True crime books run the gamut from sensational murder cases to in-depth journalism about fascinating criminal subjects. The Art of Making Money is a great example of the latter.
It tells the story of counterfeiter Arthur Williams Jr., beginning with his hard childhood and mentoring by an old-school counterfeiter and ending with his time in prison once his deeds finally caught up with him. The meat of the story is everything that came in between, when Art took on the new(at that time) hundred dollar bill and spent fake ones all over the country.
I've read a lot of true crime and this book is one of the best when it comes to getting inside both the process of committing the crime, in this case how Art actually printed the fake bills, as well as the head of the criminal. I know next to nothing about printing but the details on how Art overcame some of the anti-counterfeiting measures were fascinating. This book belongs in the library of anyone who likes true crime books as well as those who've always wondered how counterfeiters ply their trade.
Author Jason Kersten has a wonderfully detailed web site that has a great deal of additional information on the story as well as on events that occurred after the publication of the book. His previous book Journal of the Dead looks interesting as well but I have not yet had a chance to read it.
For those who like this book I also recommend Catch Me if You Can by Frank Abagnale. The movie was entertaining but the book is much better.
As always please feel free to email me at jeffsemonis at yahoo.com or leave a comment. I'm also on twitter @jeffsbookcase.
No comments:
Post a Comment