The Bonfire of the Vanities Paperback – March 4, 2008

Classic truth-telling in an ironic and funny style. Much better than the movie. Scenes at aristocratic parties, in the DA’s office, are unbelievably veridical.

In the end, I loved this book. I wasn't so sure initially; the story takes some time to unfold, but it's quick moving the entire time and once it ended I was sad that it was over. It's obviously dated because it takes place in the 80s, but if you were alive in the 80s it works. Loved it and I'd highly recommend it as fast-paced 700 pager. 4.5 stars.

I read and enjoyed this book previously in the late 80's. The passing of a further twenty-five years or so have brought it some clarity. I've got to highly recommend it, although there is one flaw that SHOULD push the rating just below 5 stars. More of that later.Sherman McCoy has it all. He makes a million dollars a year selling bonds for a top Wall Street firm. He lives in a 14 room, one-apartment-with-servants-wing-to-a-floor building on Park Avenue enjoying picturesque park views. His devoted wife--a little older than him and not as attractive as she once was--has carved out a career as an interior designer published in Architectural Digest, and his idealized 12 year old daughter attends the toniest private school with it's own shuttle that tools up and down Park Ave. gathering golden children in the promised land. Topping it off is his mid-20's mistress who he joins for the occasional impromptu tryst in another woman's rent-controlled apartment ($333/month)that the mistress--trophy wife of a self-made Jewish gillionaire--coopts from her for $750/month.Sherman's (SHUHMAN, the mistress calls him through her South Carolinian accent)fantasy life begins to come unravelled when he misses a turn off to Manhattan and ends up in the Bronx one evening after picking up his paramour at Kennedy airport. He goes from missplaced to lost and stops at an on-ramp because of an abandoned tire in his path. Two black youths appear from the side and a larger one come towards him somewhat quickly. This is the point where a spoiler opportunity presents itself to me, I'll resist the temptation, but the upthrust is that one of the youths gets struck by Sherman's car and the balance of the book is devoted to the downward spiral in Sherman's life this produces.The only flaw in the book occurs when detectives first visit Sherman's apartment to get a look at his car as a function of their hit-and-run investigation. The struck youth went to the hospital with a wrist injury, is treated and leaves with undiagnosed head trauma that later produces a coma (ultimately fatal). He told his mother he had been hit by a Mercedes with a license plate beginning with an R and a second number with a full ascender (my words, not his) like an "I" a "P" or an "F". After a self-appointed civil rights leader/preacher looking for a fast buck produces PR that takes talk of the accident to viral extremes, the police launch their investigation that leads them to Sherman's (and 500 other) doors to examine their cars. With so many possibilities, the police are just looking to eliminate the cars with no physical damage.Sherman blows the interview and arouses their suspicion. His behavior is not only ridiculous and outrageous, it's also unbelievable. Here he is, a self-styled "Master of the Universe" (as a bond salesman) and he can't act cool in a not even unexpected situation? Here, the author almost lost me. I was very disappointed.But he had to do this to produce the rest of the action of the book, which was well drawn and monumental. The author's gift of language, or characterization, or descriptive narrative--I could go on--are beyond comparison. This is a masterful story-teller at the peak of his powers.For those of you that look for "messages" in better fiction, you see how revered American institutions can be prostituted and perverted by the whims of angry crowds and determined behind-the-scenes influencers. Courts aren't supposed to function like the one in the Bronx, but, in context, it seems the most natural thing in the world.This is not Tom Wolfe's best book, but it's better than just about anyone elses.

A Wall Street bond trader’s perfectly manicured life spins out of control in this novel about status, racial and class divisions, and power in 1980s New York. Sherman is on top of the world, a self-described “Master of the Universe,” before he makes a mistake that shatters his life. He has a wife, a young daughter he adores, and a mistress. She is the wife of a business magnate, and they frequent the same clubs and go to the same dinner parties.Sherman’s world is rocked the night he picks up his mistress, Maria, from the airport. He takes the wrong turn, gets lost, and ends up in the Bronx. He and Maria go down one unfamiliar street after another and eventually find an on-ramp to the highway. Unfortunately, a tire is blocking it. Sherman gets out of the car, and two teens appear, asking if he needs help. He suspects a set-up and rolls the tire at one of the youths. Meanwhile, Maria takes the wheel and shouts to Sherman to get in the car. They careen out of the area, but not before they reverse and hear a thud.Sherman looks behind him, and one of the young men has disappeared. He spends the next few days haunted by the thought that he hit one of the teens. Sherman’s world crumbles. Worries consume him, so that he loses focus. He costs his employer millions due to his inattention. Little by little, he loses his edge and scans newspapers frantically, looking for articles about an accident that killed a boy in the Bronx. The blow comes when he finds an article describing an honor student going to the store who was hit by a car that left the scene. Another problem arises when he is seated next to Maria at a dinner party, and Sherman’s wife finds out about the affair. Sherman’s situation becomes desperate. The police call on him because the teen who is critically injured identifies the make of the car and the first two letters of the license plate.Even though the book is lengthy, it is hard to put down. It’s easy to read and written in Tom Wolfe’s signature dark humor style. You feel claustrophobic as Sherman’s life implodes. I recommend this book to all who would enjoy a satire of Wall Street in the 80s.

I admit I do not care for Mr. Wolf's writing style. Not a big fan of J.D Salinger either, or Faulkner, although I've read severalof his books. The stream of consciousness style just doesn't work for me, so it was a bit of a struggle to get through this tome, especially since I couldn't really get behind any of the characters. If you like that kind of style, you'll enjoy this book. If you are like me, and like a more "traditional" style, it may be hard to get through.