| Description |
244 pages ; 24 cm |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references. |
| Contents |
Making plans -- I want to be an accountant -- The sky is the limit -- Grinding it out -- Flying above the clouds -- Gilded barges -- Free fall -- Righting the ship -- Never enough space -- Cash crunch -- Blinded by thirst -- Pulling the trigger -- Too many boats -- Disaster -- I'd rather be surfing -- Sell everything -- Another fall -- Bring on the sun beds -- Smooth but unlawful -- Forget the green -- A box within a box -- It's not my fault -- We're going home! -- It's not just copying -- An extreme hardship -- Let's roll!. |
| Summary |
"Doug Von Allmen, a self-made man who grew up in a landlocked state dreaming of the ocean, was poised to build a 187-foot yacht that would cost forty million. Lady Linda would not be among the very largest of the burgeoning fleet of oceangoing palaces, but Von Allmen vowed that it would be the best one ever made in the United States. Nothing would be ordinary. The interior walls would be made from rare species of burl wood, the floors paved with onyx and exotic types of marble, the furniture custom made, and the art specially commissioned. But the 2008 economic crisis changed everything. Von Allmen's lifestyle suddenly became unaffordable. Then it got worse: desperate to reverse his losses, he fell for an audacious Ponzi scheme. Would Von Allmen be able to complete Lady Linda? Would the shipyard and its one thousand employees survive the financial meltdown? The divide between the very rich and everyone else had never been greater, yet the livelihoods of the workers, some of them illegal immigrants, and the yacht owners were inextricably intertwined. As the pursuit of opulence collides with the reality of economic decline, everyone involved in the massive project is forced to rethink the meaning of the American Dream. |
| Subject |
Lady Linda (Yacht)
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Yachting -- United States -- Biography.
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Yacht building -- United States -- History.
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Von Allmen, Doug.
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Capitalists and financiers -- Florida -- Biography.
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Venture capital -- United States -- Biography.
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Trinity Yachts (Firm)
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Boatbuilding -- Mississippi.
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Boatbuilders -- Mississippi -- Biography.
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Boating industry -- United States -- Biography.
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| ISBN |
9781416576006 hardcover $26.99 |
|
1416576002 hardcover |
|
