“Mixes the helpful, the sarcastic and the entertaining…[with] a touch of Ambrose Bierce’s Devil’s Dictionary about it.”
– Jim Higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel“An idiosyncratic collection of short, sharp essays translating the jargon of finance with admirable concision and wit.”
– Peter Sokolowski, New York Times Book Review

“Lays out the case for financial literacy and then provides an essential glossary of terms for those who would like to achieve this happy state.”
– Sarah Lyall, New York Times

“A hugely enjoyable book…Lanchester is a kind of brainy Everyman, a brilliant communicator.”
– Melanie Reid, The Times

“An entertaining and informative read…Witty, provocative and engaging.”
– Evening Standard

“Insightful and often funny…An invaluable primer.”
– Ian Critchley, Sunday Times

“One of the world’s great explainers of the financial crisis and its aftermath.”
– Michael Lewis

“Reading this book is like meeting an easy-going guy at a cocktail party who can explain everything that’s always mystified you about high finance―‘inverted yield curve,’ anyone?―with sparkle, wit, and crystal clarity. And if you’re already a finance-insider, you’ll get a kick out of Lanchester’s sly ironies.”
– Jim Holt, best-selling author of Why Does the World Exist?

John Lanchester is the best-selling author of The Debt to Pleasure, Capital, and other works of fiction and nonfiction. A regular contributor to the London Review of Books and The New Yorker, he lives in London.

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