Friday, May 13, 2011

Pg. 69: Peter Mountford's "A Young Man's Guide to Late Capitalism"

The current feature at the Page 69 Test: A Young Man's Guide to Late Capitalism by Peter Mountford.

About the book, from the publisher:
On his first assignment for a rapacious hedge fund, Gabriel embarks to Bolivia at the end of 2005 to ferret out insider information about the plans of the controversial president-elect. If Gabriel succeeds, he will get a bonus that would make him secure for life. Standing in his way are his headstrong mother, herself a survivor of Pinochet’s Chile, and Gabriel’s new love interest, the president’s passionate press liaison. Caught in a growing web of lies and questioning his own role in profiting from an impoverished people, Gabriel sets in motion a terrifying plan that could cost him the love of all those he holds dear.

In the tradition of Martin Amis, Joshua Ferris, and Sam Lipsyte—set against the stunning mountainous backdrop of La Paz and interspersed with Bolivia’s sad history of stubborn survival—Peter Mountford examines the critical choices a young man makes as his world closes in on him.
While writing about economics in Ecuador for a nonprofit think tank, Peter Mountford noticed his byline read "senior associate" for a hedge fund he'd never heard of. It turned out the think tank was running the hedge fund out of its back office--inspiration for A Young Man's Guide to Late Capitalism.

View a trailer for the novel, and learn more about the book and author at Peter Mountford's website.

The Page 69 Test: A Young Man's Guide to Late Capitalism.

--Marshal Zeringue