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{Dоwnlоаd/Rеаd PDF Bооk} the Financier Kindle THE FINANCIER PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Theodore Dreiser,Larzer Ziff | 528 pages | 06 Apr 2009 | Penguin Books Ltd | 9780143105541 | English | London, United Kingdom The Financier - Wikipedia New York: Library of America, , pp. Zimmerman, Panic! Works by Theodore Dreiser. Namespaces Article Talk. Views Read Edit View history. Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file. However it lacks emotion. That is why 4 stars or 3,5 if I could. Everything is very clearly and soberly presented, even the emotions of the characters are so thoughly described, that they don't produce any impact on the reader at all. The whole financial stuff - I didn't quite understood everything but it is not that important. You get into the story. Because of the sober this is a very politically correct written book. Because of the sober way of presenting the story, it was often quite boring, and the whole book seemed endless. But I still got to its end! Mar 03, Ivan rated it really liked it. Recently I was thinking about books which could be recommended for people to get some knowledge of and love eventually the domain they work for. Apart from interesting historical details, plot which keeps the reader tense in a positive way and examples of political intricacies book also was useful for me as a source of this spirit of c Recently I was thinking about books which could be recommended for people to get some knowledge of and love eventually the domain they work for. Apart from interesting historical details, plot which keeps the reader tense in a positive way and examples of political intricacies book also was useful for me as a source of this spirit of courage the heroes possessed. Nov 18, Judy P. And I'm no financial shrinking violet. I can hang. But this one almost got away from me. Still good though. Frank -- wow, what a character. I know this guy. You might know this guy. Just devastatingly accurate. Two more in the trilogy. I'm a little fearful. View 1 comment. Jun 11, Stefan rated it really liked it. Manipulation of financial markets, government corruption and personal scandal are at the center of this underrated American saga that captures the rise, fall and rise again of a 19th century entrepreneur. A slow read with minimal plot progress. Somehow it was mildly interesting, but I was forced to read this one for a class. Not something I would have picked up on my own. Self-seeking and corruption in finance and politics. Jun 25, Ruslan Khalilov rated it it was amazing. I wish I would have read this book when I was 18 : A fascinating story of a financier with unconventional life principles who made his way up through a world of corruption, greed and social pressure. There are a lot of things to debate in the behavior of the main character, but for sure this book won't leave you indifferent. Sep 24, Amy Heinz rated it liked it. I found this historical novel set with the backdrop of the great Chicago Fire and the financial panics to be an interesting reflection of American greed and avarice. I keep reflecting on how like Frank Cowperwood mainstream America acted in the run-up to the real estate bubble. Sep 09, Valentyn Danylchuk rated it it was amazing Shelves: classics , favourite- classics. All individuals are a bundle of contradictions — none more so than the most capable. His characters are indeed as contradicted as our thoughts can be in real life. You won't be cringing like with some other stories, "oh how could he do that", because any twisted choice by each character will be thoroughly explained by their internal struggle and unstable "The most futile thing in this world is any attempt, perhaps, at exact definition of character. You won't be cringing like with some other stories, "oh how could he do that", because any twisted choice by each character will be thoroughly explained by their internal struggle and unstable state. I think that is a great insight by Dreiser. It is not like other options do not occur to people; it is just that sometimes some weird little circumstances decide the internal dispute, making them act in unexpected ways, apparently contrary to common sense, their best interests, against even some of their deepest beliefs and values. The bulk of the book is dealing with one big crisis. If it grows slowly on you at first, don't worry, it becomes a fast page-turner later on. Jul 30, Texigan rated it really liked it. Does anyone else out there remember Borders? It was one of my favorite book stores to go to because I always had luck finding a wide variety of classic novels there. Quite a few of the books in my personal library came from their shelves, including Theodore Dreiser's The Financier. I sure do miss that place. Every time I see a Borders price sticker on the back of one of my books I wish it were still around. I am still nursing a grudge against Barnes and Noble classics, so now I do most of my cla Does anyone else out there remember Borders? I am still nursing a grudge against Barnes and Noble classics, so now I do most of my classic book shopping on Amazon. This is fine, but lacks the fun of browsing the shelves and finding old books you've never heard of before. Clearly, I'm becoming an old, curmudgeonly woman. First, I read Dreiser's Sister Carrie back in college and enjoyed it. Second, this is a Naturalism novel, and I tend to like books from that period I do love a hopelessly bleak story. I decided to read it this month on a whim. I knew nothing about its plot before I started. In fact, I wasn't even sure how to pronounce its title. Nevertheless, I picked it up hoping for the best. The plot of the novel concerns the rise and fall of Frank Cowperwood, a financier working in Philadelphia in the s. Frank displays a talent for finance from a very young age, and as he grows to manhood, he uses his natural business acumen to climb the social ladder and become very wealthy. He builds most of his fortune through various schemes involving the stock exchange and investing in streetcars. Like most of the other financiers around him, he engages in shady business practices to control the market and further his interests, including taking out low-interest loans from the city's treasury with the help of a corrupt government official. The good times end, however, when the Great Chicago Fire causes the bottom to drop out of the market. The panic comes at the worst possible time for Frank; he doesn't have enough ready cash to cover all of the loans he currently has on his books. When his various investors begin calling in those loans, he is unable to raise enough money to stave off bankruptcy. In his financial failure, his unethical activities with the city treasury are revealed and charges are filed against him for larceny and embezzlement. From this point forward, Frank's life begins a downward spiral from which he struggles to escape. His strong business sense has always saved him from trouble before, but now that he has been caught on the wrong side of the law, all of his usual tricks are too risky or impossible to try now. He is largely stuck, and must find a way to weather the storm, if he can. The Financier is a detailed look at the prototypical American businessman, and how the great rewards that come with a life of ruthless ambition and incredible wealth can just as easily lead to ruin as they can to glory. Reading this novel was a mixed experience for me. It was somewhat enjoyable, but there were a lot of elements in it that I found to be strange or dull. It's certainly not an on-the-edge-of-your-seat type of read, but the story itself was fairly interesting. I thought it was funny how Frank's unethical activities in the s mirrored what modern Wall Street brokers get in trouble for today. The terms and investments, of course, have changed, but the basics remain the same. Insider trading, corrupt government officials, and playing tricks with other people's money are all scandals that still make headlines today. It was funny to consider how little people have changed over the years, especially when it comes to acquiring money and power. Something I struggled with throughout my reading was the pacing. At just over pages, this is a long novel. Frank's downfall starts early, around the page mark. The rest of the novel describes his slow decline, sparing the reading few details along the way. For example, events like Frank's trial and sentencing are transcribed almost word-for-word, and every character and place Frank encounters, no matter how minor or inconsequential, are presented with long, unnecessary descriptions. The novel is almost all falling action, and it feels unbalanced to read. There are a lot of pages spent detailing financial transactions as well, which are difficult to follow for the uninitiated. Dreiser does a fair job explaining everything, and I ultimately understood enough to follow the story, but I don't feel like I every fully "got" everything Frank was doing with his money. An aspect of the story that baffled me was Frank's characterization.
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