Michael Lewis (author)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Michael Lewis (born 1960, New Orleans, Louisiana) is an American contemporary non-fiction author. His bestselling books include Liar's Poker, The New New Thing, Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, and The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game.
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[edit] Early life
After graduating from the Isidore Newman School in New Orleans, he received a BA in art history from Princeton University and a masters degree in economics from the London School of Economics.[1]
[edit] Writing
He went on to work with New York art dealer Wildenstein, and then become a bond salesman at Salomon Brothers in London, an experience he described in his first book, Liar's Poker (1989). The book has since become a must-read for anyone aspiring to become a financier. While at Salomon Brothers, he continued to work nights and weekends as a journalist, an effort he continues to this day with pieces for periodicals like The New York Times Magazine.
In the The New New Thing (1999) he investigated the then-booming Silicon Valley technological scene, and discussed obsession with innovation. He considered this phenomenon both from the perspective of the computer engineers actually making the new products, and the entrepreneurs who invested in them.
Four years later, Lewis again entered the cultural mainstream with Moneyball, in which he investigated the dramatic success of Billy Beane and the Oakland A's, a baseball team which won consistently despite not being particularly well-funded by Major League Baseball standards. He noted the influence of baseball thinkers such as Bill James on the Oakland front office, which used their arguments to find underrated baseball players. In contrast to other teams which still considered potential players almost entirely on their physical abilities, such as speed and strength, Beane considered prior performance at the college and high school level. This allowed him to find players whose physical skills might have been ordinary, but were still able to play extraordinarily well on the field. James also argued that certain skills, such as the ability to get on base, were equally valuable as the ability to hit, though most baseball decision makers considered the latter to be of more importance. Beane was thus able to find players who were able to provide high value for bargain prices. Lewis determined that these strategies, among others, allowed the relatively cash-poor A's to often outperform much wealthier teams.
In August 2007 he wrote an article about catastrophe bonds that appeared in The New York Times Magazine, entitled "In Nature's Casino."[2]
Lewis is currently a contributing writer to the New York Times Magazine, a columnist for Bloomberg, and a visiting fellow at the University of California, Berkeley. He also writes the Dad Again column for Slate.
[edit] Personal life
Lewis was briefly married to former CNBC correspondent Kate Bohner, before marrying the former MTV reporter Tabitha Soren on October 4, 1997. Together they have two daughters and currently live in Berkeley, California.
[edit] Books
- Lewis, Michael (2008). The Real Price of Everything: Rediscovering the Six Classics of Economics. New York: Sterling. ISBN 1-402-74790-X.
- Lewis, Michael (2006). The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-06123-X.
- Lewis, Michael (2005). Coach: Lessons on the Game of Life. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-06091-8.
- Lewis, Michael (2003). Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-05765-8.
- Lewis, Michael (2001). Next: The Future Just Happened. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-02037-1.
- Lewis, Michael (2000). The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley story. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-04813-6.
- Lewis, Michael (1997). Trail Fever. New York: A.A. Knopf. ISBN 0-679-44660-5.
- Lewis, Michael (1991). The Money Culture. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-03037-7.
- Lewis, Michael (1991). Pacific Rift. Knoxville, Tenn.: Whittle Direct Books. ISBN 0-962-47456-8.
- Lewis, Michael (1989). Liar's Poker: Rising through the Wreckage on Wall Street. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-02750-3.
[edit] Stories
- Lewis, Michael (2007-8-26), “In Nature's Casino”, The New York Times Magazine.[3]
- Lewis, Michael (2005-10-09), “Wading Toward Home”, The New York Times Magazine
[edit] External links
- Profile in Literati.net
- The Future Just Happened
- List of books and articles
- Birnbaum v. Michael Lewis, an interview
