Made the dude an offer he can't refuse!

Good Day Readers:

First met Guy Lawson a few years ago after CyberSmokeBlog posted something about the NDP Party (it's been so long can't remember what) to which he replied. Turned out years ago he and his Dad had worked on campaigns in Saskatchewan. As you will see from his bio he's a lawyer who after practicing a few years decided law wasn't his cup of tea - very wise man - going on to carve out quite a successful niche for himself as an author.

The offer he can't refuse? CSB used to get a lot of requests to review new books but had to turn them down otherwise it would not have any time left for blogging. However, it is prepared to make an exception in this case for a signed and dated copy of Arms and Dudes. Deal no deal? Final offer!

Sincerely,
Clare L. Pieuk

Guy Lawson was born in Toronto. He holds degrees from the University of Western Australia and the University of Cambridge, England. He worked briefly as an attorney on Wall Street but left the law to pursue writing.

For two decades he has traveled the world reporting on a wide range of subjects—conflict in the Balkans, the Mexican drug wars, ice hockey in northern Canada, life in a Bowery flophouse, fútbol in Brazil, Hezbollah suicide bombers, the Rwandan genocide war crime trials, and FBI-fabricated domestic terrorism cases, among others.

His work has appeared in many international publications, including The New York Times, Harper's, GQ, Rolling Stone, the New York Review of Books, the Globe and Mail, and the London Observer.

Guy is the author of the New York Times bestseller Octopus: Sam Israel, the Secret Market, and Wall Street's Wildest Con (2012). His first book was The Brotherhoods: The True Story of Two Cops Who Murdered for the Mafia (2007). His work has appeared in a number of anthologies, including Rules of the Game: The Best Sports Writing from Harper's Magazine and twice in Best American Sports Writing. He has appeared on The Today Show, CNN, MSNBC, the BBC, and for two years hosted a literary television program in Canada.

His Rolling Stone article"Arms and the Dudes" was nominated for a National Magazine Award for best feature writing in 2012. Guy is currently working on a book based on that story.

Guy has three stories currently optioned to become feature films. The Brotherhoods is in development with Warner Brothers. His GQ article about street gangs in Los Angeles titled "The Knife" is in development at Imagine for Universal. And his Rolling Stone story "Arms and the Dudes" is in development with Mark Gordon for Todd Phillips to direct at Warner Brothers.

Guy lives in upstate New York with his wife and two daughters.

Photo credit: Jennifer May

Dear Friends,

I am writing to let you know that my new book, Arms and the Dudes, is coming out next week. You can pre-order it on Amazon - it will be sent to you on June 9, hot off the presses. (It's also available as an ebook.)

If you're thinking about buying a copy, this would be the absolute perfect time to do so, as sales in the early days are crucial to the success of the book.

Arms and the Dudes is the story of how three stoners from Miami Beach became the most ulikely gunrunners in history - a tale worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster. They're actually shooting the movie now, starring Jonah Hill and Miles Teller.

The dudes in the title - Efraim Diveroll, David Packouz and Alex Podrizk - secured a $300 million contract from the Pentagon to supply ammunition to the Afghanistan military. The Scam? They bought cheap, surplus from Balkan gunrunners, repackaged it, and shipped it to Kabul - until they were caught by Pentagon investigators and the scandal turned up on the front pages of the New York Times.

At least that's the official story.

Arms and the Dudes pulls back the curtain on the mysterious and murky world of global arms dealing, taking a trip from a dive apartment in Miami Beach to mountain caves in Albania, the corridors of power in Washington, and the frontlines of Iraq and Afghanistan.

It's a ripping yarn I promise.

I hope you read it and let me know what you think. I'd appreciate if you'd tell your friends, share with your followers like me on Facebook and leave a review on Amazon too.