me). As Tina Brown's Daily Beast promised, it's pretty fascinating. What's missing, and this is my political perspective, stay with me, is acknowledgment of the apparent fact that credit default swaps do not provide any benefit to the defaulting debtor (or even, if I've got it right, to the creditor who holds the defaulted instrument, usually a 'bundle' of residential mortgage loan which are saleable as securities, or slice / 'tranche' thereof). Thus it is purely a gambling transaction, adds no value to the economy except it generates immediate periodic fees or premiums for the seller (e.g., Bear Stearns) and a potential payoff to the purchaser (e.g., hedge fund, Jon Paulson in the book), just as though the two parties were betting on the outcome of a cockfight or football match. No land is conveyed, no product is manufactured or sold, no company receives an investment of capital (other than payment of the periodic premiums and payoff mentioned above). Author Zuckerman is a Wall Street Journal writer or columnist by trade, so he's 'Drinking [marinading in:] the Kool-Aid' of the securities traders (WSJ is an editorially conservative paper, 1st, and an essential source of in-depth media coverage of the securities trading markets and fora, to boot). I am not opposed morally to gambling or to speculative trading of securities instruments, I just think it should be mentioned, including in 'The Greatest Trade Ever.' As an English Lit grad I can't but mention that the book could have used an editor -- some clunky and ambiguous passages required a re-reading (or two); I had to machete through some errors of grammar and syntax which I wouldn't have expected from a professional writer. I cannot reject this book, nonetheless, as I mentioned at the top -- if you don't sweat the absurdity of the subprime loan meltdown meaning a few smart hedge fund traders buy new estates in the Hamptons or put generations of their progeny through the most expensive schools in the world, if you work as or with a securities trader[s:], or if you're among the fortunate few who cannot fathom the vagaries of living on annual income of less than $300,000.00, you'll be engaged by this book and its complementary trajectories of (1) financial crisis incoming and (2) desperate hedge fund managers and high-end traders hanging on to and adding to sizable trading positions /CDS obligations which many could understand but a lot fewer bought into. "

" Really hard to understand if you are not an MIT grad. An interesting insight into creating a reality in the financial world. Great characters! "

" This book really made me stop and think about the financial industry in more depth. At times breath taking in its idolizing of greed, and the way the US crisis became a global crisis, the author spins a good story of wealthy people who suffer the same fears of the poor. Will recommend this book for a rainy weekend read - gripping and nicely told! "

" OK, I am biased, but this book is really very good! "

" I love these kinds of books. Even though it's already happened, so you know how it turns out, it's interesting because it's real. John Paulson took some big risks and made enormous sums of money by sticking to his ... not values, but belief in himself and his analysis of the overheated housing market. "

" Banal recounting of an impressive feat. "

" Admiring book before Paulson's later long, slow fall from grace. "

" Well-written, noteworthy, and, as with most books on the financial crisis, depressing and endlessly frustrating. "

" This book was great -- a finance suspense. I couldn't put it down. (This has got to sound crazy about a finance book.) "

" Fascinating story of why investing is a beautiful art, sadly this story dealt with a massive crash in the American economy that resulted in the Greatest Trade Ever. I highly suggest it to anyone interested in investing. "

" The book demonstrates that conventional wisdom is not to be followed. Gives good color to the mortgage crisis and the few players who recognized what the so-called experts could not and profited handsomely. "

" Another clear exposition of the financial criss "

" Despite the awful title, the book is a really informative book about the financial crisis of 2008. An interesting and more detailed complement to Lewis' The Big Short. "

" This is a very accessible description of the subprime trade and how it played out for a few different investors with a focus on Paulson. It also provides some interesting notes on the housing bubble and how it developed to create the opportunity for Paulson et al. An excellent credit crisis book. "

" Slightly better than Lewis' The Big Short... both very well researched and understood though "

" Big disappointment. Couldn't stop wondering - did John Paulson pay for this or is Zuckerman such a poor writer. "

" Nothing great about Paulson and the rest of these guys. "

" Who has ever heard of John Paulson ? Read it to know him. It was very informative and interesting. "

" Not very technical terms of the financial detail but a very enjoyable and good read about the behind the scenes story of the lives of the people involved in shorting the housing market. "

" read a little like a tabloid "

" Read it right before Lewis' Bi Short about the same subject. Both were great, I think I prefer Zuckerman's account. "

" Another clear exposition of the financial criss "

" Despite the awful title, the book is a really informative book about the financial crisis of 2008. An interesting and more detailed complement to Lewis' The Big Short. "

" this is a book too far about the financial system . i am sure that John Paulson is pleased to have made $20 bill but it all seems so last century now and the details goes on for ever . well researched i am sure "

" A great book about one of the key drivers of the 2008 capital markets crash. Really describes the "behind the scenes" events that are influencing our economic turmoil today. Really like how Zuckerman told the story in an almost like fiction fashion. Definitely worth the time to read. "

" Follows the subprime mortage crisis and one guy who was able to say, "I told you so," when it all collapsed. Zuckerman includes lots of little biographical notes about the Wall Street players to keep it interesting; Reads like a Dan Brown book compared to other books on the subject. "