Read Jason Kersten's posts on the Penguin Blog. The true story of a brilliant counterfeiter who "made" millions, outwitted the Secret Service, and was finally undone when he went in search of the one thing his forged money couldn't buy him: family. Art Williams spent his boyhood in a comfortable middle-class existence in 1970s Chicago, but his idyll was shattered when, in short order, his father abandoned the family, his bipolar mother lost her wits, and Williams found himself living in one of Chicago's worst housing projects. He took to crime almost immediately, starting with petty theft before graduating to robbing drug dealers. Eventually a man nicknamed "DaVinci" taught him the centuries-old art of counterfeiting. After a stint in jail, Williams emerged to discover that the Treasury Department had issued the most secure hundred-dollar bill ever created: the 1996 New Note. Williams spent months trying to defeat various security features before arriving at a bill so perfect that even law enforcement had difficulty distinguishing it from the real thing. Williams went on to print millions in counterfeit bills, selling them to criminal organizations and using them to fund cross-country spending sprees. Still unsatisfied, he went off in search of his long-lost father, setting in motion a chain of betrayals that would be his undoing. In The Art of Making Money, journalist Jason Kersten details how Williams painstakingly defeated the anti-forging features of the New Note, how Williams and his partner-in-crime wife converted fake bills into legitimate tender at shopping malls all over America, and how they stayed one step ahead of the Secret Service until trusting the wrong person brought them all down. A compulsively readable story of how having it all is never enough, The Art of Making Money is a stirring portrait of the rise and inevitable fall of a modern-day criminal mastermind. Watch a Video

P.T. Barnum, the legendary showman and entrepreneur, shares his timeless wisdom in The Art of Money Getting; or, Golden Rules for Making Money. Drawing on his vast experience in business, Barnum outlines practical strategies for achieving financial success without compromising integrity. With wit and insight, he emphasizes the importance of perseverance, adaptability, and, most importantly, honesty in the pursuit of wealth. Far from being just a collection of get-rich-quick tips, this book serves as a guide to personal and professional development, teaching readers how to navigate the challenges of life and business with sound principles and a clear mind. A classic work that remains as relevant today as it was in Barnum’s time, this is essential reading for anyone looking to build a lasting fortune.

The true story of a brilliant counterfeiter who made millions, outwitted the Secret Service, and was finally undone when he went in search of the one thing his forged money couldn't buy: family.

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 Art wants quality, while business wants profit. Great artists fight for quality expenditures, while successful businessmen fight against them. #2 The Gift explains why artists don’t make money: because art is a gift, and anything that is not a gift in some sense is not art. In the market economy, profits start to demand giving less and charging more. #3 The art of the genius is not rewarded by capitalism. The art of the entrepreneur is not appreciated by society. The art of the artisan is not appreciated by society, and yet it is the only way to make a living as an artist. #4 The artist who sells his own creations must develop a more subjective feel for the two economies and his own rituals for keeping them apart and bringing them together. He must be able to disengage from the work and think of it as a commodity, while also remembering that it is worth more than just money.