BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES BOOK REVIEW, 15 YEARS LATE
I spent the last week reading BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES by Tom Wolfe. This book was originally published in 1987, and the MOVIE starring Tom Hanks and Bruce Willis was release in 1990. I never saw the movie, which didn't get very good review, but the book is outstanding. Other than the obvious absence of cell phones, this book could very well be set in 2002. The book takes a satirical and brutal look at New York society and the justice system. The characters in the book may be satires, but they could be taken right out of the news. The characters include a civil rights demagogue who is nothing more than a self-promoting shakedown artist, a district attorney who cares more about re-election than justice, and a free-loading con artist disguised as a journalist. Four stars out of four.