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Petroleum, Mining & Geological
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 Customer Reviews
Rig Star, 06 Aug 2008
Autobiographies about out of control rockstars are ten a penny, similar books about "normal" people far less common. The reason for that is pretty simple I guess, we aspire to our dreams and wishes...and with the best will in the world I don't wanna work on a rig. Never the less Paul Carters book is a pretty good read, he wizzes around the world and keeps things snappy, even if the claims on the cover are a little exagerated - taken hostage...er where?. He's no crazy Keith Moon character either, its the situation rather than the personality thats amusing here.
A good, but slight, read.
A bland tall tale, 12 May 2008
I work in the oil industry and based on the other reviews,looked forward to reading this immensely. What a letdown! Paul may have travelled all over the world,but the tales just smacked of the 'bloke in the pub' tales - there wasn't any detail of the work that he did,just lots ofblokeish stories.Even when he did actually talk about the work, it was so out of context and poorly explained as to be meaningless. Sadly a big disappointment - spend your money on something else!
Health and safety? I think not., 14 Apr 2008
This book takes about two hours to read. It zips through hundreds of hilarious and dangerous situations that the author gets into all over the world. A very funny and rather shocking look at the humour and adrenaline of men working in the oil industry, it will go down well with anyone who enjoys a good lad's mag.
I bought this on spec in Sydney airport where the petite Asian lady in the bookshop said "Oh yes, I've read that, it's excellent." I was a little surprised, perhaps even suspicious and unsure of what I was buying. Now I just have respect for the lady in the shop. This book is all about drunkenness, fights in foreign bars, inappropriate pets, diarrhoea at the worst moment, brutal practical jokes, jungle madness and the raw testosterone-fuelled humour of oil drillers.
When I bought it, I was actually thinking I might learn something about the oil industry, especially since it starts with a little graphic guide to the different types of oil rig and platform. But forget it, the oil is just an excuse for the larks, bravado and cameraderie.
I also wondered about the title: not just "don't tell mum", but also the bit about being a piano player in a whorehouse. Well, forgive the spoiler, but the author's mum worked in the oil industry too, so she knew what he was up to, and never thought he worked in a whorehouse (although he visited enough). But I guess it's a snappy enough title, and it caught my eye.
If you're a real pedant like me you will also find some of Paul Carter's facts are way out, a bit like his spelling (e.g. elementary canal) but this is by-the-by. It's the laughs that make the book.
And if you're a nice mum buying this to try to persuade your precious son that becoming an oilman is too dangerous and dodgy, forget it. He'll read this book and never want to do anything else - apart from reading the sequel "This is not a drill"...
Very entertaining , 06 Apr 2008
Really enjoyed this. Reference to the details of working on a rig went over my head but the anecdotes regarding different countries and cultures were entertaining and it was a very easy enjoyable read.
Oil&Gas Industry at its best...., 18 Mar 2008
I work in the oil&gas industry and hearing some of the stories from people who are on the front line - you would usually find it hard to believe. Someone recommended this book, so I took the plunge and ordered it - and there is nothing much to say but absolutely brilliant. I can believe all the stories that Pauli describe, and having spoken to a few rednecks they only amuse me more. It is however a relatively short book and I've already ordered the sequel. It took me just over a week to read, and whatsmore, reading it on the train can be very dangerous because when it's busy with other commuters, the last thing they want to see is someone laughing so hard that they almost cry. Trust me this book is worth a gallon of petrol (at todays rates) and was undoubtedly the funniest book i've ever read!
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Customer Reviews
Rig Star, 06 Aug 2008
Autobiographies about out of control rockstars are ten a penny, similar books about "normal" people far less common. The reason for that is pretty simple I guess, we aspire to our dreams and wishes...and with the best will in the world I don't wanna work on a rig. Never the less Paul Carters book is a pretty good read, he wizzes around the world and keeps things snappy, even if the claims on the cover are a little exagerated - taken hostage...er where?. He's no crazy Keith Moon character either, its the situation rather than the personality thats amusing here.
A good, but slight, read.
A bland tall tale, 12 May 2008
I work in the oil industry and based on the other reviews,looked forward to reading this immensely. What a letdown! Paul may have travelled all over the world,but the tales just smacked of the 'bloke in the pub' tales - there wasn't any detail of the work that he did,just lots ofblokeish stories.Even when he did actually talk about the work, it was so out of context and poorly explained as to be meaningless. Sadly a big disappointment - spend your money on something else!
Health and safety? I think not., 14 Apr 2008
This book takes about two hours to read. It zips through hundreds of hilarious and dangerous situations that the author gets into all over the world. A very funny and rather shocking look at the humour and adrenaline of men working in the oil industry, it will go down well with anyone who enjoys a good lad's mag.
I bought this on spec in Sydney airport where the petite Asian lady in the bookshop said "Oh yes, I've read that, it's excellent." I was a little surprised, perhaps even suspicious and unsure of what I was buying. Now I just have respect for the lady in the shop. This book is all about drunkenness, fights in foreign bars, inappropriate pets, diarrhoea at the worst moment, brutal practical jokes, jungle madness and the raw testosterone-fuelled humour of oil drillers.
When I bought it, I was actually thinking I might learn something about the oil industry, especially since it starts with a little graphic guide to the different types of oil rig and platform. But forget it, the oil is just an excuse for the larks, bravado and cameraderie.
I also wondered about the title: not just "don't tell mum", but also the bit about being a piano player in a whorehouse. Well, forgive the spoiler, but the author's mum worked in the oil industry too, so she knew what he was up to, and never thought he worked in a whorehouse (although he visited enough). But I guess it's a snappy enough title, and it caught my eye.
If you're a real pedant like me you will also find some of Paul Carter's facts are way out, a bit like his spelling (e.g. elementary canal) but this is by-the-by. It's the laughs that make the book.
And if you're a nice mum buying this to try to persuade your precious son that becoming an oilman is too dangerous and dodgy, forget it. He'll read this book and never want to do anything else - apart from reading the sequel "This is not a drill"...
Very entertaining , 06 Apr 2008
Really enjoyed this. Reference to the details of working on a rig went over my head but the anecdotes regarding different countries and cultures were entertaining and it was a very easy enjoyable read.
Oil&Gas Industry at its best...., 18 Mar 2008
I work in the oil&gas industry and hearing some of the stories from people who are on the front line - you would usually find it hard to believe. Someone recommended this book, so I took the plunge and ordered it - and there is nothing much to say but absolutely brilliant. I can believe all the stories that Pauli describe, and having spoken to a few rednecks they only amuse me more. It is however a relatively short book and I've already ordered the sequel. It took me just over a week to read, and whatsmore, reading it on the train can be very dangerous because when it's busy with other commuters, the last thing they want to see is someone laughing so hard that they almost cry. Trust me this book is worth a gallon of petrol (at todays rates) and was undoubtedly the funniest book i've ever read!
Fact or Fiction ?, 13 Aug 2008
Casing hands have a reputation for embellishing the truth.
They also enjoy macho posturing - hence the side trip to Afghanistan, a country that has nothing to do with the oil industry.
Don't believe every word of it. I work in the oil industry and was able to second guess the outcome of many escapades.
Okay if your a rigger... for the rest of humanity....Yawnsville!, 02 Jun 2008
Yeah yeah Mr Carter, now take it home and write something that we haven't heard a million times before. SHEEZE!
A collection of riotous stories for boys who should know better, 19 Apr 2008
This is longer, denser and more mature than the first book, still stuffed full of gross-out humour and stories for grown up boys about drunkenness, pranks, motorbikes and dangerous situations.
Paul Carter's style is very readable, but this sequel has even less of an oilfield theme than the first book. Here we hear flying stories from Paul's dad and his Air Force mates, Paul goes on an interesting but unexplained trip through Afghanistan, and we stray so far off track that much of it has hardly got anything to do with the drilling of the title.
So anyone expecting to read something with any connection to the oil industry will be disappointed, or at least confused.
Still, if you're looking for a rip-roaring, rollicking roster of drunken antics, tropical diseases and bad behaviour, you won't go far wrong.
One of the BEST books I have EVER read!, 18 Feb 2008
Paulie has done it again with another blockbuster of a hit! This is Not a Drill, is a great insight to his life on the rigs. Forever the crap magnet for situations, he writes hilariously about the antics that have happened to him and his fellow buddies whilst in various countries. There is a serious side to him though, which is displayed when he visits Afghanistan and moreover the hospital there with all children in. It is a great compliment to his first and also outrageously funny book 'Dont tell mum I work on the rigs'. I read ALL the time and I love books of humour. I have NEVER cried with laughter while reading ANY book. Now I have. Twice. I have read both these books and I would highly recommend them to anyone, who likes adventure, humour, and can appreciate a great practical joke... even when it goes wrong! Brilliant read PLEASE WRITE MORE!!!
Not quite as good as the first one, 11 Feb 2008
Really enjoyed the author's first book and read this one straight after.
The first book was very original and contained some great tales and escapades and I suppose I was looking for more here. In this one Carter tells a few more tales but mixes in some serious stuff and some views on the way of the world. Obviously the best tales got used in the first book and here is is looking to do something slightly different.
This is still very entertaining and readable but does not hit the highs of the first one.
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Customer Reviews
Rig Star, 06 Aug 2008
Autobiographies about out of control rockstars are ten a penny, similar books about "normal" people far less common. The reason for that is pretty simple I guess, we aspire to our dreams and wishes...and with the best will in the world I don't wanna work on a rig. Never the less Paul Carters book is a pretty good read, he wizzes around the world and keeps things snappy, even if the claims on the cover are a little exagerated - taken hostage...er where?. He's no crazy Keith Moon character either, its the situation rather than the personality thats amusing here.
A good, but slight, read.
A bland tall tale, 12 May 2008
I work in the oil industry and based on the other reviews,looked forward to reading this immensely. What a letdown! Paul may have travelled all over the world,but the tales just smacked of the 'bloke in the pub' tales - there wasn't any detail of the work that he did,just lots ofblokeish stories.Even when he did actually talk about the work, it was so out of context and poorly explained as to be meaningless. Sadly a big disappointment - spend your money on something else!
Health and safety? I think not., 14 Apr 2008
This book takes about two hours to read. It zips through hundreds of hilarious and dangerous situations that the author gets into all over the world. A very funny and rather shocking look at the humour and adrenaline of men working in the oil industry, it will go down well with anyone who enjoys a good lad's mag.
I bought this on spec in Sydney airport where the petite Asian lady in the bookshop said "Oh yes, I've read that, it's excellent." I was a little surprised, perhaps even suspicious and unsure of what I was buying. Now I just have respect for the lady in the shop. This book is all about drunkenness, fights in foreign bars, inappropriate pets, diarrhoea at the worst moment, brutal practical jokes, jungle madness and the raw testosterone-fuelled humour of oil drillers.
When I bought it, I was actually thinking I might learn something about the oil industry, especially since it starts with a little graphic guide to the different types of oil rig and platform. But forget it, the oil is just an excuse for the larks, bravado and cameraderie.
I also wondered about the title: not just "don't tell mum", but also the bit about being a piano player in a whorehouse. Well, forgive the spoiler, but the author's mum worked in the oil industry too, so she knew what he was up to, and never thought he worked in a whorehouse (although he visited enough). But I guess it's a snappy enough title, and it caught my eye.
If you're a real pedant like me you will also find some of Paul Carter's facts are way out, a bit like his spelling (e.g. elementary canal) but this is by-the-by. It's the laughs that make the book.
And if you're a nice mum buying this to try to persuade your precious son that becoming an oilman is too dangerous and dodgy, forget it. He'll read this book and never want to do anything else - apart from reading the sequel "This is not a drill"...
Very entertaining , 06 Apr 2008
Really enjoyed this. Reference to the details of working on a rig went over my head but the anecdotes regarding different countries and cultures were entertaining and it was a very easy enjoyable read.
Oil&Gas Industry at its best...., 18 Mar 2008
I work in the oil&gas industry and hearing some of the stories from people who are on the front line - you would usually find it hard to believe. Someone recommended this book, so I took the plunge and ordered it - and there is nothing much to say but absolutely brilliant. I can believe all the stories that Pauli describe, and having spoken to a few rednecks they only amuse me more. It is however a relatively short book and I've already ordered the sequel. It took me just over a week to read, and whatsmore, reading it on the train can be very dangerous because when it's busy with other commuters, the last thing they want to see is someone laughing so hard that they almost cry. Trust me this book is worth a gallon of petrol (at todays rates) and was undoubtedly the funniest book i've ever read!
Fact or Fiction ?, 13 Aug 2008
Casing hands have a reputation for embellishing the truth.
They also enjoy macho posturing - hence the side trip to Afghanistan, a country that has nothing to do with the oil industry.
Don't believe every word of it. I work in the oil industry and was able to second guess the outcome of many escapades.
Okay if your a rigger... for the rest of humanity....Yawnsville!, 02 Jun 2008
Yeah yeah Mr Carter, now take it home and write something that we haven't heard a million times before. SHEEZE!
A collection of riotous stories for boys who should know better, 19 Apr 2008
This is longer, denser and more mature than the first book, still stuffed full of gross-out humour and stories for grown up boys about drunkenness, pranks, motorbikes and dangerous situations.
Paul Carter's style is very readable, but this sequel has even less of an oilfield theme than the first book. Here we hear flying stories from Paul's dad and his Air Force mates, Paul goes on an interesting but unexplained trip through Afghanistan, and we stray so far off track that much of it has hardly got anything to do with the drilling of the title.
So anyone expecting to read something with any connection to the oil industry will be disappointed, or at least confused.
Still, if you're looking for a rip-roaring, rollicking roster of drunken antics, tropical diseases and bad behaviour, you won't go far wrong.
One of the BEST books I have EVER read!, 18 Feb 2008
Paulie has done it again with another blockbuster of a hit! This is Not a Drill, is a great insight to his life on the rigs. Forever the crap magnet for situations, he writes hilariously about the antics that have happened to him and his fellow buddies whilst in various countries. There is a serious side to him though, which is displayed when he visits Afghanistan and moreover the hospital there with all children in. It is a great compliment to his first and also outrageously funny book 'Dont tell mum I work on the rigs'. I read ALL the time and I love books of humour. I have NEVER cried with laughter while reading ANY book. Now I have. Twice. I have read both these books and I would highly recommend them to anyone, who likes adventure, humour, and can appreciate a great practical joke... even when it goes wrong! Brilliant read PLEASE WRITE MORE!!!
Not quite as good as the first one, 11 Feb 2008
Really enjoyed the author's first book and read this one straight after.
The first book was very original and contained some great tales and escapades and I suppose I was looking for more here. In this one Carter tells a few more tales but mixes in some serious stuff and some views on the way of the world. Obviously the best tales got used in the first book and here is is looking to do something slightly different.
This is still very entertaining and readable but does not hit the highs of the first one.
mediocre, 31 May 2008
This was a dissapointment....it was quite a silly and even a childish story.
very poor compared to his previous books.
what was he thinking?
An empty tale, 23 Apr 2008
As an oil trading professional on a business trip, my curisosity was aroused by this book. I was hoping for someone to reflect the true nature of the oil market. Not just its futures exchange facet, but also its physical trading side which is replete with excitement.
Unfortunately, i was sorely disappointed. I fail to see how the world of oil has changed with the opening of the Dubai merc, where less tham a mere couple of thousand lots change hands every day. Dubai is a great city and nation with plenty of opportunities, but this book makes it sound like something earth shattering was done, which is not the case. It was more a case of ho-hum, lets open a new post office.
To make matters worse, as another reviewer pointed out, nothing really happens in the book. Some mild disagreement occurs on the board, some mild threats are made, but everybody is happy in the end. No attempt was made to explore the underpinnings of the market or trading strategies. Rather, we get a childish listing of all the toys people in my industry supposedly play with. Please Mr. Mezrich, can i move to your version of the oil world?
Basically, if you want a colourful description of the trading floor with a few anecdotes thrown in, you would be better off visiting the Nymex floor in person, just dont get there at the opening time described in the book, you'd have to wait an hour! A poor effort overall.
Ugly Americans - The sequel, 18 Apr 2008
I've become a fan of Ben Mezrichs' because he writes about experiences that you think would only be real in the movie world, that you never even think people would be living it.
I was enraptured as soon as I started reading this book, and was blown away just as much as I had reading the experiences of the other subjects Mr Mezrich had written about.
I thought nothing could get bigger then after reading Ugly Americans, but this book was everything - more! I could see why people would go to Author to tell their stories: because he can truely encapsulate the magic of it all.
If you truely want to escape your life for a few hours and dream: you have to read Ben Mezrich!
Rigged, 31 Mar 2008
Rigged is another story from Ben Mezrich about some smart American grad done good. The author admits that this is his speciality / rut in the book's intro - but the difference between this one and the others is that it is (not to put too fine a point on it) awful, where previously they've been good fun.
Mezrich's prose has always tended towards the breathless hyperbole, but here he excels himself, creating his own fantasy world where he can namedrop brands like an American Psycho (frankly, it seems BMW may have actually paid for product placement in the book), where all women under motherly age are merely beautiful scenery, where effectively he can play out his fantasies of being one of those lucky few men (for in this world, it is only men) who make it rich young.
Casual sexism aside (which it is at least possible to imagine has roots in trading floor reality), this is not necessarily a problem, as it probably adds interest to an essentially dull tale. But this time around, his wide-eyed fanboy style grates and feels out of place, where in previous books it seemed rather more appropriate. This time the story is basically a teetering pile of stereotypes heavily garnished with drool over the perceived life of the wealthy.
The best bit about this book is the final chapter - not because it's the end, but because it is written by the central character and explains his life a whole lot better than Mezrich did, in a lot more perspective.
But it doesn't redeem the rest of the book. By all means read Breaking Vegas, or Ugly Americans - but skip this one.
Not as good as his other books, 17 Feb 2008
I was rather disappointed with this book having really enjoyed his previous books, bringing the house down, ugly americans and breaking vegas.
Somehow this book lacked the excitement of the others books which described either guys ripping off casinos or living it large in Japan
This book was about a young former MBA graduate who joined the New York Mercantile Exchange and ended up helping them set up an exchange in Dubai. Not really set of your pants stuff. Yes one member of the board didn't really like the idea but thats about as racy as it gets. To be honest I could not work out what the "Rigged" in the title meant until when the book finishes anticlimatically (yes they opened the exchange in Dubai) when i realised that it was a link to an oil rig.
Buy the others especially Bringing the House Down and Breaking Vegas, they have a lot more energy and excitement
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Customer Reviews
Rig Star, 06 Aug 2008
Autobiographies about out of control rockstars are ten a penny, similar books about "normal" people far less common. The reason for that is pretty simple I guess, we aspire to our dreams and wishes...and with the best will in the world I don't wanna work on a rig. Never the less Paul Carters book is a pretty good read, he wizzes around the world and keeps things snappy, even if the claims on the cover are a little exagerated - taken hostage...er where?. He's no crazy Keith Moon character either, its the situation rather than the personality thats amusing here.
A good, but slight, read.
A bland tall tale, 12 May 2008
I work in the oil industry and based on the other reviews,looked forward to reading this immensely. What a letdown! Paul may have travelled all over the world,but the tales just smacked of the 'bloke in the pub' tales - there wasn't any detail of the work that he did,just lots ofblokeish stories.Even when he did actually talk about the work, it was so out of context and poorly explained as to be meaningless. Sadly a big disappointment - spend your money on something else!
Health and safety? I think not., 14 Apr 2008
This book takes about two hours to read. It zips through hundreds of hilarious and dangerous situations that the author gets into all over the world. A very funny and rather shocking look at the humour and adrenaline of men working in the oil industry, it will go down well with anyone who enjoys a good lad's mag.
I bought this on spec in Sydney airport where the petite Asian lady in the bookshop said "Oh yes, I've read that, it's excellent." I was a little surprised, perhaps even suspicious and unsure of what I was buying. Now I just have respect for the lady in the shop. This book is all about drunkenness, fights in foreign bars, inappropriate pets, diarrhoea at the worst moment, brutal practical jokes, jungle madness and the raw testosterone-fuelled humour of oil drillers.
When I bought it, I was actually thinking I might learn something about the oil industry, especially since it starts with a little graphic guide to the different types of oil rig and platform. But forget it, the oil is just an excuse for the larks, bravado and cameraderie.
I also wondered about the title: not just "don't tell mum", but also the bit about being a piano player in a whorehouse. Well, forgive the spoiler, but the author's mum worked in the oil industry too, so she knew what he was up to, and never thought he worked in a whorehouse (although he visited enough). But I guess it's a snappy enough title, and it caught my eye.
If you're a real pedant like me you will also find some of Paul Carter's facts are way out, a bit like his spelling (e.g. elementary canal) but this is by-the-by. It's the laughs that make the book.
And if you're a nice mum buying this to try to persuade your precious son that becoming an oilman is too dangerous and dodgy, forget it. He'll read this book and never want to do anything else - apart from reading the sequel "This is not a drill"...
Very entertaining , 06 Apr 2008
Really enjoyed this. Reference to the details of working on a rig went over my head but the anecdotes regarding different countries and cultures were entertaining and it was a very easy enjoyable read.
Oil&Gas Industry at its best...., 18 Mar 2008
I work in the oil&gas industry and hearing some of the stories from people who are on the front line - you would usually find it hard to believe. Someone recommended this book, so I took the plunge and ordered it - and there is nothing much to say but absolutely brilliant. I can believe all the stories that Pauli describe, and having spoken to a few rednecks they only amuse me more. It is however a relatively short book and I've already ordered the sequel. It took me just over a week to read, and whatsmore, reading it on the train can be very dangerous because when it's busy with other commuters, the last thing they want to see is someone laughing so hard that they almost cry. Trust me this book is worth a gallon of petrol (at todays rates) and was undoubtedly the funniest book i've ever read!
Fact or Fiction ?, 13 Aug 2008
Casing hands have a reputation for embellishing the truth.
They also enjoy macho posturing - hence the side trip to Afghanistan, a country that has nothing to do with the oil industry.
Don't believe every word of it. I work in the oil industry and was able to second guess the outcome of many escapades.
Okay if your a rigger... for the rest of humanity....Yawnsville!, 02 Jun 2008
Yeah yeah Mr Carter, now take it home and write something that we haven't heard a million times before. SHEEZE!
A collection of riotous stories for boys who should know better, 19 Apr 2008
This is longer, denser and more mature than the first book, still stuffed full of gross-out humour and stories for grown up boys about drunkenness, pranks, motorbikes and dangerous situations.
Paul Carter's style is very readable, but this sequel has even less of an oilfield theme than the first book. Here we hear flying stories from Paul's dad and his Air Force mates, Paul goes on an interesting but unexplained trip through Afghanistan, and we stray so far off track that much of it has hardly got anything to do with the drilling of the title.
So anyone expecting to read something with any connection to the oil industry will be disappointed, or at least confused.
Still, if you're looking for a rip-roaring, rollicking roster of drunken antics, tropical diseases and bad behaviour, you won't go far wrong.
One of the BEST books I have EVER read!, 18 Feb 2008
Paulie has done it again with another blockbuster of a hit! This is Not a Drill, is a great insight to his life on the rigs. Forever the crap magnet for situations, he writes hilariously about the antics that have happened to him and his fellow buddies whilst in various countries. There is a serious side to him though, which is displayed when he visits Afghanistan and moreover the hospital there with all children in. It is a great compliment to his first and also outrageously funny book 'Dont tell mum I work on the rigs'. I read ALL the time and I love books of humour. I have NEVER cried with laughter while reading ANY book. Now I have. Twice. I have read both these books and I would highly recommend them to anyone, who likes adventure, humour, and can appreciate a great practical joke... even when it goes wrong! Brilliant read PLEASE WRITE MORE!!!
Not quite as good as the first one, 11 Feb 2008
Really enjoyed the author's first book and read this one straight after.
The first book was very original and contained some great tales and escapades and I suppose I was looking for more here. In this one Carter tells a few more tales but mixes in some serious stuff and some views on the way of the world. Obviously the best tales got used in the first book and here is is looking to do something slightly different.
This is still very entertaining and readable but does not hit the highs of the first one.
mediocre, 31 May 2008
This was a dissapointment....it was quite a silly and even a childish story.
very poor compared to his previous books.
what was he thinking?
An empty tale, 23 Apr 2008
As an oil trading professional on a business trip, my curisosity was aroused by this book. I was hoping for someone to reflect the true nature of the oil market. Not just its futures exchange facet, but also its physical trading side which is replete with excitement.
Unfortunately, i was sorely disappointed. I fail to see how the world of oil has changed with the opening of the Dubai merc, where less tham a mere couple of thousand lots change hands every day. Dubai is a great city and nation with plenty of opportunities, but this book makes it sound like something earth shattering was done, which is not the case. It was more a case of ho-hum, lets open a new post office.
To make matters worse, as another reviewer pointed out, nothing really happens in the book. Some mild disagreement occurs on the board, some mild threats are made, but everybody is happy in the end. No attempt was made to explore the underpinnings of the market or trading strategies. Rather, we get a childish listing of all the toys people in my industry supposedly play with. Please Mr. Mezrich, can i move to your version of the oil world?
Basically, if you want a colourful description of the trading floor with a few anecdotes thrown in, you would be better off visiting the Nymex floor in person, just dont get there at the opening time described in the book, you'd have to wait an hour! A poor effort overall.
Ugly Americans - The sequel, 18 Apr 2008
I've become a fan of Ben Mezrichs' because he writes about experiences that you think would only be real in the movie world, that you never even think people would be living it.
I was enraptured as soon as I started reading this book, and was blown away just as much as I had reading the experiences of the other subjects Mr Mezrich had written about.
I thought nothing could get bigger then after reading Ugly Americans, but this book was everything - more! I could see why people would go to Author to tell their stories: because he can truely encapsulate the magic of it all.
If you truely want to escape your life for a few hours and dream: you have to read Ben Mezrich!
Rigged, 31 Mar 2008
Rigged is another story from Ben Mezrich about some smart American grad done good. The author admits that this is his speciality / rut in the book's intro - but the difference between this one and the others is that it is (not to put too fine a point on it) awful, where previously they've been good fun.
Mezrich's prose has always tended towards the breathless hyperbole, but here he excels himself, creating his own fantasy world where he can namedrop brands like an American Psycho (frankly, it seems BMW may have actually paid for product placement in the book), where all women under motherly age are merely beautiful scenery, where effectively he can play out his fantasies of being one of those lucky few men (for in this world, it is only men) who make it rich young.
Casual sexism aside (which it is at least possible to imagine has roots in trading floor reality), this is not necessarily a problem, as it probably adds interest to an essentially dull tale. But this time around, his wide-eyed fanboy style grates and feels out of place, where in previous books it seemed rather more appropriate. This time the story is basically a teetering pile of stereotypes heavily garnished with drool over the perceived life of the wealthy.
The best bit about this book is the final chapter - not because it's the end, but because it is written by the central character and explains his life a whole lot better than Mezrich did, in a lot more perspective.
But it doesn't redeem the rest of the book. By all means read Breaking Vegas, or Ugly Americans - but skip this one.
Not as good as his other books, 17 Feb 2008
I was rather disappointed with this book having really enjoyed his previous books, bringing the house down, ugly americans and breaking vegas.
Somehow this book lacked the excitement of the others books which described either guys ripping off casinos or living it large in Japan
This book was about a young former MBA graduate who joined the New York Mercantile Exchange and ended up helping them set up an exchange in Dubai. Not really set of your pants stuff. Yes one member of the board didn't really like the idea but thats about as racy as it gets. To be honest I could not work out what the "Rigged" in the title meant until when the book finishes anticlimatically (yes they opened the exchange in Dubai) when i realised that it was a link to an oil rig.
Buy the others especially Bringing the House Down and Breaking Vegas, they have a lot more energy and excitement
Beginner's Guide to Metal Detecting, 31 Jul 2007
There has been a big upsurge in the hobby, or some may call it an obsession with metal detecting. Finds of coin hoards, rings, pieces of harness from the Saxon and Viking periods are well publicized and this wets the appetite of many a prospective treasure trove seeker.
This book gives a good insight into what type of metal detectors are best and how to use them correctly. This is extremely important, because a good metal detector is totally useless if it is not used correctly. The book shows that research can be very important also and a `feel' of where to do your detecting. The best metal detector in the world will not find anything if there is nothing to find. I know that statement seems pretty obvious but it is fact. There are hot spots where there is a good chance of finding something old, but maybe not worth a fortune.
The book gives an excellent insight into most things you need to know to go metal detecting. If you are doing it to have some fun, you probably will. If you are doing it to home in on some treasure trove, you are more than likely going to be disappointed, and remember all land in England is owned by somebody, no matter how overgrown or derelict it looks. Make sure you have permission to be there.
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Customer Reviews
Rig Star, 06 Aug 2008
Autobiographies about out of control rockstars are ten a penny, similar books about "normal" people far less common. The reason for that is pretty simple I guess, we aspire to our dreams and wishes...and with the best will in the world I don't wanna work on a rig. Never the less Paul Carters book is a pretty good read, he wizzes around the world and keeps things snappy, even if the claims on the cover are a little exagerated - taken hostage...er where?. He's no crazy Keith Moon character either, its the situation rather than the personality thats amusing here.
A good, but slight, read.
A bland tall tale, 12 May 2008
I work in the oil industry and based on the other reviews,looked forward to reading this immensely. What a letdown! Paul may have travelled all over the world,but the tales just smacked of the 'bloke in the pub' tales - there wasn't any detail of the work that he did,just lots ofblokeish stories.Even when he did actually talk about the work, it was so out of context and poorly explained as to be meaningless. Sadly a big disappointment - spend your money on something else!
Health and safety? I think not., 14 Apr 2008
This book takes about two hours to read. It zips through hundreds of hilarious and dangerous situations that the author gets into all over the world. A very funny and rather shocking look at the humour and adrenaline of men working in the oil industry, it will go down well with anyone who enjoys a good lad's mag.
I bought this on spec in Sydney airport where the petite Asian lady in the bookshop said "Oh yes, I've read that, it's excellent." I was a little surprised, perhaps even suspicious and unsure of what I was buying. Now I just have respect for the lady in the shop. This book is all about drunkenness, fights in foreign bars, inappropriate pets, diarrhoea at the worst moment, brutal practical jokes, jungle madness and the raw testosterone-fuelled humour of oil drillers.
When I bought it, I was actually thinking I might learn something about the oil industry, especially since it starts with a little graphic guide to the different types of oil rig and platform. But forget it, the oil is just an excuse for the larks, bravado and cameraderie.
I also wondered about the title: not just "don't tell mum", but also the bit about being a piano player in a whorehouse. Well, forgive the spoiler, but the author's mum worked in the oil industry too, so she knew what he was up to, and never thought he worked in a whorehouse (although he visited enough). But I guess it's a snappy enough title, and it caught my eye.
If you're a real pedant like me you will also find some of Paul Carter's facts are way out, a bit like his spelling (e.g. elementary canal) but this is by-the-by. It's the laughs that make the book.
And if you're a nice mum buying this to try to persuade your precious son that becoming an oilman is too dangerous and dodgy, forget it. He'll read this book and never want to do anything else - apart from reading the sequel "This is not a drill"...
Very entertaining , 06 Apr 2008
Really enjoyed this. Reference to the details of working on a rig went over my head but the anecdotes regarding different countries and cultures were entertaining and it was a very easy enjoyable read.
Oil&Gas Industry at its best...., 18 Mar 2008
I work in the oil&gas industry and hearing some of the stories from people who are on the front line - you would usually find it hard to believe. Someone recommended this book, so I took the plunge and ordered it - and there is nothing much to say but absolutely brilliant. I can believe all the stories that Pauli describe, and having spoken to a few rednecks they only amuse me more. It is however a relatively short book and I've already ordered the sequel. It took me just over a week to read, and whatsmore, reading it on the train can be very dangerous because when it's busy with other commuters, the last thing they want to see is someone laughing so hard that they almost cry. Trust me this book is worth a gallon of petrol (at todays rates) and was undoubtedly the funniest book i've ever read!
Fact or Fiction ?, 13 Aug 2008
Casing hands have a reputation for embellishing the truth.
They also enjoy macho posturing - hence the side trip to Afghanistan, a country that has nothing to do with the oil industry.
Don't believe every word of it. I work in the oil industry and was able to second guess the outcome of many escapades.
Okay if your a rigger... for the rest of humanity....Yawnsville!, 02 Jun 2008
Yeah yeah Mr Carter, now take it home and write something that we haven't heard a million times before. SHEEZE!
A collection of riotous stories for boys who should know better, 19 Apr 2008
This is longer, denser and more mature than the first book, still stuffed full of gross-out humour and stories for grown up boys about drunkenness, pranks, motorbikes and dangerous situations.
Paul Carter's style is very readable, but this sequel has even less of an oilfield theme than the first book. Here we hear flying stories from Paul's dad and his Air Force mates, Paul goes on an interesting but unexplained trip through Afghanistan, and we stray so far off track that much of it has hardly got anything to do with the drilling of the title.
So anyone expecting to read something with any connection to the oil industry will be disappointed, or at least confused.
Still, if you're looking for a rip-roaring, rollicking roster of drunken antics, tropical diseases and bad behaviour, you won't go far wrong.
One of the BEST books I have EVER read!, 18 Feb 2008
Paulie has done it again with another blockbuster of a hit! This is Not a Drill, is a great insight to his life on the rigs. Forever the crap magnet for situations, he writes hilariously about the antics that have happened to him and his fellow buddies whilst in various countries. There is a serious side to him though, which is displayed when he visits Afghanistan and moreover the hospital there with all children in. It is a great compliment to his first and also outrageously funny book 'Dont tell mum I work on the rigs'. I read ALL the time and I love books of humour. I have NEVER cried with laughter while reading ANY book. Now I have. Twice. I have read both these books and I would highly recommend them to anyone, who likes adventure, humour, and can appreciate a great practical joke... even when it goes wrong! Brilliant read PLEASE WRITE MORE!!!
Not quite as good as the first one, 11 Feb 2008
Really enjoyed the author's first book and read this one straight after.
The first book was very original and contained some great tales and escapades and I suppose I was looking for more here. In this one Carter tells a few more tales but mixes in some serious stuff and some views on the way of the world. Obviously the best tales got used in the first book and here is is looking to do something slightly different.
This is still very entertaining and readable but does not hit the highs of the first one.
mediocre, 31 May 2008
This was a dissapointment....it was quite a silly and even a childish story.
very poor compared to his previous books.
what was he thinking?
An empty tale, 23 Apr 2008
As an oil trading professional on a business trip, my curisosity was aroused by this book. I was hoping for someone to reflect the true nature of the oil market. Not just its futures exchange facet, but also its physical trading side which is replete with excitement.
Unfortunately, i was sorely disappointed. I fail to see how the world of oil has changed with the opening of the Dubai merc, where less tham a mere couple of thousand lots change hands every day. Dubai is a great city and nation with plenty of opportunities, but this book makes it sound like something earth shattering was done, which is not the case. It was more a case of ho-hum, lets open a new post office.
To make matters worse, as another reviewer pointed out, nothing really happens in the book. Some mild disagreement occurs on the board, some mild threats are made, but everybody is happy in the end. No attempt was made to explore the underpinnings of the market or trading strategies. Rather, we get a childish listing of all the toys people in my industry supposedly play with. Please Mr. Mezrich, can i move to your version of the oil world?
Basically, if you want a colourful description of the trading floor with a few anecdotes thrown in, you would be better off visiting the Nymex floor in person, just dont get there at the opening time described in the book, you'd have to wait an hour! A poor effort overall.
Ugly Americans - The sequel, 18 Apr 2008
I've become a fan of Ben Mezrichs' because he writes about experiences that you think would only be real in the movie world, that you never even think people would be living it.
I was enraptured as soon as I started reading this book, and was blown away just as much as I had reading the experiences of the other subjects Mr Mezrich had written about.
I thought nothing could get bigger then after reading Ugly Americans, but this book was everything - more! I could see why people would go to Author to tell their stories: because he can truely encapsulate the magic of it all.
If you truely want to escape your life for a few hours and dream: you have to read Ben Mezrich!
Rigged, 31 Mar 2008
Rigged is another story from Ben Mezrich about some smart American grad done good. The author admits that this is his speciality / rut in the book's intro - but the difference between this one and the others is that it is (not to put too fine a point on it) awful, where previously they've been good fun.
Mezrich's prose has always tended towards the breathless hyperbole, but here he excels himself, creating his own fantasy world where he can namedrop brands like an American Psycho (frankly, it seems BMW may have actually paid for product placement in the book), where all women under motherly age are merely beautiful scenery, where effectively he can play out his fantasies of being one of those lucky few men (for in this world, it is only men) who make it rich young.
Casual sexism aside (which it is at least possible to imagine has roots in trading floor reality), this is not necessarily a problem, as it probably adds interest to an essentially dull tale. But this time around, his wide-eyed fanboy style grates and feels out of place, where in previous books it seemed rather more appropriate. This time the story is basically a teetering pile of stereotypes heavily garnished with drool over the perceived life of the wealthy.
The best bit about this book is the final chapter - not because it's the end, but because it is written by the central character and explains his life a whole lot better than Mezrich did, in a lot more perspective.
But it doesn't redeem the rest of the book. By all means read Breaking Vegas, or Ugly Americans - but skip this one.
Not as good as his other books, 17 Feb 2008
I was rather disappointed with this book having really enjoyed his previous books, bringing the house down, ugly americans and breaking vegas.
Somehow this book lacked the excitement of the others books which described either guys ripping off casinos or living it large in Japan
This book was about a young former MBA graduate who joined the New York Mercantile Exchange and ended up helping them set up an exchange in Dubai. Not really set of your pants stuff. Yes one member of the board didn't really like the idea but thats about as racy as it gets. To be honest I could not work out what the "Rigged" in the title meant until when the book finishes anticlimatically (yes they opened the exchange in Dubai) when i realised that it was a link to an oil rig.
Buy the others especially Bringing the House Down and Breaking Vegas, they have a lot more energy and excitement
Beginner's Guide to Metal Detecting, 31 Jul 2007
There has been a big upsurge in the hobby, or some may call it an obsession with metal detecting. Finds of coin hoards, rings, pieces of harness from the Saxon and Viking periods are well publicized and this wets the appetite of many a prospective treasure trove seeker.
This book gives a good insight into what type of metal detectors are best and how to use them correctly. This is extremely important, because a good metal detector is totally useless if it is not used correctly. The book shows that research can be very important also and a `feel' of where to do your detecting. The best metal detector in the world will not find anything if there is nothing to find. I know that statement seems pretty obvious but it is fact. There are hot spots where there is a good chance of finding something old, but maybe not worth a fortune.
The book gives an excellent insight into most things you need to know to go metal detecting. If you are doing it to have some fun, you probably will. If you are doing it to home in on some treasure trove, you are more than likely going to be disappointed, and remember all land in England is owned by somebody, no matter how overgrown or derelict it looks. Make sure you have permission to be there.
OK, but could go further., 23 Jul 2008
Easily readable book covering the problems of further oil exploration, discovery and extraction, and then talks briefly about the problems of global warming. He then goes on to talk about alternatives to oil. Here he gets a little confused between two separate things, one, the source of energy, and two, the delivery of that energy to where it's needed. Oil does both of these. Roberts talks about a possible future "hydrogen economy" as the most viable alternative, while dismissing nuclear and renewables and other sources of energy, but hydrogen is not an energy source: it is an energy delivery method. Some energy source has to make the hydrogen in the first place. Therefore his dismissal of solar and nuclear is not as easy as he makes out. Also, he dismisses geothermal energy in less than a sentence, which is far less than it deserves. In doing this, he confuses the physically possible with the economically viable. Solar, nuclear and geothermal are at least physically viable as alternatives, as they can probably produce the required energy: the only question is their economics. His discussion of their economics is perhaps valid, but economics is all relative. The question is at what point other energy sources become economic and what the consequences of using them are.
All that is less of a review, and more of a critique. While the book is highly topical, and very readable without dumbing down, it confuses a number of points that need to be distinguished.
Peak Oil - and what happens next, 24 Apr 2007
Paul Roberts' The End of Oil, is a thorough and comprehensive study of the petroleum economy, a book that examines the three-pronged threats to the existing energy order: oil depletion, environmental [...] and geopolitical instability.
Roberts' analysis on depletion asks the question, `what should we do before the oil runs dry?' For run dry it will. Peak Oil, as the subject has come to be known, is based on variables, some known and some unknown. Disregarding the most wildly optimistic forecasts proposed by mouthpieces within the Saudi Arabian and United States' oil businesses (as well as those with the current occupiers of the pro-oil Whitehouse), production of oil is reasonably estimated to peak around the year 2025. After that, oil reserves will be in terminal decline (some analysts say that production has already peaked). If the developed countries of this planet are to maintain their standards of life and if less developed countries want to give their citizens the same access to energy (and everything that goes with it: education, health care, material goods and so forth), how is this to be achieved? What is the solution to demand that is rapidly escalating and oil supplies that are dwindling?
After articulating in some depth the scale of the problem, without reverting to "the end is nigh" doom-mongering, Roberts examines potential solutions: from coal (massive reserves but an environmental catastrophe) and nuclear (`clean' if you don't mind burying the waste in your back garden), to so-called `alternatives' such as solar and wind, to liquefied natural gas and hydrogen fuel cell micro grids (but no mention, alas, of the ellusive zero-point technologies).
These solutions also bring in the second facet of the book, environmental [...]. Just what is the impact of oil on the environment? This is not simply analysing the automotive industry's reaction to miles-per-gallon fuel efficiency, which Roberts does but also looking at the construction of modern buildings - how construction firms win bids by offering the lowest up-front costs, which often means incredibly wasteful energy usage; more expensive construction techniques that actually reduce long-term running costs by fuel efficiencies are often seen as uncompetitive in the immediate short-term. Roberts also discusses alternative energy generating techniques and just how much of an impact this could have, given the proper government backing. The Kyoto Protocol and carbon emissions - why 550 parts per million is pretty much the threshold below which the planet can sustain life without the threat of severe and permanent damage? Discussed. Why, even if carbon emissions were cut to zero immediately, they would still keep on rising? Discussed. What we can do about this? Discussed.
As with the rest of this book, Roberts' examines so many other issues that here I can only hint at the amount of information that this book contains.
Paul Roberts also breaks down the geopolitical implications of the existing order: why the price of oil is so volatile, what the relationship betwixt the U.S. and Saudi Arabia is based around (read Craig Unger's superb book, House of Bush, House of Saud, for much more on this disturbing connection), why Big Oil has a vested interest in the status quo, in that to upgrade existing energy infrastructure would literally take trillions of dollars and oil companies are making money without spending this capital on unproven energy technologies. Again, these few sentences can only hint at the thorough research that Roberts has undertaken, in order to bring these complex and often subtle factors to light.
Roberts does also pose solutions, not simply articulate the problems. In short, there is no magic bullet but a combination of several programmes might go some way to ensuring that all citizens of this planet have a future - ultimately a combination of energy efficiency strategies (supply is running out, so make savings in the consumption side of the equation) and alternative fuel sources, coupled with governmental incentives to consumers and suppliers, alongside benefits to less developed countries, to help them to modernise their energy economies and leapfrog the worst aspects of the West's industrial revolution development.
For just one example: with the car industry, an idea might be to internalise externalities. With the tobacco industry, the cost of growing the leaf and bringing it to market is quite low. The price of cigarettes is relatively high because governments' recognise that there are costs associated with smoking that are borne by society (the externalities) - most notably, hospital care for patients suffering from self-inflicted-smoking-related cancers. Therefore, cigarettes are highly taxed in order to off-set the costs that the product causes, to place that cost back on the manufacturer. If this logical approach was applied to cars, the cost of an inefficient large car or so-called Sports Utility Vehicle would be much higher because the environmental cost of bringing that oil to the market would be placed back where it belongs; the costs of maintaining a large military presence in the Middle East, combined with the costs to the health care industry of car-related pollution and respiratory diseases, would not be paid for by society at large but by those who choose to buy those particular cars. This would encourage people to buy less of these wasteful and usually unnecessary vehicles until they became more energy efficient; it would also incentivise the auto industry to rekindle the spirit of fuel economies that was once so prevalent after the Arab oil embargo of the mid 1970s. Unfortunately, energy savings - energy capital - like this is often turned into an energy deficit, by having more people purchasing these aspirational vehicles. This leads to a paradox that the more energy we save, the more we end up consuming. This incredibly brief illustration, which probably does no justice to the original text, is but one of numerous examples that Roberts' provides.
Above all, Paul Roberts argues that a do nothing, business as usual approach to these problems is wilfully ignorant and that energy illiteracy will have severe and profound consequences for everybody. If you own a car, or consume anything made from oil - and that could be anything plastic, from a toothbrush to the mouse in your right hand - then The End of Oil should be read. The longer we as consumers and voters, the longer decision makers in the corporate and political structure wait, wait to see if climate change really is caused by human impact, to see if oil really is running out as rapidly as those wild people in the wings claim it is, the greater the problems will be when the shift from petroleum to a new energy order is forced upon us and the much more terrible that upheaval will be. Read this fascinating book, then watch the documentary, "The End of Suburbia."
if you wan to get a grip on peak oil read on, 18 Oct 2006
I have read many books on peakoil and found this one of the best. I agree it goes on a little at times but all in all a great read on the subject.
A little extensive, 11 Jun 2006
This book is a nice read about the subject.
The most relevant negative aspect is the fact that is too extensive. All that is said could have been said in far less pages.
About the content, it covers almost all the different aspects of the main problem. Doesn't provide a solution (if there is one), but it make a very good researchable analysis.
No worries! USA to the rescue!, 02 May 2006
Although the number of "alarmist" publications about energy and climate fill the shelves, this book doesn't fit that category. Roberts, although clearly concerned about energy consumption and the capacity to meet it, thinks demand can be met. That won't be achieved without some revision in outlook and actions. In this carefully structured and comprehensive study, readers will gain a firm grasp on the issues involved in making the transition from oil to alternative energy. It won't be cheap or painless, but it can be done, he proposes in this well-written account. You need only be prepared to take some first steps. The very first step is to read this book to overcome "energy illiteracy".
Changing the energy basis of a society isn't a novelty of the "modern" world, Roberts suggests. Humanity has shifted from wood fuel to coal, and from coal to petrochemicals. There was resistance in each case, because people cling to the known. Woodstoves might burn coal, but oil-fired systems are a major shift in technology. So, too, Roberts argues, will (be?) the replacements for oil furnaces or petrol burning autos, whether using natural gas, or hydrogen fuel cells. This approach enables the author to address both the existing patterns of energy extraction and use as well as the options facing us in making substitutions. He carefully examines the technology and economics of the various alternative energy supply methods. Hydrogen fuel cells are given a full hearing, with an account of Geoffrey Ballard's attempt to launch a successful production firm. Ballard didn't quite succeed, but the potential remains available. Roberts also examines solar panels and wind power for electricity generation. In Europe, of course, wind power is a major factor and growing rapidly. In Roberts' eyes, however, his own nation is less sympathetic over wind power. How much this is due to personal choice and how much to energy industry negative propaganda remains unclear. The energy lobbyists, as the author notes, have not been idle. Investment in coal and oil is too great to overturn readily.
Roberts squarely addresses the economic issues of new energy forms . If society is to endure a transition to wind, hydrogen or natural gas power, what will be the costs? "Consider the scale of the task", he says, noting that the conveyors and users of the primary fuels, coal and oil, have over ten trillion [US] dollars tied up in equipment. The transformation of such an immense investment, particularly in unproven technologies is a "colossal" enterprise, not entered lightly. He stresses, however, that such cost isn't sufficient excuse to delay or attempt to refute the need for it. The energy transformation must be made, partly because the world is running out of oil, and cannot afford to replace it with more severe polluters such as coal. The changeover must be undertaken, but it must be done with known technologies until the riskier ones are considered proven.
The cost of transition must also factor in the true cost of the fuels in use. The external costs of petroleum for example, are rarely calculated. Referring to a study by Joan Ogden, Roberts explains how real costs of using petrol actually make the hydrogen fuel cell a price competitive technology. Such calculations should lead to greater investment in alternative technologies. Roberts argues further that it will be the United States that will inevitably take the lead in the process, both in technology and investment. Citing changes in attitudes and policy resulting from the "Oil Embargo" of the 1970s, he suggests that these be reviewed and expanded to achieve the first steps in the transition to new energy forms. It is the US, as the greatest polluter and the greatest innovator, which must take the lead in the change. The energy purchasing power and world marketing skills of the US makes it the most likely promoter of the change. US-based technology is best suited to bringing higher energy levels to developing nations, while not condemning them to high pollution generation.
Roberts has challenged a large segment of his own population with this book. He notes that consumers are being confronted with need for change now, and they must ready themselves for it. A new age requires innovative thinking and changing some long-held views. The author wants that process to be as painless as possible.
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Customer Reviews
Rig Star, 06 Aug 2008
Autobiographies about out of control rockstars are ten a penny, similar books about "normal" people far less common. The reason for that is pretty simple I guess, we aspire to our dreams and wishes...and with the best will in the world I don't wanna work on a rig. Never the less Paul Carters book is a pretty good read, he wizzes around the world and keeps things snappy, even if the claims on the cover are a little exagerated - taken hostage...er where?. He's no crazy Keith Moon character either, its the situation rather than the personality thats amusing here.
A good, but slight, read.
A bland tall tale, 12 May 2008
I work in the oil industry and based on the other reviews,looked forward to reading this immensely. What a letdown! Paul may have travelled all over the world,but the tales just smacked of the 'bloke in the pub' tales - there wasn't any detail of the work that he did,just lots ofblokeish stories.Even when he did actually talk about the work, it was so out of context and poorly explained as to be meaningless. Sadly a big disappointment - spend your money on something else!
Health and safety? I think not., 14 Apr 2008
This book takes about two hours to read. It zips through hundreds of hilarious and dangerous situations that the author gets into all over the world. A very funny and rather shocking look at the humour and adrenaline of men working in the oil industry, it will go down well with anyone who enjoys a good lad's mag.
I bought this on spec in Sydney airport where the petite Asian lady in the bookshop said "Oh yes, I've read that, it's excellent." I was a little surprised, perhaps even suspicious and unsure of what I was buying. Now I just have respect for the lady in the shop. This book is all about drunkenness, fights in foreign bars, inappropriate pets, diarrhoea at the worst moment, brutal practical jokes, jungle madness and the raw testosterone-fuelled humour of oil drillers.
When I bought it, I was actually thinking I might learn something about the oil industry, especially since it starts with a little graphic guide to the different types of oil rig and platform. But forget it, the oil is just an excuse for the larks, bravado and cameraderie.
I also wondered about the title: not just "don't tell mum", but also the bit about being a piano player in a whorehouse. Well, forgive the spoiler, but the author's mum worked in the oil industry too, so she knew what he was up to, and never thought he worked in a whorehouse (although he visited enough). But I guess it's a snappy enough title, and it caught my eye.
If you're a real pedant like me you will also find some of Paul Carter's facts are way out, a bit like his spelling (e.g. elementary canal) but this is by-the-by. It's the laughs that make the book.
And if you're a nice mum buying this to try to persuade your precious son that becoming an oilman is too dangerous and dodgy, forget it. He'll read this book and never want to do anything else - apart from reading the sequel "This is not a drill"...
Very entertaining , 06 Apr 2008
Really enjoyed this. Reference to the details of working on a rig went over my head but the anecdotes regarding different countries and cultures were entertaining and it was a very easy enjoyable read.
Oil&Gas Industry at its best...., 18 Mar 2008
I work in the oil&gas industry and hearing some of the stories from people who are on the front line - you would usually find it hard to believe. Someone recommended this book, so I took the plunge and ordered it - and there is nothing much to say but absolutely brilliant. I can believe all the stories that Pauli describe, and having spoken to a few rednecks they only amuse me more. It is however a relatively short book and I've already ordered the sequel. It took me just over a week to read, and whatsmore, reading it on the train can be very dangerous because when it's busy with other commuters, the last thing they want to see is someone laughing so hard that they almost cry. Trust me this book is worth a gallon of petrol (at todays rates) and was undoubtedly the funniest book i've ever read!
Fact or Fiction ?, 13 Aug 2008
Casing hands have a reputation for embellishing the truth.
They also enjoy macho posturing - hence the side trip to Afghanistan, a country that has nothing to do with the oil industry.
Don't believe every word of it. I work in the oil industry and was able to second guess the outcome of many escapades.
Okay if your a rigger... for the rest of humanity....Yawnsville!, 02 Jun 2008
Yeah yeah Mr Carter, now take it home and write something that we haven't heard a million times before. SHEEZE!
A collection of riotous stories for boys who should know better, 19 Apr 2008
This is longer, denser and more mature than the first book, still stuffed full of gross-out humour and stories for grown up boys about drunkenness, pranks, motorbikes and dangerous situations.
Paul Carter's style is very readable, but this sequel has even less of an oilfield theme than the first book. Here we hear flying stories from Paul's dad and his Air Force mates, Paul goes on an interesting but unexplained trip through Afghanistan, and we stray so far off track that much of it has hardly got anything to do with the drilling of the title.
So anyone expecting to read something with any connection to the oil industry will be disappointed, or at least confused.
Still, if you're looking for a rip-roaring, rollicking roster of drunken antics, tropical diseases and bad behaviour, you won't go far wrong.
One of the BEST books I have EVER read!, 18 Feb 2008
Paulie has done it again with another blockbuster of a hit! This is Not a Drill, is a great insight to his life on the rigs. Forever the crap magnet for situations, he writes hilariously about the antics that have happened to him and his fellow buddies whilst in various countries. There is a serious side to him though, which is displayed when he visits Afghanistan and moreover the hospital there with all children in. It is a great compliment to his first and also outrageously funny book 'Dont tell mum I work on the rigs'. I read ALL the time and I love books of humour. I have NEVER cried with laughter while reading ANY book. Now I have. Twice. I have read both these books and I would highly recommend them to anyone, who likes adventure, humour, and can appreciate a great practical joke... even when it goes wrong! Brilliant read PLEASE WRITE MORE!!!
Not quite as good as the first one, 11 Feb 2008
Really enjoyed the author's first book and read this one straight after.
The first book was very original and contained some great tales and escapades and I suppose I was looking for more here. In this one Carter tells a few more tales but mixes in some serious stuff and some views on the way of the world. Obviously the best tales got used in the first book and here is is looking to do something slightly different.
This is still very entertaining and readable but does not hit the highs of the first one.
mediocre, 31 May 2008
This was a dissapointment....it was quite a silly and even a childish story.
very poor compared to his previous books.
what was he thinking?
An empty tale, 23 Apr 2008
As an oil trading professional on a business trip, my curisosity was aroused by this book. I was hoping for someone to reflect the true nature of the oil market. Not just its futures exchange facet, but also its physical trading side which is replete with excitement.
Unfortunately, i was sorely disappointed. I fail to see how the world of oil has changed with the opening of the Dubai merc, where less tham a mere couple of thousand lots change hands every day. Dubai is a great city and nation with plenty of opportunities, but this book makes it sound like something earth shattering was done, which is not the case. It was more a case of ho-hum, lets open a new post office.
To make matters worse, as another reviewer pointed out, nothing really happens in the book. Some mild disagreement occurs on the board, some mild threats are made, but everybody is happy in the end. No attempt was made to explore the underpinnings of the market or trading strategies. Rather, we get a childish listing of all the toys people in my industry supposedly play with. Please Mr. Mezrich, can i move to your version of the oil world?
Basically, if you want a colourful description of the trading floor with a few anecdotes thrown in, you would be better off visiting the Nymex floor in person, just dont get there at the opening time described in the book, you'd have to wait an hour! A poor effort overall.
Ugly Americans - The sequel, 18 Apr 2008
I've become a fan of Ben Mezrichs' because he writes about experiences that you think would only be real in the movie world, that you never even think people would be living it.
I was enraptured as soon as I started reading this book, and was blown away just as much as I had reading the experiences of the other subjects Mr Mezrich had written about.
I thought nothing could get bigger then after reading Ugly Americans, but this book was everything - more! I could see why people would go to Author to tell their stories: because he can truely encapsulate the magic of it all.
If you truely want to escape your life for a few hours and dream: you have to read Ben Mezrich!
Rigged, 31 Mar 2008
Rigged is another story from Ben Mezrich about some smart American grad done good. The author admits that this is his speciality / rut in the book's intro - but the difference between this one and the others is that it is (not to put too fine a point on it) awful, where previously they've been good fun.
Mezrich's prose has always tended towards the breathless hyperbole, but here he excels himself, creating his own fantasy world where he can namedrop brands like an American Psycho (frankly, it seems BMW may have actually paid for product placement in the book), where all women under motherly age are merely beautiful scenery, where effectively he can play out his fantasies of being one of those lucky few men (for in this world, it is only men) who make it rich young.
Casual sexism aside (which it is at least possible to imagine has roots in trading floor reality), this is not necessarily a problem, as it probably adds interest to an essentially dull tale. But this time around, his wide-eyed fanboy style grates and feels out of place, where in previous books it seemed rather more appropriate. This time the story is basically a teetering pile of stereotypes heavily garnished with drool over the perceived life of the wealthy.
The best bit about this book is the final chapter - not because it's the end, but because it is written by the central character and explains his life a whole lot better than Mezrich did, in a lot more perspective.
But it doesn't redeem the rest of the book. By all means read Breaking Vegas, or Ugly Americans - but skip this one.
Not as good as his other books, 17 Feb 2008
I was rather disappointed with this book having really enjoyed his previous books, bringing the house down, ugly americans and breaking vegas.
Somehow this book lacked the excitement of the others books which described either guys ripping off casinos or living it large in Japan
This book was about a young former MBA graduate who joined the New York Mercantile Exchange and ended up helping them set up an exchange in Dubai. Not really set of your pants stuff. Yes one member of the board didn't really like the idea but thats about as racy as it gets. To be honest I could not work out what the "Rigged" in the title meant until when the book finishes anticlimatically (yes they opened the exchange in Dubai) when i realised that it was a link to an oil rig.
Buy the others especially Bringing the House Down and Breaking Vegas, they have a lot more energy and excitement
Beginner's Guide to Metal Detecting, 31 Jul 2007
There has been a big upsurge in the hobby, or some may call it an obsession with metal detecting. Finds of coin hoards, rings, pieces of harness from the Saxon and Viking periods are well publicized and this wets the appetite of many a prospective treasure trove seeker.
This book gives a good insight into what type of metal detectors are best and how to use them correctly. This is extremely important, because a good metal detector is totally useless if it is not used correctly. The book shows that research can be very important also and a `feel' of where to do your detecting. The best metal detector in the world will not find anything if there is nothing to find. I know that statement seems pretty obvious but it is fact. There are hot spots where there is a good chance of finding something old, but maybe not worth a fortune.
The book gives an excellent insight into most things you need to know to go metal detecting. If you are doing it to have some fun, you probably will. If you are doing it to home in on some treasure trove, you are more than likely going to be disappointed, and remember all land in England is owned by somebody, no matter how overgrown or derelict it looks. Make sure you have permission to be there.
OK, but could go further., 23 Jul 2008
Easily readable book covering the problems of further oil exploration, discovery and extraction, and then talks briefly about the problems of global warming. He then goes on to talk about alternatives to oil. Here he gets a little confused between two separate things, one, the source of energy, and two, the delivery of that energy to where it's needed. Oil does both of these. Roberts talks about a possible future "hydrogen economy" as the most viable alternative, while dismissing nuclear and renewables and other sources of energy, but hydrogen is not an energy source: it is an energy delivery method. Some energy source has to make the hydrogen in the first place. Therefore his dismissal of solar and nuclear is not as easy as he makes out. Also, he dismisses geothermal energy in less than a sentence, which is far less than it deserves. In doing this, he confuses the physically possible with the economically viable. Solar, nuclear and geothermal are at least physically viable as alternatives, as they can probably produce the required energy: the only question is their economics. His discussion of their economics is perhaps valid, but economics is all relative. The question is at what point other energy sources become economic and what the consequences of using them are.
All that is less of a review, and more of a critique. While the book is highly topical, and very readable without dumbing down, it confuses a number of points that need to be distinguished.
Peak Oil - and what happens next, 24 Apr 2007
Paul Roberts' The End of Oil, is a thorough and comprehensive study of the petroleum economy, a book that examines the three-pronged threats to the existing energy order: oil depletion, environmental [...] and geopolitical instability.
Roberts' analysis on depletion asks the question, `what should we do before the oil runs dry?' For run dry it will. Peak Oil, as the subject has come to be known, is based on variables, some known and some unknown. Disregarding the most wildly optimistic forecasts proposed by mouthpieces within the Saudi Arabian and United States' oil businesses (as well as those with the current occupiers of the pro-oil Whitehouse), production of oil is reasonably estimated to peak around the year 2025. After that, oil reserves will be in terminal decline (some analysts say that production has already peaked). If the developed countries of this planet are to maintain their standards of life and if less developed countries want to give their citizens the same access to energy (and everything that goes with it: education, health care, material goods and so forth), how is this to be achieved? What is the solution to demand that is rapidly escalating and oil supplies that are dwindling?
After articulating in some depth the scale of the problem, without reverting to "the end is nigh" doom-mongering, Roberts examines potential solutions: from coal (massive reserves but an environmental catastrophe) and nuclear (`clean' if you don't mind burying the waste in your back garden), to so-called `alternatives' such as solar and wind, to liquefied natural gas and hydrogen fuel cell micro grids (but no mention, alas, of the ellusive zero-point technologies).
These solutions also bring in the second facet of the book, environmental [...]. Just what is the impact of oil on the environment? This is not simply analysing the automotive industry's reaction to miles-per-gallon fuel efficiency, which Roberts does but also looking at the construction of modern buildings - how construction firms win bids by offering the lowest up-front costs, which often means incredibly wasteful energy usage; more expensive construction techniques that actually reduce long-term running costs by fuel efficiencies are often seen as uncompetitive in the immediate short-term. Roberts also discusses alternative energy generating techniques and just how much of an impact this could have, given the proper government backing. The Kyoto Protocol and carbon emissions - why 550 parts per million is pretty much the threshold below which the planet can sustain life without the threat of severe and permanent damage? Discussed. Why, even if carbon emissions were cut to zero immediately, they would still keep on rising? Discussed. What we can do about this? Discussed.
As with the rest of this book, Roberts' examines so many other issues that here I can only hint at the amount of information that this book contains.
Paul Roberts also breaks down the geopolitical implications of the existing order: why the price of oil is so volatile, what the relationship betwixt the U.S. and Saudi Arabia is based around (read Craig Unger's superb book, House of Bush, House of Saud, for much more on this disturbing connection), why Big Oil has a vested interest in the status quo, in that to upgrade existing energy infrastructure would literally take trillions of dollars and oil companies are making money without spending this capital on unproven energy technologies. Again, these few sentences can only hint at the thorough research that Roberts has undertaken, in order to bring these complex and often subtle factors to light.
Roberts does also pose solutions, not simply articulate the problems. In short, there is no magic bullet but a combination of several programmes might go some way to ensuring that all citizens of this planet have a future - ultimately a combination of energy efficiency strategies (supply is running out, so make savings in the consumption side of the equation) and alternative fuel sources, coupled with governmental incentives to consumers and suppliers, alongside benefits to less developed countries, to help them to modernise their energy economies and leapfrog the worst aspects of the West's industrial revolution development.
For just one example: with the car industry, an idea might be to internalise externalities. With the tobacco industry, the cost of growing the leaf and bringing it to market is quite low. The price of cigarettes is relatively high because governments' recognise that there are costs associated with smoking that are borne by society (the externalities) - most notably, hospital care for patients suffering from self-inflicted-smoking-related cancers. Therefore, cigarettes are highly taxed in order to off-set the costs that the product causes, to place that cost back on the manufacturer. If this logical approach was applied to cars, the cost of an inefficient large car or so-called Sports Utility Vehicle would be much higher because the environmental cost of bringing that oil to the market would be placed back where it belongs; the costs of maintaining a large military presence in the Middle East, combined with the costs to the health care industry of car-related pollution and respiratory diseases, would not be paid for by society at large but by those who choose to buy those particular cars. This would encourage people to buy less of these wasteful and usually unnecessary vehicles until they became more energy efficient; it would also incentivise the auto industry to rekindle the spirit of fuel economies that was once so prevalent after the Arab oil embargo of the mid 1970s. Unfortunately, energy savings - energy capital - like this is often turned into an energy deficit, by having more people purchasing these aspirational vehicles. This leads to a paradox that the more energy we save, the more we end up consuming. This incredibly brief illustration, which probably does no justice to the original text, is but one of numerous examples that Roberts' provides.
Above all, Paul Roberts argues that a do nothing, business as usual approach to these problems is wilfully ignorant and that energy illiteracy will have severe and profound consequences for everybody. If you own a car, or consume anything made from oil - and that could be anything plastic, from a toothbrush to the mouse in your right hand - then The End of Oil should be read. The longer we as consumers and voters, the longer decision makers in the corporate and political structure wait, wait to see if climate change really is caused by human impact, to see if oil really is running out as rapidly as those wild people in the wings claim it is, the greater the problems will be when the shift from petroleum to a new energy order is forced upon us and the much more terrible that upheaval will be. Read this fascinating book, then watch the documentary, "The End of Suburbia."
if you wan to get a grip on peak oil read on, 18 Oct 2006
I have read many books on peakoil and found this one of the best. I agree it goes on a little at times but all in all a great read on the subject.
A little extensive, 11 Jun 2006
This book is a nice read about the subject.
The most relevant negative aspect is the fact that is too extensive. All that is said could have been said in far less pages.
About the content, it covers almost all the different aspects of the main problem. Doesn't provide a solution (if there is one), but it make a very good researchable analysis.
No worries! USA to the rescue!, 02 May 2006
Although the number of "alarmist" publications about energy and climate fill the shelves, this book doesn't fit that category. Roberts, although clearly concerned about energy consumption and the capacity to meet it, thinks demand can be met. That won't be achieved without some revision in outlook and actions. In this carefully structured and comprehensive study, readers will gain a firm grasp on the issues involved in making the transition from oil to alternative energy. It won't be cheap or painless, but it can be done, he proposes in this well-written account. You need only be prepared to take some first steps. The very first step is to read this book to overcome "energy illiteracy".
Changing the energy basis of a society isn't a novelty of the "modern" world, Roberts suggests. Humanity has shifted from wood fuel to coal, and from coal to petrochemicals. There was resistance in each case, because people cling to the known. Woodstoves might burn coal, but oil-fired systems are a major shift in technology. So, too, Roberts argues, will (be?) the replacements for oil furnaces or petrol burning autos, whether using natural gas, or hydrogen fuel cells. This approach enables the author to address both the existing patterns of energy extraction and use as well as the options facing us in making substitutions. He carefully examines the technology and economics of the various alternative energy supply methods. Hydrogen fuel cells are given a full hearing, with an account of Geoffrey Ballard's attempt to launch a successful production firm. Ballard didn't quite succeed, but the potential remains available. Roberts also examines solar panels and wind power for electricity generation. In Europe, of course, wind power is a major factor and growing rapidly. In Roberts' eyes, however, his own nation is less sympathetic over wind power. How much this is due to personal choice and how much to energy industry negative propaganda remains unclear. The energy lobbyists, as the author notes, have not been idle. Investment in coal and oil is too great to overturn readily.
Roberts squarely addresses the economic issues of new energy forms . If society is to endure a transition to wind, hydrogen or natural gas power, what will be the costs? "Consider the scale of the task", he says, noting that the conveyors and users of the primary fuels, coal and oil, have over ten trillion [US] dollars tied up in equipment. The transformation of such an immense investment, particularly in unproven technologies is a "colossal" enterprise, not entered lightly. He stresses, however, that such cost isn't sufficient excuse to delay or attempt to refute the need for it. The energy transformation must be made, partly because the world is running out of oil, and cannot afford to replace it with more severe polluters such as coal. The changeover must be undertaken, but it must be done with known technologies until the riskier ones are considered proven.
The cost of transition must also factor in the true cost of the fuels in use. The external costs of petroleum for example, are rarely calculated. Referring to a study by Joan Ogden, Roberts explains how real costs of using petrol actually make the hydrogen fuel cell a price competitive technology. Such calculations should lead to greater investment in alternative technologies. Roberts argues further that it will be the United States that will inevitably take the lead in the process, both in technology and investment. Citing changes in attitudes and policy resulting from the "Oil Embargo" of the 1970s, he suggests that these be reviewed and expanded to achieve the first steps in the transition to new energy forms. It is the US, as the greatest polluter and the greatest innovator, which must take the lead in the change. The energy purchasing power and world marketing skills of the US makes it the most likely promoter of the change. US-based technology is best suited to bringing higher energy levels to developing nations, while not condemning them to high pollution generation.
Roberts has challenged a large segment of his own population with this book. He notes that consumers are being confronted with need for change now, and they must ready themselves for it. A new age requires innovative thinking and changing some long-held views. The author wants that process to be as painless as possible.
Good ...but it could have been better, 12 Jul 2008
What could have been a very good book is reduced to a good one by some very poor editing.
There are leads not followed up (why was Armand Hammer being scrutinised by MI5?); characters suddenly appear in the narrative having been introduced once 30 pages ago; there is occasional Boy's Own detail (do we really need to know the complete Mark and variant of the radar equipment on board rescue helicopters?) there is an over-reliance on acronyms.
The book would have also benefitted greatly from a few plans of Piper Alpha showing the arrangement of some of the locations where the narrative is placed. The author makes significance of the confusion occasioned by the darkness, smoke and maze of the platform's layout; his writing occasionally worsens the confusion for the reader.
But it's still a page-turner and a shocking story of incompetence, confusion, greed and heroism.
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Customer Reviews
Rig Star, 06 Aug 2008
Autobiographies about out of control rockstars are ten a penny, similar books about "normal" people far less common. The reason for that is pretty simple I guess, we aspire to our dreams and wishes...and with the best will in the world I don't wanna work on a rig. Never the less Paul Carters book is a pretty good read, he wizzes around the world and keeps things snappy, even if the claims on the cover are a little exagerated - taken hostage...er where?. He's no crazy Keith Moon character either, its the situation rather than the personality thats amusing here.
A good, but slight, read.
A bland tall tale, 12 May 2008
I work in the oil industry and based on the other reviews,looked forward to reading this immensely. What a letdown! Paul may have travelled all over the world,but the tales just smacked of the 'bloke in the pub' tales - there wasn't any detail of the work that he did,just lots ofblokeish stories.Even when he did actually talk about the work, it was so out of context and poorly explained as to be meaningless. Sadly a big disappointment - spend your money on something else!
Health and safety? I think not., 14 Apr 2008
This book takes about two hours to read. It zips through hundreds of hilarious and dangerous situations that the author gets into all over the world. A very funny and rather shocking look at the humour and adrenaline of men working in the oil industry, it will go down well with anyone who enjoys a good lad's mag.
I bought this on spec in Sydney airport where the petite Asian lady in the bookshop said "Oh yes, I've read that, it's excellent." I was a little surprised, perhaps even suspicious and unsure of what I was buying. Now I just have respect for the lady in the shop. This book is all about drunkenness, fights in foreign bars, inappropriate pets, diarrhoea at the worst moment, brutal practical jokes, jungle madness and the raw testosterone-fuelled humour of oil drillers.
When I bought it, I was actually thinking I might learn something about the oil industry, especially since it starts with a little graphic guide to the different types of oil rig and platform. But forget it, the oil is just an excuse for the larks, bravado and cameraderie.
I also wondered about the title: not just "don't tell mum", but also the bit about being a piano player in a whorehouse. Well, forgive the spoiler, but the author's mum worked in the oil industry too, so she knew what he was up to, and never thought he worked in a whorehouse (although he visited enough). But I guess it's a snappy enough title, and it caught my eye.
If you're a real pedant like me you will also find some of Paul Carter's facts are way out, a bit like his spelling (e.g. elementary canal) but this is by-the-by. It's the laughs that make the book.
And if you're a nice mum buying this to try to persuade your precious son that becoming an oilman is too dangerous and dodgy, forget it. He'll read this book and never want to do anything else - apart from reading the sequel "This is not a drill"...
Very entertaining , 06 Apr 2008
Really enjoyed this. Reference to the details of working on a rig went over my head but the anecdotes regarding different countries and cultures were entertaining and it was a very easy enjoyable read.
Oil&Gas Industry at its best...., 18 Mar 2008
I work in the oil&gas industry and hearing some of the stories from people who are on the front line - you would usually find it hard to believe. Someone recommended this book, so I took the plunge and ordered it - and there is nothing much to say but absolutely brilliant. I can believe all the stories that Pauli describe, and having spoken | | |