A coming-of-age true crime memoir centered around three childhood friends who hatch a plan to steal millions of dollars’ worth of artwork and rare manuscripts from a university museum– a gripping adventure of teenage rebellion.
Read MoreA coming-of-age true crime memoir centered around three childhood friends who hatch a plan to steal millions of dollars’ worth of artwork and rare manuscripts from a university museum– a gripping adventure of teenage rebellion.
Read MoreAS SEEN IN THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE
“One of the most esoteric and far-fetched crimes in21st-century annals.”
—The Hollywood Reporter
“A rare book heist that Danny Ocean may have applauded—except for one mistake.”
—Vanity Fair
“A tragicomedy of errors.”
—Salon
“They are the young people, the people with the idealism, the passion, the courage to do something interesting with their lives: an act of daring almost artistic in its originality. They are almost right.”
—The Guardian
“One of the biggest art heists in FBI history.”
—The Times of London
American Animals is a coming-of-age crime memoir centered around three childhood friends: Warren, Spencer, and Eric. Disillusioned with freshman year of college and determined to escape from their mundane Middle-American existences, the three hatch a plan to steal millions of dollars’ worth of artwork and rare manuscripts from a university museum. The story that unfolds is a gripping adventure of teenage rebellion, from page-turning meetings with black-market art dealers in Amsterdam to the opulent galleries of Christie’s auction house in Rockefeller Center. American Animals ushers the reader along a gut-wrenching ride of adolescent self-destruction. Providing a front-row seat to the inception, planning, and execution of the heist, while offering a rare glimpse into the evolution of a crime—all narrated by one of the perpetrators in a darkly comic, action-packed, true-crime caper.
“One of the most esoteric and far-fetched crimes in 21st-century annals.”
—The Hollywood Reporter“A rare book heist that Danny Ocean may have applauded—except for one mistake.”
—Vanity Fair“A tragicomedy of errors.”
—Salon“They are the young people, the people with the idealism, the passion, the courage to do something interesting with their lives: an act of daring almost artistic in its originality. They are almost right.”
—The Guardian“One of the biggest art heists in FBI history.”
—The Times of London
"True crime heist tales almost inevitably include an idea that is simultaneously brilliant, crazy, and idiotic, and American Animals is no different. What makes this memoir so entertaining and unusual is that one of the college student knuckleheads involved in this fine art robbery also happens to be a gifted writer. Borsuk's coming of age confession is funny, fast-paced, and highly believable."
––Guy Lawson, New York Times bestselling author of War Dogs"Eric Borsuk writes beautifully, inhabiting the fertile and scattered minds of these young college students with a style that is both raw and brutally self-aware. The streamlined writing fuels an explosive plotline, and the result is a fine book that is spare and literary while also compulsively readable. A literary page-turner!"
––Stephen Elliot, bestselling author of The Adderall Diaries"It's an oft-told tale – a group of stoner college friends pull off the daring daytime heist of a rare book library and trigger a transcontinental caper involving the FBI, Christie's auction house and dirtball Dutchmen – but in Eric Borsuk's hands, it's like we're hearing it all for the first time. In all seriousness, Borsuk is a damn fine writer, and he has penned an utterly unique coming-of-age memoir, one that is alternately poignant and hilarious but uniformly brilliant. I can't wait to read the next installment of his life story - one that hopefully doesn't involve another lengthy prison sentence."
––Scott Anderson, bestselling author of Lawrence in Arabia"A burningly vibrant, beautifully iconic fast-paced American coming of age heist story."
––Royal Young, author of Fame Shark"An ill-conceived rare-book heist becomes the chrysalis for a rare sort of book indeed: a true-crime memoir that takes off on the wings of Borsuk's deft prose, dark humor, and often disarming humanity."
––Charles Siebert, award-winning author and journalist"American Animals is a book unlike any I've ever read. The twist and turns and audacity can lend themselves to incredulity, but at the heart of this book is a humanness that even those shaking their heads the most will have to recognize. Eric Borsuk's work here is as daring as any heist."
––Jared Yates Sexton, author of The People Are Going To Rise Like The Waters Upon Your Shore: A Story of American Rage"Borsuk smoothly combines humor with the ennui of being a truly lost boy. This is a must for fans of the 2018 movie of the same name based on this story. "
––Publisher’s Weekly"A raucous and outrageous coming-of-age tale."
––Booklist
AS SEEN IN THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE
“One of the most esoteric and far-fetched crimes in21st-century annals.”
—The Hollywood Reporter
“A rare book heist that Danny Ocean may have applauded—except for one mistake.”
—Vanity Fair
“A tragicomedy of errors.”
—Salon
“They are the young people, the people with the idealism, the passion, the courage to do something interesting with their lives: an act of daring almost artistic in its originality. They are almost right.”
—The Guardian
“One of the biggest art heists in FBI history.”
—The Times of London
American Animals is a coming-of-age crime memoir centered around three childhood friends: Warren, Spencer, and Eric. Disillusioned with freshman year of college and determined to escape from their mundane Middle-American existences, the three hatch a plan to steal millions of dollars’ worth of artwork and rare manuscripts from a university museum. The story that unfolds is a gripping adventure of teenage rebellion, from page-turning meetings with black-market art dealers in Amsterdam to the opulent galleries of Christie’s auction house in Rockefeller Center. American Animals ushers the reader along a gut-wrenching ride of adolescent self-destruction. Providing a front-row seat to the inception, planning, and execution of the heist, while offering a rare glimpse into the evolution of a crime—all narrated by one of the perpetrators in a darkly comic, action-packed, true-crime caper.
“One of the most esoteric and far-fetched crimes in 21st-century annals.”
—The Hollywood Reporter“A rare book heist that Danny Ocean may have applauded—except for one mistake.”
—Vanity Fair“A tragicomedy of errors.”
—Salon“They are the young people, the people with the idealism, the passion, the courage to do something interesting with their lives: an act of daring almost artistic in its originality. They are almost right.”
—The Guardian“One of the biggest art heists in FBI history.”
—The Times of London
"True crime heist tales almost inevitably include an idea that is simultaneously brilliant, crazy, and idiotic, and American Animals is no different. What makes this memoir so entertaining and unusual is that one of the college student knuckleheads involved in this fine art robbery also happens to be a gifted writer. Borsuk's coming of age confession is funny, fast-paced, and highly believable."
––Guy Lawson, New York Times bestselling author of War Dogs"Eric Borsuk writes beautifully, inhabiting the fertile and scattered minds of these young college students with a style that is both raw and brutally self-aware. The streamlined writing fuels an explosive plotline, and the result is a fine book that is spare and literary while also compulsively readable. A literary page-turner!"
––Stephen Elliot, bestselling author of The Adderall Diaries"It's an oft-told tale – a group of stoner college friends pull off the daring daytime heist of a rare book library and trigger a transcontinental caper involving the FBI, Christie's auction house and dirtball Dutchmen – but in Eric Borsuk's hands, it's like we're hearing it all for the first time. In all seriousness, Borsuk is a damn fine writer, and he has penned an utterly unique coming-of-age memoir, one that is alternately poignant and hilarious but uniformly brilliant. I can't wait to read the next installment of his life story - one that hopefully doesn't involve another lengthy prison sentence."
––Scott Anderson, bestselling author of Lawrence in Arabia"A burningly vibrant, beautifully iconic fast-paced American coming of age heist story."
––Royal Young, author of Fame Shark"An ill-conceived rare-book heist becomes the chrysalis for a rare sort of book indeed: a true-crime memoir that takes off on the wings of Borsuk's deft prose, dark humor, and often disarming humanity."
––Charles Siebert, award-winning author and journalist"American Animals is a book unlike any I've ever read. The twist and turns and audacity can lend themselves to incredulity, but at the heart of this book is a humanness that even those shaking their heads the most will have to recognize. Eric Borsuk's work here is as daring as any heist."
––Jared Yates Sexton, author of The People Are Going To Rise Like The Waters Upon Your Shore: A Story of American Rage"Borsuk smoothly combines humor with the ennui of being a truly lost boy. This is a must for fans of the 2018 movie of the same name based on this story. "
––Publisher’s Weekly"A raucous and outrageous coming-of-age tale."
––Booklist