It’s really good, but don’t take my word for it. Here’s Bethany McLean, author of one of the best books ever in the genre, “The Smartest Guys in the Room”:
“Ever since the GameStop saga erupted into the headlines in the winter of 2021, we’ve all been waiting for the definitive take. Spencer Jakab’s book is it. No matter how much you think you know about Wall Street, this book will surprise you, infuriate you – and educate you.”
BethanyMcLean
And here’s Professor Burton Malkiel, author of the investing classic “A Random Walk Down Wall Street” with an astounding 1.5 million copies in print.
“Delightfully written illustrations of how “free” and gamified trading has contributed to frenzied stock market activity with some serious warnings about the dangers facing retail investors tempted to join the wild party. The saga of GameStop and other meme stocks is revealed with the skill of a thrilling whodunit. Jakab writes with an anti-Midas touch. If he touched gold, he would bring it to life.”
Burton Malkiel
And Robin Wigglesworth, chief finance correspondent at the Financial Times and author of “Trillions,” a fantastic read about the history of index funds:
“Spencer Jakab’s The Revolution That Wasn’t is essential, riveting reading if you want to understand the collision of long and short-term factors that sparked the remarkable “meme stonk” frenzy of 2021. Jakab adeptly skewers the popular but dangerously wrong narrative of Reddit’s David thumping Wall Street’s Goliath, and shows how the casino always wins in the end. DeepF***ingRespect for an important book with lessons far more durable than GameStop’s stock market levitation.”
Robin Wigglesworth
I could go on because I’m really vain and there are a bunch more, including from Scott Galloway, Kirkus, Publisher’s Weekly, Mel Lindauer of Bogleheads fame, and Wired, but I won’t because I haven’t even told you what my book is about: I dissected GameStop mania and what it means for small investors. From the book jacket:
From Wall Street Journal columnist Spencer Jakab, the real story of the GameStop squeeze—and the surprising winners of a rigged game
During one crazy week in January 2021, a motley crew of retail traders on Reddit’s r/wallstreetbets forum had seemingly done the impossible—they had brought some of the biggest, richest players on Wall Street to their knees. Their weapon was GameStop, a failing retailer whose shares briefly became the most-traded security on the planet and the subject of intense media coverage.
The Revolution That Wasn’t is the riveting story of how the meme stock squeeze unfolded, and of the real architects (and winners) of the GameStop rally. Drawing on his years as a stock analyst at a major bank, Jakab exposes technological and financial innovations such as Robinhood’s habit-forming smartphone app as ploys to get our dollars within the larger story of evolving social and economic pressures. The surprising truth? What appeared to be a watershed moment—a revolution that stripped the ultra-powerful hedge funds of their market influence, placing power back in the hands of everyday investors—only tilted the odds further in the house’s favor.
Online brokerages love to talk about empowerment and “democratizing finance” while profiting from the mistakes and volatility created by novice investors. In this nuanced analysis, Jakab shines a light on the often-misunderstood profit motives and financial mechanisms to show how this so-called revolution is, on balance, a bonanza for Wall Street. But, Jakab argues, there really is a way for ordinary investors to beat the pros: by refusing to play their game.

Please check it out and, if you like it, don’t forget to leave a review – it matters. And if you don’t like it? Well, you know what they say – nobody likes a gossip.