Liar’s Poker. by Lewis, Michael - 1989

New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1989. First edition of the author's first book. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Michael Lewis on the title page. Fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket. Jacket design by Andrew M. Newman Graphic Design Inc. Jacket Illustration by Vint Lawrence. First printings are uncommon, especially signed. As described by Lewis, liar's poker is a game played in idle moments by workers on Wall Street, the objective of which is to reward trickery and deceit. With this as a metaphor, Lewis describes his four years with the Wall Street firm Salomon Brothers, from his bizarre hiring through the training program to his years as a successful bond trader. Lewis illustrates how economic decisions made at the national level changed securities markets and made bonds the most lucrative game on the Street. His description of the firm's personalities and of the events from 1984 through the crash of October 1987 are vivid and memorable. "So memorable and alive . . . one of those rare works that encapsulate and define an era" (Fortune).