Monkey Business: Swinging Through the Wall Street Jungle

I got this book yesterday and read through it quickly that night. First of all, it is hilarious. The critic review on the covers says "funniest book since Liar's Poker." I disagree, this is funnier, even though Liar's Poker was funny in its own right. Caveat Emptor, though, the humor is bawdier than most anything I've heard in a locker room. The language itself is a testament to the investment banking world and how it desensitizes junior bankers. To many, the book will be most startling in just how unglamorous the Investment Banking life actually is. Even the rainmakers at the top of the heap, the managing directors, don't necessarily live a glamorous life. While junior bankers have to grovel to the MD's, the MD's themselves spend their lives groveling to clients and the buyside, trying to justify their existence with pretty pitch books and fonts that are just right. The most amazing thing about the banking life, though, is not the hours. It's how useless most of those hours are. From what I gathered, the associates and analysts do maybe 4-8 hours a day of real, productive work. The rest of the hours are spent making mindless changes for MD's, only for the MD's and Vice Presidents to change their mind and throw out a lot of that work. Associates spent a lot more time in meetings and travel than I expected, typically just to bring pitch books and give a formidable presence for the bank. In other words, Monkey Business reads somewhat like a long MBA case study about a mismanaged company who promotes top performers rather than good managers (although it is far, far more interesting than a case study). The MD's have all the hallmarks of bosses from hell. They don't understand what junior bankers actually do and they motivate by crucifying for mistakes and missed deadlines while taking all the credit when there's success. From the long hours and the constant mistreatment, it's easy to see how investment banks precipitated the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. During the peak of investment banking, 2003-06, bankers were so desensitized that they had no idea how to think or build value for the economy. Everything was about money, everything was about selling and sounding good and not truly working on behalf of their clients. While most of these shenanigans happened in the trading side of I-banks and not the banking side, the same culture permeated throughout, the almighty dollar before EVERYTHING else. My only real disappointment was the new post-crisis afterword. Most of the afterword was fine, tying up the loose ends and showing the investment banking can actually lead to good buyside or senior banking jobs, if you're willing to sell your soul for a few years. Rather, I was disappointed that he focused on the trading that led to the crisis, something well-known at this point. I was more interested in why banking still hasn't changed, why analysts and associates are still so poorly treated and why there's so much motion with so little relative value produced. Read this if you're interested in how businesses work and if you want a good, if very vulgar, laugh. DEFINITELY read this if you're an Ivy undergraduate or MBA student considering wads of money I-bankers may be throwing at you. Realize that there's more to choosing your offer than the salary and if anything could possibly offer a career path half as attractive as the eventual buyside job after banking, take it.

This book made finance interesting to read due to the hilarious and miserable circumstances that both character had to endure. I never want to work for a big Wall Street firm because of these guys. The best part was how relatable some of the situations were for me. The only reason why I didn't give this five stars was that it dragged a little bit towards the end. I absolutely recommend this book. It provided the inner details that Wolf of Wall Street did not.

Great price, good condition

A great fun, light read. I went through the book in a couple of days and thoroughly enjoyed it. It takes you into a real insight to the world of investment banking and strips away the glamour, coz there ain't any!! I was a banker myself for many years and the book is pretty accurate on what went on in he roaring 90's. I would highly recommend this book either or those who are thinking about IB. As a career or for those who just want a good laugh.

I bought this book as pre-MBA summer reading and I got my bargain buy money's worth, but I did not finish it. I have no desire to have a career in banking, but I like business humor and had always been curious what exactly associates go through. This book was an easy read, but got a little redundant after the first half or 75% of the book. I would not say it is really laugh out loud funny and does lack substance I usually hope for when I read. There is no real story per se, it's just a collection of experiences that gets a little bit tiring after a while. I compare it closely to overhearing someone at a party complain about their job the entire night, it has interesting moments but in the end you decide it's more depressing than entertaining. For those who are investment bank bound I still think this is almost a must read. Mostly so you know what to expect of each component of the process and you come in with your eyes open to what your role might entail. For people who just thought this would be a good book, I may choose some of the other business related books that have more substance.

Hilarious, to say the least...peppered with humor (some of it off-color), Rolfe and Troobe provides an account of their career in the IB world. My interest in this book is purely for reasons of entertainment; I can't seem to agree with statements like "must have if you decide to take the IB route" or "should make you rethink the banking profession" and all that. While this book chronicles the life of the authors at DLJ, one can, enough creativity assumed, come up with a hilarious account of any profession. So I don't look at it as a swipe at the IB profession as much as a swipe at the great circus we are all involved in on a daily basis. An investment banker, probably mortgages a bigger part of his/her life for the almighty $, but it's only a matter of degree. In fact, one of my recent client calls reminded me of, "...unlike the contestants in traditional beauty-pageants, bankers aren't normally required to wear bathing suits at the pageant, but if the client asked them to, they'd come in wearing the tightest nut-hugging speedo ever seen"

For people in the investment business, or finance, this is an enjoyable book to read. It is a refreshing reminder of the saying ' Be careful what you wish for, because the wish may come true'. Life for 2-3 years in investment banking is depicted from the point of view of 2 guys who realize that the investment banking dream is not living up to their expectations (regardless of the money involved). The style is ironic and intended to reflect a shallow world, which seen from outside seems to be all powerful and mighty.

It is an eye opening book. It answers the questions: What do investment bankers actually do and why they are paid so much? I didn't want to have an academical answer, and I had much more in fact. The authors worked almost 3 years as associates in DLJ and wrote their unbelievable accounts so that all of us can understand what an investment banker is. They describe the selection process that takes place during postgraduate MBA courses and the jobs that these young talended people must do. Their frustration, their greed and ambition, the uninterrupted stream of work and duties that literally overwehelmes everybody at the lower levels of the hierarchy. Nothing is left at the end of the dreams of glory if not a bunch of human wrecks without dignity and real life. A big plus of this book is the humor which makes the descriptin really entertaining and funny. That is the only way to show all the misery that they had to endure. Thanks for this book.

As a person heading to business school in a couple of months and planning to pursue IB, this book was the best read. A reality check if you like.

I’m currently 17 completing my foundation year in Melbourne, And sees myself as an ibanker 5 years from now. Wish me all the best, cant ask for a better book on insights in the ibanking world.

（2009年の増補版がベース） 文句なしに面白い。 90年代半ばに当時ときめいていた米国投資銀行DLJにそれぞれWhartonとHBSから入社した二人のassociateの実体験談。 いわゆるinvestment banking部門の下働きを“これでもか”という位までやらされる姿が良く描けている。 仕事の流れの把握もその意味づけも極めて的確、出てくる人の描き方も“まあそうだろうな、日本も同じようなもんだ”という気がする。 著者二人は“煮ても焼いても食えない金の亡者”としてのMBAではなく、アメリカの20代の若者らしい感受性とユーモアのセンスに恵まれており、カラフルなエピソードも多く、一気に最後まで読ませる。 卑猥な表現も多いが、時たま文語的な表現も出てきて、slungのみならず英語一般の勉強にもなりそうである。 実際に日本で金融業務に従事している方が読めば、“やっぱり同じなんだ”と思うのか？“えー、こんなにすごいの？違うなー”と思うのか？ 前者と感じた人でも、まだまだ日本では仕事と生活のバランスはとれているのではないか、という気もするが。。。 なお2009年に追加された（らしい）“Afterword”もLehman shockに至るまでの金融の動きをマクロでよく捉えている(引き続きcynicalな見方だが）。

J'ai adoré. C'est un livre à l'anglais simple, dont les punchlines vous feront tantôt rire tantôt réfléchir. Très caricatural du monde des banques d'affaires (je travaille dans ce milieu), ce livre n'en est pas moins une bonne introduction. Il permet de comprendre les règles et normes de cet environnement et d'en apercevoir ses acteurs

And now, that I worked in the business for a while, I am like "Yep. Really!". Read this book and if you have not worked in the business you will not believe it. But if you have, you will laugh about it, or maybe cry over it. I don't know. It is funny but somehow truly saddening (mostly for those actually still working in this business). Yes, it's true and people still believe they earned the big-time money they have on their bank accounts. For work explained more thoroughly in this book. And if you read this book and read other books like the "Black Swan" or "Thinking, Fast and Slow", this business will appear even more pathetic and unreasonable to make the amount of money that (literally) is being made their.