Catch Me If You Can

Awesome.

First of all let me state that I think Frank Abagnale Jr. is extremely awesome. First he conned the U.S. out of millions of dollars, then he proceeded to con other countries out of their money too. He then escaped the governments wrath multiple times, once even escaping from an airplane. And he did all of this before he was even 21. Then he managed to work out a deal with the FBI where he only got 4 years of prison time, as long as he helped them with fraud cases. Nowadays he is making millions of legitimate dollars in this business.

This book is mostly a book about his life, and how he did all of the cons. It is extremely interesting because many of the stories he has to tell are amazing. However the book is very different from the movie because it is much harsher. The movie depicts Abagnale's childhood as loving and sweet(at least in the beginning), when in reality he was conning ever since he was a kid and he got in trouble for it multiple times. In fact he was the reason that his Dad lost most of his money, but the movie doesn't tell you that. Instead they paint this picture of him being the greatest son ever. 

Can you blame them for making him
so lovable though? I mean look
at that face...

It also leaves out so many of the cons he pulled, and mainly focuses on the pilot thing. When in reality Abagnale pulled many more cons. He rerouted peoples deposits, posed as a pediatrician, an attorney, a sociology teacher(in utah!), a Pan-Am advertising agent, and a supervisor in a hospital in Georgia. It focuses less on his feelings throughout the experience, and more on the actual experience itself. So although the book may be less tearjerking than what the movie had prepared me for however it was also darker. It goes into more detail about his experience in the french prison, which was a 5 foot by 5 foot bow, with no light and nothing but a bucket. 

Overall I give this book a 5 out of 5 on how much it makes me want to drop out of high school and become a con artist. Minus the prison part of course. 

This is a 16 year old con artist who made millions of dollars (both legitimately and illegitimately), passed the BAR, escaped the FBI through a toilet, tricked dozens of models into following him around the world, and even got Leonardo Dicaprio to play him in a movie that was all about his life... and if you're still unimpressed with all that he also has a musical based off of his story. 

And yes, that is Aaron Tveit, the love of my life.