Book Review: Catch Me If You Can by Frank W. Abignale, Stan Redding

Truth is stranger than fiction.

This is an unbelievable yet true story of a man who quite literally wore many hats, including that of a first officer/ Co- Pilot, Pediatric resident supervisor, lawyer, bank security guard etc, all before the age of 21.

Certainly the security systems in the banking industry weren't advanced or sophisticated back in the '60s and '70s but it is unlikely that any crook could have the shrewdness and quite honestly, the brilliance to forge checks worth millions of dollars or fly over a million miles for free.

It is apparent that from Frank W. Abagnale's early teenage years itself that he had a knack for conning others. From misusing his dad's Mobil Gas credit card, to writing fraud checks, to even escaping prison, this man had a certain skill. This skill along with his meticulous observation really helped him pull off all these elaborate schemes.

But it is a little relief to know that he never “diddled” an individual. Sending actual cashiers check to the bail out lawyer and giving cash to independent store owners shows that he still had operated with some sort of ethics despite being a con artist. He instead opted to swindle and bamboozle corporates such as airlines, hotels and other establishments protected by insurance. But crime is a crime nonetheless.

I don’t believe that he was reformed completely during his imprisonment but he was able to use his creative criminality in socially acceptable ways in the later part of his life.

Many of the accounts about his swindles and escapades seemed like they were straight out of a movie or action novel, reminding the reader that truth can sometimes be stranger than fiction.

-Rithin M.

Hues and Dews Poetry