For fiction with a bit of finance: A Conspiracy of Paper by David Liss is entertaining - it takes place in old London and talks about the South Sea Company and more… I’m reading it slowly before bed, but I’ll probably try his other books later on.
From Zero to Sixty on Hedge Funds (online only I think) may have a lot of basic stuff, depending on how much you already know from CFA/job/whatever, but it’s possible to get some clarification on some HF and PE workings, and it is easy to read - the author seems very down to earth most of the time.
I am now reading The Art of Short Selling and Financial Shenanigans right now. Both of them are fantastic books and are good to read in tandem in order to keep one’s mind focused on digesting all the things you could be looking at short-selling indicators. I’ll plan to get through both books in the next week and then leave them on the shelf as reference material as needed.
Just wondering if anyone has read any of these books and thought it was worth it:
…
Too Big to Fail by Andrew Ross Sorkin
If you want another take on the crisis, I really liked All the Devils are Here by Bethany McLean. I read Too Big to Fail as well and didn’t like it as much. TBTF is mostly about the crisis while it happened, different parties involved, who was saying “oh, shit” in whose conference rooms about what, etc. ATDAH contains large chunks about how it happened, and the specific events over the 25 year leadup that enabled the bubble to form. It manages to do this without painting anyone in particular as evil or stupid - no real axe to grind, just damned good explanations.
How anyone preparing for CFA or even holding a CFA charter could read and recommend conspiracy crap like “The Creature from Jekyll Island” is beyond me.
I didn’t even read half of it before throwing it out. Full of half-truths, mistakes, imagined correlations and a general ignorance of the subject. Simply embarrassing.
Frankly, the classic finance books are the best and I don’t need to bring them up here. Just re-read chapters 8 & 20 of the intellgenet investor over and over again.
Sci fi–
Dune, Enders Game, Starship Troopers, Neuromancer, Snow Crash, The Forever War, The Dark Tower series, Cryptonomicon (this last one is long, but great if you are into VC, corporate intrigue and spy thriller rolled into one).
Non-Fiction–
The Prize, The Rise and Fall of Great Powers, John Adams, The Forgotten Man, Postwar: A History of Europe since 1945, Memoirs of the Second World War (Churchill, needs to be read with a grain of salt),
Song of Ice and Fire series (aka Game of Thrones). Can’t believe no one mentioned this yet. Highly recommend, esp if you want to switch things up and read something non finance related.
Song of Ice and Fire series (aka Game of Thrones). Can’t believe no one mentioned this yet. Highly recommend, esp if you want to switch things up and read something non finance related.
I can’t believe I didn’t mention it. I thought I did. Must have been another thread. I’ve read them all a couple times. Fan-farking-tastic.
American Gods and Hyperion area both excellent. If you are into Hyperion try Ringworld.
Yeah, that’ll probably be my next pick up. I’ve been meaning to read it for a while. I’ve been putting it off because I heard the sequels suck, which doesn’t really matter. Just a bummer.
Song of Ice and Fire series (aka Game of Thrones). Can’t believe no one mentioned this yet. Highly recommend, esp if you want to switch things up and read something non finance related.
I can’t believe I didn’t mention it. I thought I did. Must have been another thread. I’ve read them all a couple times. Fan-farking-tastic.
And, obviously, American Psycho. The book is way, way more messed up than the movie. One of the more disturbing things I’ve read.
Anansi Boys was funny, Neil Gaiman is coming out with a new novel this June I believe. Ender’s Game was great, and some of the sequels. For whatever random reason, I picked up and old copy of Long Day’s Journey into Night when I visited the folks back in Dec. I read it front to back. It resonates with me somewhat.
- “Confidence Game”, from Christine Richard, is the story of Bill Ackman shorting MBIA. It’s pretty interesting in drawing some parallels to the Herbalife story ( this is for us readers to do - the book was printed before the HLF short). From the book, Ackman seems very smart, but also stubborn. The book has less valuation stuff than Einhorn’s “Fooling Some of the People All of the Time”, so it may lack some interesting content for analysts, but it’s an interesting story.
- “Exposure” , from Michael Woodford, is the story of the Olympus scandal - the author is the former CEO who got thrown out after asking some tough questions. It’s another story about weak corporate governance. It’s a nice read because the author shares a lot. The Economist wrote a review on this book recently. Anybody interest might Google that first.
- “Emerging Africa”, by Steven Radelet, shows how awesome 17 african countries are and how we should all invest in them. Even though it seems biased, there’s still good info there, and the author does make an effort to qualify the risks and shortcomings of the region.
For fiction with a bit of finance: A Conspiracy of Paper by David Liss is entertaining - it takes place in old London and talks about the South Sea Company and more… I’m reading it slowly before bed, but I’ll probably try his other books later on.
From Zero to Sixty on Hedge Funds (online only I think) may have a lot of basic stuff, depending on how much you already know from CFA/job/whatever, but it’s possible to get some clarification on some HF and PE workings, and it is easy to read - the author seems very down to earth most of the time.
A Dangerous Fortune by Ken Follett – straight fiction set to the back drop of late 19th century finance.
I been watching Khloe and Lamar……
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Just wondering if anyone has read any of these books and thought it was worth it:
Bailout by Neil Barofsky
The Secrets of Economic Indicators by Bernard Baumohl
Too Big to Fail by Andrew Ross Sorkin
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I am now reading The Art of Short Selling and Financial Shenanigans right now. Both of them are fantastic books and are good to read in tandem in order to keep one’s mind focused on digesting all the things you could be looking at short-selling indicators. I’ll plan to get through both books in the next week and then leave them on the shelf as reference material as needed.
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If you want another take on the crisis, I really liked All the Devils are Here by Bethany McLean. I read Too Big to Fail as well and didn’t like it as much. TBTF is mostly about the crisis while it happened, different parties involved, who was saying “oh, shit” in whose conference rooms about what, etc. ATDAH contains large chunks about how it happened, and the specific events over the 25 year leadup that enabled the bubble to form. It manages to do this without painting anyone in particular as evil or stupid - no real axe to grind, just damned good explanations.
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How anyone preparing for CFA or even holding a CFA charter could read and recommend conspiracy crap like “The Creature from Jekyll Island” is beyond me.
I didn’t even read half of it before throwing it out. Full of half-truths, mistakes, imagined correlations and a general ignorance of the subject. Simply embarrassing.
Is it part of the “World without End” and “Pillars of the Earth” series?
Reading Boomerang from Michael Lewis. He has fantastically captured the events happended in debt markets of Iceland, Ireland and Greece in the book.
No, but very similar. Not better than Pillars but better than World without end.
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I just read The Secrets of the FBI by Ronald Kessler. Phenomenal books about stake outs, covert operations, fighting crime, and retaining justice.
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Frankly, the classic finance books are the best and I don’t need to bring them up here. Just re-read chapters 8 & 20 of the intellgenet investor over and over again.
Sci fi–
Dune, Enders Game, Starship Troopers, Neuromancer, Snow Crash, The Forever War, The Dark Tower series, Cryptonomicon (this last one is long, but great if you are into VC, corporate intrigue and spy thriller rolled into one).
Non-Fiction–
The Prize, The Rise and Fall of Great Powers, John Adams, The Forgotten Man, Postwar: A History of Europe since 1945, Memoirs of the Second World War (Churchill, needs to be read with a grain of salt),
Ready Player One was a suprisingly good read if you’re into sci-fi / nerdy stuff.
I used to smoke pot and go to class.
Sneak in ten minutes late with a bullsh*t excuse.
Slink down low at my desk.
Pray to god nobody asked me any questions.
I was the best teacher ever.
Awesome book - really quick read
Mr Penumbra’s 24 hour bookstore
‘Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes.’
~ Henry David Thoreau
Song of Ice and Fire series (aka Game of Thrones). Can’t believe no one mentioned this yet. Highly recommend, esp if you want to switch things up and read something non finance related.
I can’t believe I didn’t mention it. I thought I did. Must have been another thread. I’ve read them all a couple times. Fan-farking-tastic.
American Gods , Hyperion , and Ender’s Game are all must-reads for the sci-fi fans.
And, obviously, American Psycho. The book is way, way more messed up than the movie. One of the more disturbing things I’ve read.
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Player One sounds right up my alley.
American Gods and Hyperion area both excellent. If you are into Hyperion try Ringworld.
You might have actually mentioned it STL. I thought I saw a post about it somewhere, but can’t remember anymore.
Yeah, that’ll probably be my next pick up. I’ve been meaning to read it for a while. I’ve been putting it off because I heard the sequels suck, which doesn’t really matter. Just a bummer.
Somebody’s got to say it - Neal Boortz
RIA’s 2013 Federal Tax Handbook is what I base most of my life on.
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Anansi Boys was funny, Neil Gaiman is coming out with a new novel this June I believe. Ender’s Game was great, and some of the sequels. For whatever random reason, I picked up and old copy of Long Day’s Journey into Night when I visited the folks back in Dec. I read it front to back. It resonates with me somewhat.
Studying With
French Women Don’t Get Fat!
Balthasar and Blimunda
______________________________________________________
You must be the square root of two cause i feel irrational around you
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Some random kinda finance related books:
- “Confidence Game”, from Christine Richard, is the story of Bill Ackman shorting MBIA. It’s pretty interesting in drawing some parallels to the Herbalife story ( this is for us readers to do - the book was printed before the HLF short). From the book, Ackman seems very smart, but also stubborn. The book has less valuation stuff than Einhorn’s “Fooling Some of the People All of the Time”, so it may lack some interesting content for analysts, but it’s an interesting story.
- “Exposure” , from Michael Woodford, is the story of the Olympus scandal - the author is the former CEO who got thrown out after asking some tough questions. It’s another story about weak corporate governance. It’s a nice read because the author shares a lot. The Economist wrote a review on this book recently. Anybody interest might Google that first.
- “Emerging Africa”, by Steven Radelet, shows how awesome 17 african countries are and how we should all invest in them. Even though it seems biased, there’s still good info there, and the author does make an effort to qualify the risks and shortcomings of the region.
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