The Bottom of the Sky

A Novel

By: William C. Pack

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 21 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

The Bottom of the Sky is an aching rags to riches family saga that surges from rural squalor into the opulent power chambers of Wall Street and Silicon Valley. The story contrasts the 30-year struggles of an abused sister and brother who seek to reclaim themselves from their abhorrent past. One is abandoned to a life of sexual desecration and addiction. The other escapes with his demons to wield fragile, uncanny genius and unrelenting ambition to amass staggering wealth.

Greed and betrayal power a tense plot involving the FBI, the SEC, and billions of dollars fleeced from brokerage customers and shareholders, while isolation and envy lead to deadly confrontations back home. It is a riveting tale of two disparate worlds joined by one desperate man and his ultimate redemption.

©2009 William C. Pack (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

The Bottom of the Sky

Any additional comments?

Audiobook. If you’re a fan of the uplifting story, this book is not for you. This is a very sad story and within a few pages, the neurosis of the main characters has an obvious root in child abuse. A few issues follow.

One, each chapter is opened with a literary quote. Sometimes this is a well understood prelude to the following chapter content. Often, it seemed unrelated and annoying. An author attempt to create the next great literary novel? In my opinion, it’s not.

Two, the book is much longer than it needs to be to tell the story. Admirable decades in high finance comes through, more than necessary. This book should be split in two: One non-fiction and educational about the world of high-finance and brokerage. The second, a fiction about the story of Levi and Lam and their personal struggles.

Three, way too many characters in Levi’s professional life. Having been in a similar world, albeit not finance, I could easily relate to the myriad of personalities, the boardrooms and limos. But, there were simply too many names to keep track of, some not adding to the story arc at all. I finally stopped trying to keep them all straight.

With few exceptions, each of the main characters in this book has a boatload of personal demons. In my opinion, some of the behavior is over the top for anyone not institutionalized.

Narration is performed by Scott Brick. The story is depressing; the reading reflects the exasperation, desperation, and weight of the world carried by the characters.

Depressing and Disappointing Narration

I am a huge Scott Brick fan, but this is one book where I found his narration to be annoying and at times hard to follow. Scott Brick has never been great in voice differentiation, and this book is definitely no exception. I forced myself to get all the way to the end and was relieved when it was over. This is one to stay away from.