Make Me Even: A Coming of Age Novel

by Jerrold Fine

Overview

For one 1970s teenager, winning at poker and winning on Wall Street go hand-in-hand: "A coming-of-age story for the ages." —Peter Lattman, vice chairman, The Atlantic
In the wake of his mother's death, Rogers Stout has no choice but to grow up fast. By high school, he already has the gambler's gifts: a titanic brain, an uncanny ability to read people, and a risk-taker's daring. All he lacks is direction . . .
Everything changes the summer before his senior year when Rogers is invited into the boisterous environment of an investment bank's trading room—and to a gambling hall dive where he immediately wins big at poker, capturing the attention of his coworkers with his card-playing skills. Intrigued by trading markets, Rogers's intellectual curiosity takes him to Wharton and then Wall Street, where he faces challenges as an outsider who thinks and acts differently from the white-shoe establishment. Riding professional and personal highs and lows—like the stock market crash of 1974—he'll have to learn to rebound, if he's to survive . . .
An intriguing look at human aspiration and the interplay of honor, greed, fear, and individuality, this novel reveals a time when a new generation upended the status quo on Wall Street and forever changed investing.
"A rip-roaring yarn of baseball, poker, and Wall Street told with humor and humanity, and a loving rendering of Wharton in the seventies." —Geoffrey Garrett, dean, The Wharton School
"[An] absorbing story of an aspiring Wall Street trader." —Kirkus Reviews

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781504080590
Publisher:	Open Road Media
Publication date:	10/04/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	326
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Jerrold Fine graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and has served multiple terms on its undergraduate executive board and the Board of Overseers. At twenty-four years old, he founded a hedge fund and worked as a managing partner. Fine lives in Connecticut with his artist wife and a ridiculously spoiled Portuguese water dog.

Editorial Reviews

An illuminating and fascinating insider’s look at the days when a new generation shook the Wall Street status quo, narrated by a daring young risk-taker determined to prove his worth and earn his independence. The narrative is propelled forward by the competitive intensity and passion of his quest to make it big on Wall Street. There is a compelling honesty to this ‘must win’ attitude. I couldn’t put this novel down.” — Paul N. Roth, Founding Partner of Schulte, Roth & Zabel

“A rip-roaring yarn of baseball, poker and Wall Street told with humor and humanity, and a loving rendering of Wharton in the seventies.” — Geoffrey Garrett, Dean, The Wharton School

“I bet you won’t be able to put down Make Me Even and I’ll Never Gamble Again. Jerry Fine’s debut novel tells the rollicking tale of Rogers Stout, a middle-class kid from Cincinnati with a knack for numbers and a rapier wit. You’ll root for the charming Rogers as he heads east, working his way through the elite Wharton School and then rising through the ranks on Wall Street. By turns hilarious, insightful and touching, Fine has written a coming-of-age story for the ages.” —Peter Lattman, Vice Chairman, The Atlantic

“The years approaching and immediately beyond our twenties are filled with sexual excitement, wonder at the range of choices, terror of failing and a variety of disappointments. The hero of Jerry Fine’s smartly written book survives these challenges because of his competitiveness, humility and resilience. Anyone reading this will relive his or her own experiences and be reminded of what a miraculous time of discovery it was.” —Byron R. Wien, Vice Chairman, Private Wealth Solutions at Blackstone Group

From the Publisher

2018-07-06
This debut novel follows a young man who, hoping to achieve financial independence, finds himself drawn to the stock market.By the early 1970s, Rogers Stout is only 16 years old, but his father, Dr. Charles Stout, wants his son to live up to his potential. The Ohio teen is bright but putting minimal effort into high school studies. This changes the summer before his senior year with an internship at Prescott & Prescott, a stock brokerage and investment banking firm. Rogers becomes fascinated by the stock market and sets his sights on a finance major at Penn-Wharton in Philadelphia. He closely follows the market all through college, gradually developing abilities, such as how to "deconstruct a company's financials" and "analyze its prospects." As an exceptional poker player, courtesy of regular sessions with his dad, Rogers equates his investment philosophy with the card game. He plays while winning and stops to reassess his strategy after he's lost. Rogers' hard work pays off, as he lands a gig at a research and money management firm in New York. But his subsequent plan to invest in a small company is an unquestionable risk, and life, like the financial markets, can change instantly and unexpectedly. Despite the desperation implied by the title, the levelheaded protagonist is rarely distraught. (The title is derived from a line that a losing poker player—not Rogers—utters.) Still, Fine's coming-of-age tale is engrossing. The historical backdrop, for one, is an enhancement: Rogers witnesses the 1973-74 stock market crash and worries about his girlfriend, Charlotte Marks, who, in 1977, is in a war zone in Cambodia for Doctors Without Borders. There's also turmoil in the protagonist's personal life, as banker Elsbeth Aylesworth fills the void created by his geographical separation from Charlotte. Prose is detail-laden, including poker and baseball games as well as investments, while financial terminology is adequately explained. But there's still room for humor: Rogers' description of his job is "to read and think and then occasionally make a bold decision."A leisurely paced but ultimately absorbing story of an aspiring Wall Street trader.

Kirkus Reviews