Eyeing the Flash: The Education of a Carnival Con Artist

Aug 13, Gabe Labovitz rated it really liked it. This was a fun little book, quick-reading. A bonus for me was that it took place in MI, so many of the locations rang true though the main character's hometown of Mineralton is obviously fictional. If by its description and cover you want to read it, you will probably not be disappointed. Conversely, if it doesn't look interesting to you, you probably won't find it interesting.

Sep 30, Patrick rated it really liked it Shelves: This volume is a true story of how one individual became a side-show con artist. It describes the techniques the 'carnies' use to empty the pockets of the rubes that enter the tents of the traveling fairs, carnivals and circuses. I recommend this book if you want a 'beyond the canvas' look at what it takes to scam the innocent and live the life of a showman Nov 24, Lorie rated it really liked it. But as I read, I kept thinking that I'd never believe this if I hadn't been there myself, which I have to a lesser degree.

Jun 07, Jilly rated it really liked it Shelves: I think this guy used to come into my parent's drive-in. Jun 25, Heather rated it really liked it Shelves: I rather enjoyed this look into the bizarre world of a carnival con artist.

May 10, Dave Peticolas rated it liked it. Fenton's memoir of his time as a carnival con-man. A carny memoir that brings unexpected depth to a familiar setting. Mar 29, Phil W rated it liked it. I felt like the truth was stretched quite a bit at moments but enjoyed reading it nevertheless. May 12, Joey Allison rated it really liked it. Fast paced, engaging, and unique.

The questionable morality displayed by these characters is fascinating and had me hooked as I tried to understand Jackie and co's justification for blatantly ripping people off. A cool look into the lives of some shady characters! Sep 15, Thomas Edmund rated it liked it. I picked up this piece looking forward to learning everything there was to know about Carnival Con-men, and instead gleaned a chunk of Fenton's tough upbringing, a dose of his carnival experiences and just a tiny touch of romance.

Altogether the read was fun and insightful, but lacked a sense of direction or resolution. While individual anecdotals and situations were cool, overall it was hard to get a sense of how Fenton actually felt about his life. Was he living a dream that couldn't last, was I picked up this piece looking forward to learning everything there was to know about Carnival Con-men, and instead gleaned a chunk of Fenton's tough upbringing, a dose of his carnival experiences and just a tiny touch of romance. Was he living a dream that couldn't last, was he working in a slummy hell out of necessity, or was Fenton's young life just something a little different from most?

Jul 19, Rose Lerner rated it it was amazing Shelves: If you like con artists, heist stories, or painful memoirs with unreliable narrators who seem determined to show themselves in the worst possible light and I love all three , this book is for you.

Teenager Peter Fenton escapes from his unpleasant home life through his unhealthy friendship with a fellow high school student who is also a bookie, fledgling con artist, and the son of carnival owners and has, to Pete's shock, an even more disturbing home life than Pete himself. I couldn't put it down. Jun 09, Ashley rated it it was ok. It had great reviews comparing it to "a cross between Ferris Bueller and William S. Burroghs" by the NY Times.

I must not have been reading the same book. It was enough to keep me reading, but was not great by any means. I was bored and couldn't wait to finish it so I could go on to something new. Again, it was made out to be a great book, funny and interesting, and it might be for someone else.

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I didn't find it that good at all. Dec 27, David Ward rated it liked it Shelves: If true, this book is the author's memoir of his time as a young man working as a carnival con artist. But is it true? The author's CV states that he spent years writing for the National Enquirer. Should that influence my thinking? Enquiring minds want to know! Jan 28, Howard Mansfield rated it liked it. A funny, romping read about the sleaze of the con and the making of a young artist at a small Midwestern carnival, c.

1. Ein Einblick in den Umgang mit der Orthographie in den neuen Medien am Beispiel der Rechtschreibung in Kurznachrichten (SMS) (German Edition).
2. Eyeing the Flash: The Making of a Carnival Con Artist.
3. Eyeing the Flash: The Education of a Carnival Con Artist - Peter Fenton - Google Книги;

The deeper Fenton goes into the varieties of scams -- the Hanky Pank, Alibi and Flatties -- the more rollicking the book gets. At Alibis the carny gives the mark an alibi for missing the pins, etc. Eyeing the Flash is a terrific tour of low-rent Barnum. Nov 16, J rated it really liked it. Having worked the similar and at the same time dissimilar business of corporate amusement park games I found the reality and the life lessons to be spot on.

And believe me, covering the spot is difficult.

Eyeing the Flash: The Making of a Carnival Con Artist by Peter Fenton

That's why it gives away the big prizes. Jan 22, Irene rated it liked it. Excellent glimpse into carnival life, told in the style of any good jackpot. Jul 23, John Taylor rated it really liked it. Had similar experiences as the protagonist in this book.



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Dec 24, Andrea Patrick rated it really liked it. Jun 15, Terrence rated it really liked it. Very interesting and entertaining look into the world of carnival game "agents". Reading this makes me glad that I never wasted any money at carnivals. Ryan Jones rated it liked it Nov 23, Ren rated it liked it Nov 06, Jessica rated it it was amazing Oct 02, There are no discussion topics on this book yet.

Peter Fenton is author of the memoir Eyeing the Flash: Burroughs…a hilarious, twisted, coming-of-age story.

2 editions of this work

He lives in Oregon. Books by Peter Fenton. Jackie is the unlikely progeny of Double-O and Vera, professional grifters running a third-rate traveling carnival, and he's been part of the family business since he started earning his keep as the World's Youngest Elephant Trainer. Jackie is a smooth-talking teenage carnie with his own Thunderbird, and with wisdom beyond his years.

Jackie shares Pete's way with numbers, and he has a proposition. They'll start a rigged casino in Jackie's basement and take their classmates for thousands of dollars. Pete hesitates, but not for very long. Two years later, he's working joints for the Barrons' Party Time Shows, wearing sharkskin suits and alligator shoes, and relieving the public of its hard-earned cash.

He learns to hold his own with veteran con men who have nicknames like the Ghost, Horserace Harry, and Talking Tony, and colorful personalities to match. This is the world of the Alibi and the Hanky Pank, of Flatties and the mark. Amazingly, Pete Fenton has never been more at home. But in this strange new world with its topsy-turvy code of ethics, where leaving a mark without a dollar for gas is outlawed while cheating a best friend is par for the course, the tension between teacher and student grows until Pete finds himself attempting the ultimate challenge: