Confessions of a Tax Collector: One Man's Tour of Duty Inside the IRS

By Richard Yancey

Twelve years ago, Richard Yancey answered a blind ad in the newspaper offering a salary higher than what he’d made over the three previous years combined. It turned out that the job was for the Internal Revenue Service -- the most hated and feared organization in the federal government.

So Yancey became the man who got in his car, drove to your house, knocked on your door, and made you pay. Never mind that his car was littered with candy wrappers, his palms were sweaty, and he couldn’t remember where he stashed his own tax records. He was there on the authority of the United States government.

With "a rich mix of humor, horror, and angst [and] better than most novels on the bestseller lists" (Boston Sunday Globe), Confessions of a Tax Collector contains an astonishing cast of too-strange-for-fiction characters. But the most intriguing character of all is Yancey himself who -- in detailing how the job changed him and how he managed to pull himself back from the brink of moral, ethical, and spiritual bankruptcy -- reveals what really lies beneath those dark suits and mirrored sunglasses.

This P.S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Mar 17, 2009
• ISBN: 9780061740756

Reviews for Confessions of a Tax Collector

[branjohb · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I thought this book would have some funny parts in it, but I found the book depressing and sad. The book had example after example of cases of delinquent taxpayers who really were losing everything to the IRS and the mostly neurotic staff working for the IRS did not seem to care that they were ruining people's lives. Sad commentary. Avoid this book like the plague if you care about misfortunate people. Two thumbs way down.

[bookwormteri · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Impossible to put down. The IRS is apparently like a cult to those that work there. They may hate it, they may love it, but they are so brain washed and beaten down, they keep at it. Absolutely fascinating. I highly recommend this for fans of memoirs.

[rmolter_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I'll have to admit when I started this book I stopped after a the first four chapters, seemed like one guys journey through office gossip and petty backstabbing nonsense. Gave it another chapter try before I'd get rid of it, I'm glad I gave it the second chance. This really got me interested when he started to perform the duties he was training for in the previous chapter. Hard to think this about a book about this subject but it definately became a page turner and I just had to crank it out to get to the end

[sunfi_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

An interesting book shows a little bit of the dark side of being an IRS agent and some of the problems that the agents run into. Lifts a bit of the mystery surrounding the agency and makes it a little more understandable to the public.

[coolmama_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Really enjoyed this account of Richard Yancey's 13 (?!) years inside the IRS. He is a good writer, and this tale is never boring!

[johnsonm_20 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Interesting story of what really goes on at the IRS. Liked writing style, nonfiction that reads like fiction.