Helpful Score: 3
Awesome account of a jewel thief; great insight into some of the social engineering skills of a master; it's not all about picking locks and acetylene torches, it's always the humans that are the weakest link.
Helpful Score: 3
Very interesting - basically an ordinary guy who gets sucked into a life of thievery. He robbed the mafia, Phyllis Diller, and other rich people over the years using incredibly ingenious methods. So ingenious, in fact, that investigators into most of these jewel heists presumed a gang was at work. In fact, it was Mason alone, who never worked with a partner. It's amazing how his life experiences come together to lead him down his chosen road as a Master Jewel Thief. Fascinating!!!!
Helpful Score: 2
"Nothing works more in a thief's favor than people feeling secure. That's why places that are heavily alarmed and guarded can sometimes be the easiest targets. The single most important factor in security--more than locks, alarms, sensors or armed guards--is attitude. A building protected by nothing more than a cheap combination lock but inhabited by people who are alert and risk-aware is much safer than one with the world's most sophisticated alarm system whose tenants assume they're living in an impregnable fortress."
Very entertaining autobio by a (mostly) reformed jewel thief. I have this book to thank (?) for introducing the term "absolutely the cat's nuts" into my vocabulary.
Very entertaining autobio by a (mostly) reformed jewel thief. I have this book to thank (?) for introducing the term "absolutely the cat's nuts" into my vocabulary.
I tried to finish this book but midway through I gave up. It just didn't grab me. I think this could have been a shorter book. I didn't have any moral qualms about what he was doing. Not that I approve of stealing, but the title tells you right off the bat he's a thief so there's no surprise there. The surprise was how uninteresting this book was to me. I thought it would be more interesting, but parts of the book just didn't flow well.