From an award-winning New York Times investigative reporter comes a gripping account of one of the most captivating and bizarre tales in the history of the FBI and corporate America. It was one of the FBI's biggest secrets: Mark Whitacre, a senior executive at Archer Daniels Midland--America's most politically powerful corporation--became a confidential government witness. Putting his career and family at risk, Whitacre, along with a small team of agents, tapped into secrets at ADM that led the FBI to discover the company's scheme to steal millions of dollars from its own customers. But as the FBI and federal prosecutors closed in on ADM, they suddenly found that everything was not all that it appeared. While Whitacre was cooperating with the Feds and playing the role of loyal company man, he also had his own agenda. Whitacre became sucked into his own world of James Bond antics, imperiling the criminal case and creating a web of deceit that left the FBI and prosecutors uncertain where the lies stopped and the truth began. Meticulously researched and richly told, The Informant re-creates the drama of the story, beginning with the secret recordings, stakeouts, and interviews with suspects and witnesses to the power struggles within ADM and its board--including the high-profile chairman Dwayne Andreas, F. Ross Johnson, and Brian Mulroney--to the big-gun Washington lawyers hired by ADM, and on up through the ranks of the Justice Department to FBI Director Louis Freeh and Attorney General Janet Reno. A page-turning real-life thriller that features deadpan FBI agents, crooked executives, idealistic lawyers, and shady witnesses with an addiction to intrigue, The Informant tells an important and compelling story of power and betrayal in America
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"I was a little worried that I wouldn't enjoy a non-fiction book focused on price-fixing in lysine, especially when I saw that it was nearly 600 pages. I thought Eichenwald did a great job presenting the story and revealing the mysterious, complicated workings of the "informant." I was amazed at how well he held my attention and laid the story out. It read like a work of fiction, both because of the unbelievable story and the way Eichenwald wrote it. I've seen the movie as well and thought the movie played very well to this story." — Amanda (4 out of 5 stars)
"I was a little worried that I wouldn't enjoy a non-fiction book focused on price-fixing in lysine, especially when I saw that it was nearly 600 pages. I thought Eichenwald did a great job presenting the story and revealing the mysterious, complicated workings of the "informant." I was amazed at how well he held my attention and laid the story out. It read like a work of fiction, both because of the unbelievable story and the way Eichenwald wrote it. I've seen the movie as well and thought the movie played very well to this story."
" Fascinating and scary at the same time. "
" One of the best non-fiction books I've read. Eichenwald keeps a fast pace and the twist and turns are truly bizarre. If I hadn't known it was a true story, it would seem unbelievable. "
" I read this ten years ago and don't remember a single thing about it. "
" This started out in the same style as Eichenwald's Ship of Fools that I enjoyed very much. I suppose the Enron affair was more current when I read it than this story of ADM, but I found this very slow in places, particularly the last 100 or so pages. Glad I read it; now I'll see the movie that's just out [6/6/10 note: don't bother w/ the movie - awful!]. "
" pretty interesting and a depressing look at the Big Business Machine all mixed up in a compelling mystery. "
" Shocking story of ADM and price fixing. Sounds like it might be dull, but it reads like fiction. "
" I liked this story and would probably give 3.5 stars if I could. The main character was quite interesting but the story gets a bit bogged down with all the detail of the FBI investigation. "
" Very in-depth look at what could have easily been a boring subject. Written almost more like fiction than your typical dry non-fiction fare, save for the ridiculous long list of characters/names/positions/titles. "
" This book was unbelievable. A great character study in non-fiction. The only criticism I have is that there are so many people in the book I can't keep them all straight. But it's non-fiction, so I can't really ding him for that! "
" Didn't finish it. Yawn. Watch the movie, at least there's a cute butt or two. "
" Great book; great story; the protagonist is one of the biggest fools I've ever read about. "
" Oh my gosh, it is hard to believe that this story is true, it seems too amazing. There are some slow parts at the start, but you can't put it down once it gets going. Best true legal account I have read. "
" This is an unbelievable story told unbelievably well. "
" Great book. A bit too long and at times confusing, but at the end I really enjoyed reading it. "
" Conspiracy of fools was better. I read that book and thought this would be a good one as well. Not really. "
" Excellent book. Reads like fiction. "
" I hadn't heard of it before, but they're making a movie right now. It's a corporate conspiracy/FBI thriller. I can't say I've read anything like it before, but I'm really enjoying it. "
" A true story that reads like fiction. "
" This book started out pretty interesting, but it got long pretty quickly for me. I felt like a lot of the little details that made it so long were unnecessary to the story. I would have enjoyed it more if it hadn't been so long winded. "
" An interesting book but with so many characters it was a bit hard to keep up and quite long winded "
" Fantastic, gripping read. The story is just unbelievable, and Eichenwald keeps you engaged throughout. "
" A great book, fact is more bizarre than fiction at Enron. This book may have too much business jargon and accounting for some readers. But as a CPA I loved it. "
" Besides taking me 3 months to read, this book was amazing. Held my interest the whole time. "
" Very interesting and detailed storytelling. It goews behind the scenes of the scandal, and show just how Enron schemed and scammed their way into jail. Very detailed. "
" Very good, the author made what by all rights should have been a very dull and hard to understand story of obscure accounting misdeeds into an interesting study of human nature. "
" The best book on Enron I've read but not the easiest to understand. Watch the movie, "Smartest Guys in the Room" first. "
" A story of a horrible event in our country's history - well told. "
Kurt Eichenwald is a senior writer with Newsweek, a contributing editor with Vanity Fair, and the author of three New York Times bestselling books. He wrote for the New York Times for more than twenty years. A two-time winner of the George Polk Award for excellence in journalism, he was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2000 and 2002. His New York Times bestseller The Informant was made into a major motion picture starring Matt Damon.
Arthur Morey has won three AudioFile Magazine “Best Of” Awards, and his work has garnered numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards and placed him as a finalist for two Audie Awards. He has acted in a number of productions, both off Broadway in New York and off Loop in Chicago. He graduated from Harvard and did graduate work at the University of Chicago. He has won awards for his fiction and drama, worked as an editor with several book publishers, and taught literature and writing at Northwestern University. His plays and songs have been produced in New York, Chicago, and Milan, where he has also performed.
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