Exploring Top Books of Shelfari

#1 National Bestseller! The amazing inside story about a gambling ring of M.I.T. students who beat the system in Vegas -- and lived to tell how. Robin Hood meets the Rat Pack when the best and the brightest of M.I.T.'s math students and engineers take up blackjack under the guidance of an eccentric mastermind. Their small blackjack club develops from an experiment in counting cards on M.I.T.'s campus into a... (more)

Debt Cures "They" Don't Want YOU to Know About

Debt Cures "They" Don't Want YOU to Know About

by Kevin Trudeau

Are you getting deeper and deeper into debt while they make bigger and bigger profits? Not after you read... Debt Cure$ "They" Don't Want You To Know About ! In this new book, Kevin Trudeau blows the lid off the banking and credit card industries, exposing the greatest rip off of our citizens in this nation's history. The credit card industry is one of the most profitable industries in this country, but they... (more)

If the Witness Lied

by Caroline B. Cooney

Choices do matter and forgiveness is possible. Jack Fountain knows that what’s happened to his family sounds like the most horrible soap opera anyone could ever write. But it happened—to Jack; his parents; his sisters, Smithy and Madison. And to his baby brother, Tris. What made it worse was that the media wanted to know every detail. Now it’s almost Tris’s third birthday, and everything’s starting again.... (more)

The Eternal Smile: Three Stories

by Gene Luen Yang

A fantastical adventure through the worlds we live in and the worlds we create. From two masters of the graphic novel -- Gene Luen Yang (American Born Chinese) and Derek Kirk Kim (Same Difference and Other Stories) come three magical tales – The story of a prince who defeats his greatest enemy only to discover that maybe his world is not what it had seemed. The story of a frog who finds that just... (more)

Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions

Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions

by James Randi

In this book, Randi explores and exposes what he believes to be the outrageous deception that has been promoted widely in the media. Unafraid to call researchers to account for their failures and impostures, Randi tells us that we have been badly served by scientists who have failed to follow the procedures required by their training and traditions. Here, he shows us how what he views as sloppy research has been... (more)

The Street Smart Writer: Self Defense Against Sharks and Scams in the Writing World

The Street Smart Writer: Self Defense Against Sharks and Scams in the Writing World

by Jenna Glatzer

Aspiring writers learn how to avoid frauds and unsavory deals in this handbook for getting published. The editor of AbsoluteWrite.com and a seasoned publishing attorney share their expertise to help writers spot an honest agent or manager, determine the value of vanity publishing, and avoid getting conned out of hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars when signing a contract. Sections on writing contests teach... (more)

A Drowned Maiden's Hair: A Melodrama

by Laura Amy Schlitz

A feisty orphan is taken in by a band of phony spiritualists in this intriguing, engaging novel. Maud Flynn is known at the orphanage for her impertinence, so when the charming Miss Hyacinth and her sister choose Maud to take home with them, the girl is as baffled as anyone. It seems the sisters need Maud to help stage elaborate séances for bereaved, wealthy patrons. As Maud is drawn deeper into the deception,... (more)

The Brethern (Large Print)John Grisham

The Brethern (Large Print)

by John Grisham

One Perfect Day: The Selling of the American Wedding

One Perfect Day: The Selling of the American Wedding

by Rebecca Mead

The 160-billion dollar behemoth that is the American wedding industry and the psychology behind the expense, stress, and folly associated with the typical American wedding Using the American wedding as a rosetta stone, in One Perfect Day writer Rebecca Mead poses a series of questions that cut to the heart of our national identity. Why, she asks, has the American wedding become an outlandishly extravagant,... (more)

The Telephone Booth Indian (Library of Larceny)

The Telephone Booth Indian (Library of Larceny)

by A.J. Liebling

Often referred to as "Liebling low-life pieces," the essays in The Telephone Booth Indian boisterously celebrate raffishness. A. J. Liebling appreciated a good scam and knew how to cultivate the scammers. Telephone Booth Indians (entrepreneurs so impecunious that they conduct business from telephone booths in the lobbies of New York City office buildings) and a host of other petty nomads of Broadway—with names... (more)

Ponzi: The Incredible True Story of the King of Financial Cons (Library of Larceny)

Ponzi: The Incredible True Story of the King of Financial Cons (Library of Larceny)

by Donald H. Dunn

Just who was the man whose name has become synonymous with the classic “rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul” scam in which money from new investors is used to reward earlier ones? In December 1919, he was an unknown thirty-eight-year-old, self-educated Italian immigrant with a borrowed two-hundred dollars in his pocket. Six months later, he was Boston’s famed “wizard of finance,” lionized by the public and politicians alike. ... (more)

Junk Science Judo: Self-Defense against Health Scares and Scams

Junk Science Judo: Self-Defense against Health Scares and Scams

by Steven J. Milloy

This book is a simple, easy-to-read guide to debunking health scares and scams before you get hurt.

Confessions of an Internet Don Juan

by Cameron H Chambers

Confessions of an Internet Don Juan tells the story of Cast Hughes, a handsome, well-to-do, middle-aged failure. A former bit player on the bicycling pro circuit, nothing in Cast’s life goes as planned. The tricky item that has proved a success is his seduction of women and Cast’s modus operandi involves the Internet. He meets exotic beauties from around the globe. Although Cast wants to settle down, he is thrust... (more)

How to Become a Professional Con Artist

by Dennis Marlock

A fool and his money are soon parted, so the saying goes. And if the job is done right, the fool doesn't even realize it's happened until the wily con artist has moved on to the next victim or the next town. In this entertaining and eye-opening book, Dennis M. Marlock, a retired cop and chairman of the board for the international law enforcement organization Professionals Against Confidence Crime, takes the reader... (more)

Scams & Swindles: Phishing, Spoofing, ID Theft, Nigerian Advance Schemes Investment Frauds: How to Recognize And Avoid Rip-Offs In The Internet Age

Scams & Swindles: Phishing, Spoofing, ID Theft, Nigerian Advance Schemes Investment Frauds: How to Recognize And Avoid Rip-Offs In The Internet Age

Phishing. Spoofing. Spyware. Swoop and squat. Malicious spam. Chain letters. Ponzi schemes. ID theft. The Internet Era has created a whole class of frauds and schemes that separate people from their money. It's also given new life to older cons and scams. This book organizes various rip-offs by type and severity. Then it explains how each type of scam works -- and how an ordinary person can recognize it before... (more)

Internet Safety Family Guide

by Victoria Roddel

A complete basic explanation of internet safety and cybercrime for the home computer user. Topics include: children online, cyberstalking, fraud, home computer security, ID theft, infectors, legislation, piracy, spam, spyware, and reporting cybercrime.

E-mails from Hell: The Wrath of William Wyndell

E-mails from Hell: The Wrath of William Wyndell

by David Earthman

William Wyndell e-mails total strangers, saying things you wouldn't say to your worst enemy. The fun is seeing how long it takes his victims to tire of his abuse--people tolerate a lot when they think money will change hands. E-mails from Hell gives insight into the human condition, an understanding of the psychology of spammers, and a good laugh!

Son of the Mob: Hollywood Hustle (Son of the Mob (Paperback))

Son of the Mob: Hollywood Hustle (Son of the Mob (Paperback))

by Gordon Korman

Vince Luca is just like any other high school guy. His best friend, Alex, is trying to score vicariously through him; his brother is a giant pain; and his father keeps bugging him to get motivated. There is just one thing that really sets him apart for other kidsæhis father happens to be the head of a powerful crime organization. Needless to say, while Vince's family's connections can be handy for certain... (more)

Choke

by Chuck Palahniuk

Victor Mancini, a medical-school dropout, is an antihero for our deranged times. Needing to pay elder care for his mother, Victor has devised an ingenious scam: he pretends to choke on pieces of food while dining in upscale restaurants. He then allows himself to be “saved” by fellow patrons who, feeling responsible for Victor’s life, go on to send checks to support him. When he’s not pulling this stunt, Victor... (more)

Crimes of Persuasion

Schemes, Scams, Frauds

by Les Henderson

How con artists will steal your savings and inheritance through telemarketing fraud, investment schemes and consumer scams.

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Tags: scams

The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions

by Ben Mezrich