Business Money Books

Though maybe a tad longer than it could have been, Ric Edelman does a good job of discussing the perils of mutual funds and what to look out for when investing. He makes occasional arguments for hiring financial advisers, but always states that he is not trying to make a case for hiring him. His sections are short, simple, easy to ride and provide a relatively straightforward explanation of the topics. There's a whole theory section on assessing risk that was probably unnecessary, but he warns readers that they are free to skip it. There's an enormous section that is simply a day-by-day timeline of mutual fund scandals that is incredibly tedious and makes its point three pages in (so the other 20 or so are just a waste of paper). Pick it up and read it on a plane, you'll finish quickly and have learned a thing or two.

This book is largely self-serving. The author shows how hard it is for ordinary people to invest wisely, so that they need investment advisors like him.

His advice to have a wide diversity of investments is contrary to Warren Buffet's technique: own a small amount of investments and study them carefully.

This book led me to a major change in my retirement investment strategy.

I had already rolled my various 401(k) plans into IRAs. I had a mix of index mutual funds and individual stocks. But reading this book crystallized for me what the problems were with that.

Although it is true he makes a big pitch for institutional mutual funds, which you can only get from a company like his, he does say you can "do it yourself" with ETFs.

For me it was not a big deal to go to his website for a more tailored asset allocation -- which was free by the way. Then I did some research to map those asset classes to specific ETFs.

The biggest benefit is that I no longer have to agonize about if I am in the right stock or if I should get out of a stock and what should I replace it with. With the market down so much lately, I am able to keep on track and not sell based on fear. All I have to do is apply a constant ratio approach to re-balancing and that's it.

I have done this for the last 3 1/2 months and I am barely down (< 1%) compared to the S&P 500 down 10%. So far so good. Using his approach, you can see the rotation in and out of different asset classes and not worry -- you are in all of them!

As for the sales pitch, I could imagine someone not having the time and inclination to do their own investments and they would benefit from his company's services.

OK, after getting to about page 40 I realized that this was an advertisement of his company. Basically, he says to buy every possible stock and go long-term. About 4x10^2 times, he was saying that "his" company was doing just that. Didn't find anything useful, except that you spend more when you retire (never knew that one!). The book's name is really great - it captures attention.

As with Mr. Edelman's other books, there is information contained that is worth knowing and reviewing often. He writes with the experience of years of helping with financial matters.

If a picture is worth, as is said, a thousand words, The Wall Street Journal Guide to Money and Investing is worth many times its purchase price.

The book takes a very basic approach at explaining the components of the investment world. Taken together, the components explained represent a comprehensive view of what is a very complex and broad topic.

One reading doesn't do this book justice, though. Read over and over, however, this book will earn a place on any serious investment student's bookshelf as a resource to return to for a periodic refresher or for clarification.

Bumped to the side by The Wall Street Journal in favor of Dave Kansas' The Wall Street Journal Complete Money and Investment Guidebook, Kenneth & Virginia Morris' book lives on as The Standard and Poors Guide to Money and Investing. Where Dave Kansas' book is complete and chock full of words, the Morris' still succeed at conveying the basics in a way that will forever add value.

Just finished reading it. Wow, what a mind trip. Fast shipment too!

As many have said in their reviews, this is a great starting point for those new to investing and financial markets. In fact, it's the best I've ever found and I've looked a lot. The simple, plain English explanations are what makes this book stand out. For the nuances and more detailed information regarding the topics in the book, look to a textbook from a college finance class. But for the person who knows very little, start with this.

I cant believe that I went through college without taking business or econ classes (except for political economy). This is a way for me to catch up.
I like this book because it is easy to read and understand. So easy even an elementary school kid could understand....ok maybe junior high.
Eventually I would hope to read the Intelligent Investor.

This book is excellent for learning the basic concepts in investing and finance. If you would like to iniciate in this area, i recommend this book as an entry door with the basics.

This is an excellent first book to give a teen who is not sure about investing as a good place to put his or her money. It is written with teens in mind and has tons of real-world examples to which teens can relate. It is a good start to get teens exciting about making their money work for them. I got it for my 16-year-old nephew who was skeptical, but is on board with taking control of his own financial future.

This book will basically focus on the way the stock market works and how to invest in it. It also tells you how much you can save in the future. It is the meat of the book when it comes to the stock market, but the book will also teach you the cost of bad habits such as smoking and the upsides of credit cards if used right. The book teaches you how to get your money's worth in the bank, teaching you everything from how they make money to what a cd is. The worst thing about this book that annoyed me so much, I took off a point, was that they try to write the book in a type of slang format. Going from saying the word dawg and writing rock lyrics about the book. This is very annoying, but the tips this book gives are just too valuble to detour you alway.

I recommend it to anyone of any age.

This books gives the true value of savings: a life worth dreamings about and investments we make for it to see it happen. This is a sweet and funny little book that makes money look exciting as a tool and token. I see this book as the clues to playing a cool video game. (More, like the hint book.) It's so casual that you think your reading Reader's Digest. You never feel confused! Math teacher's, parents, middle schoolers, high school students, college students, retirees: you'll love this book.

This book has reinforced what I have been preaching to my 17 year old for years......1) save and invest your money early, 2)live within your means as you get started in life (used vs new car), 3) attend the local university (keep student loans to minimum) and 4) practice a healthy lifestyle and you will soon learn that by the time you are 30 you will have more financial freedom and less debt than 90% of Americans.

I wish I had been taught the discipline for the first two items as it wasn't until age 40 that I reached financial freedom. Fortunately for him, he is a believer after reading this book. Maybe along the way he will guide others in the right direction.

I only skimmed this book (after all, I own almost all the other TMF books!), but I think this book is by far one of the best financial books for **any** new investor, regardless of age. While other books may have more content, this is one of the most approachable financial and investing books I've read. (Plus, its worksheets **force** you practice what you read!) Readable by adults, too!

This book made me recognize that I was an under earner and living in financial chaos. I am so glad that I read it because it helped me to make some positive changes in my life. I would recommend it for everyone.

I bought this book a few years ago and I've read it several times. Now I'm buying it for a friend who is having confidence issues at work. I want her to realize that she's worth more than what she's getting right now, and I believe this book will give her that extra confidence!

Why are women still underpaid? Does self-esteem and earning six-figures go hand-in-hand? Do women place financial limits on themselves? With insight and practical real-world guidance Barbara Stanny helps us discover our inner six-figure woman. Are you ready to find the answers?

My copy of Secrets of Six-Figure Women is dog-eared, underlined, written in the margins and covered with sticky notes. I've used it in the question and answer portion of my seminars and have recommended it as a group read for leaders. Let me ask you: Are you earning and saving for the lifestyle you want to be consistently living and enjoying?

I believe one of the most important exercises in this book is the value-clarification exercise. I've learned from my own personal experiences that I will not succeed at anything that goes against my true core values. Your values fuel your motivation to succeed and earn. It's well worth taking the time to work and study the results of this activity.

Do you think that living the lifestyle of your choice, making the money you deserve and enjoying life is based on something deeper than just making money? Isn't it really about feeling worthy and deserving of making six figures? Isn't it about making money while nurturing healthy self-esteem?

Earning six-figures has nothing to do with age, education or luck. It does have everything to do with your desire to live a healthy, happy and financially satisfying life. Are you ready to earn your six-figure (and even seven-figure) income? Are you ready to stop underearning and to begin living up to your full earning potential?

I highly recommend Secrets of Six-Figure Women. I've personally seen it become a life changing eye opener for women who are tired of surviving and are ready to begin thriving in their financial life.

In Secrets of Six-Figure Women, Stanny takes you through a process of recognizing why so many women underearn and what we can do to earn what we are worth. From dealing with our fears about stepping out of our comfort zone and challenging longstanding beliefs to helping readers learn to develop a profit motive, this book will help you position yourself to prosper mentally, emotionally and physically.
On a personal note - as a female business owner, whenever I'm tempted to undercharge for my services or allow fear to impact my decisions, I re-read "Secrets of Six Figure Women," to help me stay on the six figure track and remind myself that I'm worth it.

Cassandra Mack, host of The No More Drama Hour of Power and author of, "The Single Mom's Little Book of Wisdom: 42 Tidbits of Wisdom To Help You Survive, Succeed and Stay Strong."

The "secrets" in this book are typical of the incomplete thinking that is common to so many books on success, as explained in "Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths, and Total Nonsense" by J Pfeffer.

In a nutshell, the author reveals these mundane "secrets" which also ignore the millions who start their own businesses and fail but who also follow these strategies:

SECRET 1: Financial Success Is Possible in Almost Any Field, and
Lack of Education Doesn't Have to Hold You Back.
SECRET 2: Working Hard Doesn't Mean Working All the Time.
SECRET 3: Focus on Fulfilling Your Values Rather Than Financial Gain.
SECRET 4: Loving What You Do Is Much More Important
Than What You Do.
SECRET 5: Feel the Fear. Have the Doubts. Go for It Anyway.
SECRET 6: Think in Terms of Trade-offs, Not Sacrifices, to Find a Workable Equilibrium.
SECRET 7: Sometimes You Just Have to Shrug It Off and Have a Good Laugh.
SECRET 8: Appreciate Abundance.

SIX-FIGURE TRAITS
1. A profit motive. Money per se may not be their driving force, but six-figure women absolutely expect to be well compensated for their work. They want to make money. They feel good about making money. They enjoy what money gives them. Profit, to these women, has a positive ring.
2. Audacity. Every woman I interviewed came to a point where she had to step outside her comfort zone and do something she wasn't completely sure she could do. It was rarely an experience she relished, nor did she always succeed. But she worked up the moxie to make the effort.
3. Resilience. They all had the grit to get back up and keep going when they didn't succeed or when they encountered setbacks.
4. Encouragement. Six-figure women have tremendously nurturing relationships with one or more people who believe in them, support them, continually root for them, and sometimes prod them along. Some, but definitely not all, had encouraging parents. Every one has remarkable friendships. And for those in a committed relationship, a supportive husband or partner is invariably cited as essential to their success.

STRATEGIES FOR EARNING MORE

1. Declare your intention to make good money.
2. Let go of where you are (leave your job if you feel stuck)
3. Decide which game to play - "play it safe" or "gamble to win"
4. Jump in, ready or not.
5. Keep on truckin'.
6. Grab opportunities.
7. No excuses allowed.
8. Ignore naysayers.
9. Never personalize.

Lynne Twist challenges us to think about our culture of scarcity and "more is better" and the impact that has on our lives and our environment. She challenges us to evaluate the self-imposed value we place on money, the impact on our happiness and the power in using money in an intentional way to align with our values and life purpose. This book can be transformative if the reader approaches reading it with that possibility in mind. Highly recommended!

Lynne....please make this an unabridged book on tape/CD! Not only could my blind boyfriend then readily access it, but I could listen to it in my car.

We as consumers are brainwashed into thinking we need more to be of value. This book brought to light the many ways we devalue ourselves and our gifts. I appreciate that Ms. Twist has given the tools to reformat our thoughts on this critical subject. Willetta S BaCote

A whole new way to look not just at money, but at life itself! Worth reading over and over again!

Well worth the effort in trying to get this book - a very forward thinker and ideas are articulated well. The world needs more thinking like this.

I boutht this book as required text book for my personal finance class. The book is very informative, and is written in a way that even a beginner in the relm of finance would understand.

Professor Keown has written an excellent overview of the personal finance issues and topics that impact our lives. This is a thoroughly readable text covering a wide range of topics including financial planning, cash and money management, insurance, investments and tax-related subjects. The author skillfully combines theory and practical application to educate the reader in a meaningful way. Highly recommended as a resource to increase your financial literacy quotient.

I enjoy watching Cramer's Mad Money tv show, but I had no idea how chaotic his career was before he had the show. I just assumed he made lots of money and everything was hunky dory. It was not, you have to read the story to believe it.

If you like Cramer even a little you will truely enjoy this book. It really helps to understand where he has come from, and how he got to where he is today.....
I have passed this book along to many and they also loved this easy read. I, too, believe it would make an interesting movie....enjoy.

James Cramer wrote a great autobiography. I love the show and wanted to learn more about the host. After hearing about this book, I bought it and read it without stopping. Cramer begins with his childhood and describes all the seasons of his life. His time in college, LA and at Goldman Sachs. I enjoyed reading about someone who never quits. There were many times in his life when he could have given up, but he never did. He also shows the importance of having someone in your life who always believes in you no matter what. To me, this novel shows the hard work and grit that are required to become great: whether you are lucky or not.

This is a great book. I've watched Jim Cramer on television, but never knew the whole story. From his days working as a reporter, to his time at Harvard Law School, on to Goldman Sachs, and eventually his own hedge fund. This is an up close and personal look at one of America's favorite money men. I highly recommend this book.

This book is the best. I laughed reading this book because not only is Cramer so funny but I can tell he is to honest and almost to reveling. There are many trading and investing books out there that sell you techniques and Strategies but this book gives you everything and teaches you the side of investing that the wanna be books don't tell you.Even though this book is a bio of Cramer's start I can promise you will get more than just that. I learned so much out of this book. I am a big fan of Cramer mostly because of his honesty. I hope he comes out with more great books. I wasn't a big fan of his last book that was based more around safe investing. I really like the the real dirt on what Street Pros really do-

Thanks Cramer!

This book was copyright 1997! Old information, very confusing for 2008 (old references, which are in my opinion, now irrelevant). B. Hodgson

I get up in the morning and walk my dog on the walking path just off the beach (Pacific Ocean adjacent). On my walk I always say hello to Mrs. Rothchild who is reading the Investor's Business Daily while sitting on her polished teakwood patio set. I jibe her that she should switch to the Wall Street Journal and get a real job investing like I do. After a quick but nutritious breakfast, I settle down to my state of the art computer where I E-trade my way to this lavish lifestyle I currently enjoy (takes no more than an hour!). After my "investing", I'll cruise PCH in my new convertible BMW and work on that driving tan. Thanks Joel Greenblatt!

What the heck? Oh drat, the alarm went off. I was having that dream again; now I must get ready for the drive to Pomona in my '98 Daewoo. So kick me, I am not yet a stock market genius. Can I be if I apply the lessons of this book? Maybe... but I have neither the time nor the money. For the person with both it might still be a great idea to have a stock market genius walk them through the paces for a few months.

On the merits of readability, Greenblatt dishes out the drudgery in a well presented and entertaining style. You get case studies, nifty chapter summaries, advice not to run through dynamite factories with lit matches, and a Gilligan's Island hit in the glossary (not bad for fourteen Yankee Dollars).

P.S. All you reviewers and review readers out there, have any of you struck pay dirt following the advice in this book?

Don't make my mistake. I avoided this book because of its title which makes it seem cheap and superficial. I finally decided to give it a try and I'm very glad that I did. Greenblatt is funny, direct, and easy to understand. His advice is practical that can be put to use immediately by investors at all levels. He actually "spoon feeds" a lot of this info to the reader which is rare. Of course no how-to book can completely do this and effort and time by the reader is absolutely required and essential to fully take advantage of this book from a financial standpoint. As Greenblatt points out this is good otherwise if investing were easy then there would be too many people competing with you and the profits would disappear.

At the end of the book he also lists many other sources (newspapers, magazines, book, publications) where the reader can gain further knowledge. Even if you do not benefit financially from Geenblatt's book, it is still worth reading due to it entertainment value. It is delightful. From a practical standpoint this book is far better than The Little Book That Beats the Market also by the same author.

I don't think you can find the information and ideas presented in this book anywhere else. These ideas can come only from a smart investor with a long experience like Greenblatt.

The book teaches you how to utilize special corporate events like spinoffs, mergers, and bankrupcies to make big profits in the stock markets. The ideas are very useful and supported by many real life examples.

1999 Fireside reissue of 1st edition (1997), 299 pages (of which 261 pages form the main body of the book).

Despite the awful title, I really enjoyed `You can be a Stock Market Genius'. Greenblatt laces his (excellent) content with plenty of jokes, which I always think of as a somewhat risky approach: some readers who would otherwise appreciate the content will not like the delivery.

By the time of publication, Greenblatt's investment firm had already achieved 50% compound annual growth for 10 years, so could write his book however he pleased. I like it when people don't need to write books for financial reasons - you get a better look at the author.

Greenblatt's book reminds me strongly of Mohnish Pabrai's `The Dhandho Investor', which I read a few months ago. I don't think one should be particularly surprised, as they both belong in that tiny group of investors who have not just beaten the stock market, but have absolutely smashed it. The following summary points for `You can be a Stock Market Genius' could be used for either book:

1. Concentrate your efforts on areas where bargains are likely to occur ("If you preselect investment areas that put you ahead of the game even before you start ... the most important work is already done.")
2. Limit downside risk ("If you don't lose money, most of the remaining alternatives are good ones.")
3. Load up on only a few best ideas ("...don't screw up a perfectly good stock-market strategy by diversifying your way into mediocre returns.")

The second point, which is the same as the concept of `margin of safety,' works because it - unlike the world of analyst earnings forecasts - acknowledges the severe uncertainty that is reality. I particularly enjoyed Nassim Taleb's `The Black Swan', partly because the world he reveals ties in so well with the `value' approach to investing. Both good and bad large, unpredictable events occur more frequently than we expect. If you organise your investing (and your life) so that you are protected from some of the negative shocks, but left exposed to the positive ones, this is likely to serve you well.

Pabrai focuses on distressed situations (what he calls `high uncertainty, low risk') and Greenblatt likes special situations (spin-offs, merger securities, etc). But the theme is the same: in order to get really good results you've got to be looking in areas other people are not.

Greenblatt is willing to concentrate more than Pabrai, who simply limits his positions to a maximum 10%, to protect himself against error. But these are differences in style rather than substance. They both look for promising situations/ideas and only then do the necessary work. Both profess to avoid use of Excel spreadsheets (In 2006 Greenblatt was asked if he used spreadsheets: "I really don't know how to build spreadsheet models. But the good news is that you don't need spreadsheets to make money.") In other words, they keep it simple.

Before he gets into the specifics of special situation investing, Greenblatt spends a chapter going over `some basics'. This short section of the book is either an excellent primer or reminder of the general requirements of a successful investment strategy - and I commend it to you without reservation.

His book also contains some excellent advice about selling. It is something I have been thinking about a lot recently after reading Pabrai's `The Dhandho Investor' and Katsenelson's `Active Value Investing' - both of which make a strong case for the need to learn to sell in order to get significantly above market returns. The problem with this advice is that selling well is somewhere between extremely difficult and impossible (as various super investors, such as Greenblatt, Marty Whitman, Munger, etc. have said).

Greenblatt's advice is very simple:

"The bargain created or unmasked by the special corporate event - that's what draws me in. The quality and nature of the business - that's what usually determines how long I stay. So trade the bad ones, invest in the good ones."

(You may note that this is essentially the same as Buffett's counsel, who wrote: "when we own portions of outstanding businesses with outstanding managements, our favourite holding period is forever.")

I was struck by how often Greenblatt rammed home the importance of incentives throughout his book:

"Insider participation is one of the key areas to look for when picking and choosing between spinoffs - for me, the most important area."

His understanding of the critical importance of incentives is very wise and is surely one of the key reasons for his outstanding success (although I wonder if he still holds stock options in such high regard, now it is clearer that the lack of downside risk can encourage excessively risky behaviour?). Charlie Munger said this about incentives in `The Psychology of Human Misjudgement':

"...almost everyone thinks he fully recognizes how important incentives and disincentives are in changing cognition and behaviour. But this is not often so. I think I've been in the top five percent of my age cohort almost all my adult life in understanding the power of incentives, and yet I've always underestimated that power. Never a year passes but I get some surprise that pushes a little further my appreciation of incentive super-power."

It's also one of the reasons why I like Karen Pryor's book, `Don't Shoot the Dog,' so much. Munger pointed out in the same talk I quoted him from above, that what economists call `incentives' is the same as what psychologists call `reinforcement'. Reading an excellent book on training using positive reinforcement (like Pryor's) is thus extremely useful in improving your understanding and critically, practice of making use of incentives.

So long as you're not the type who objects to a light-hearted approach, you're likely to find Greenblatt's book a lot better than the title suggests. Highly recommended.

Vitaliy's book is written in three sections: a background on range-bound markets, his active value investing strategy, and various bits of advice on applying his active value investing strategy. It's actually quite a friendly read and is something which any reader with a basic knowledge of investing terms (i.e. P/E, simple valuation, etc.) could make sense of this book and learn from it. Vitaliy's writing style is conversational and smooth though, at times, the book reads a bit too much like a one-way conversation and Vitaliy tries a little bit too hard to make pop culture references to illustrate his points. For example, there's one dubious paragraph in which Vitaliy attempts to use Steve Irwin's tragic death as an analogy for risk and risk management strategies.

Despite any qualms I may have had about the writing or choice of anecdotes, the content of this book really shines. It elucidates many topics and investing lessons that most new investors have to learn about the hard way. Vitaliy's Active Value Investing strategy, while not necessarily novel, puts together many important lessons on investing in a very simple and understandable way through his QVG (Quality, Valuation, and Growth) framework. He discusses how to find strong companies (quality of the business and growth of its business) and hammers home the point that a good company does not necessarily mean a good stock (valuation). He even puts together a rigorous but easy to use valuation framework which he describes as his "absolute P/E model" which basically allows an investor to quickly create a target value for a company's stock based on the price to earnings multiple and some qualitative assessment of the company's business.

Beyond putting together a quick and effective investment framework for investors, he also devotes the last third of the book to sharing with the reader a lot of his own thoughts on buying, holding, and selling stocks. These valuable lessons are priceless for anyone who are just starting off in investing. Probably the most refreshing chapter to see was a chapter on "selling" and how to develop a strong sell strategy. (Admittedly something I need to work on.)

Honestly, these two portions of Vitaliy's book - his active value investing strategy and his various chapters on practical application - would probably be enough for a strong entry into a sea of investing books usually heavy on promises and light on actual content. Active Value Investing delivers even more. Vitaliy presents his case for Range-Bound Markets and presents some original research supporting this rather worrisome market phenomenon that he believes we are in the midst of. Basically, the idea is that markets typically have two long-term "trends" and they are not bull and bear. Instead, he believes there are bull markets (the last of which finished in 2000) and flat, range-bound markets. Between 1960 and 1980, major indexes moved up and down and up and down but over the entire twenty year period there was little or no appreciation in either the Dow Jones or the S&P 500. He believes that in 2000, we started yet another one. His chapters on range bound markets are interesting and provide some very enlightening analysis of the psychology which drives long-term trends in the markets.

All-in-all, Active Value Investing: Making Money in Range-Bound Markets is an enlightening book for anyone starting out in investing which provides some great lessons that you don't often find in investing books more concerned with simply teaching do's an don'ts rather than the investing thought process. That being said, some of the writing can drag and Vitaliy's strategy may feel a bit "dumbed down" for more experienced investors.

Mr. Katsenelson makes a compelling argument that the next 10 to 15 years will resemble the bear market of 1967-1982, when the Dow traded at or around 1,000 for 15 straight years. Though a sideways market poses challenges to every investor, Vitaliy presents a clear and concise method to profiting in such turmoil. Investors new and experienced, will be smarter for having read this book. This is a truly unique viewpoint of a lesser documented branch of value investing.

The beginning of this book explores the idea of a "range bound market." We often forget that stock markets can go long periods of time without going up. One example of this is the range bound market from January 1966 until October of 1982, a period when the total return of the Dow was 0, despite rising and falling a lot within that period. Range bound markets often happen when, despite earnings growth, there is a P/E contraction. Katsenelson spends the first few chapters explaining range bound markets, and arguing that we are in, or about to enter one.

The second part of the book looks at the QVG - quality, value, growth - framework for analyzing stocks. If you are already a student of value investing, most of this will be review for you. Katsenelson puts more value on growth than the average value investor, but I think that's fine, as it can result in stock picks that have an overall higher quality, instead of the kind Warren Buffett calls "cigarette butts," meaning they just have one good puff left.

The third part of the book looks at investment strategy and covers the buy process, the sell process, and international investing. The best part about this book, in my opinion, is the chapter on the sell process. When to sell is a problem for many value investors, as so much of the educational material is focused on when to buy. Yet, it a proper decision making process for when to sell is important, because buy and hold can be a lousy strategy in range bound markets.

The fourth and final section of the book has to do with risk and diversification. Like most value investors, Katsenelson is skeptical of beta, pointing out that risk really stems from ignorance. He advocates a small and focused portfolio that is large enough not to kill you if you make a bad decision, but small enough that you can really follow and continually analyze the companies you own.

Overall, I think this book is one of the top 3 books on value investing that I have ever read. It's clear, a little bit humorous, and has excellent examples to reinforce the points made in the text. It will serve well as an intro to value investing, or as a more in-depth study for the experienced value investor.

One of my only posts because few are so bad that they compel me to write a review.

This is easily the worst book on investing I've ever read. I actually experienced a sense of agony in reading this book knowing I could be reading something better. It should not even be called a value investing book.
The author suggests finding companies that have low P/E's, that are fundamentally sound. He gives a very brief, useless description of what soundness is and is not. In fact his method for determining a stock's value as a whole is very shallow. I felt like he is just a journalist describing the surface of things. He mentions nothing of where to find a companies fundamentals, but briefly describes how they should look "strong, good, upward-trending", etc.

The worst of all is that I have a firm suspicion the he had his close friends and colleagues give him such high reviews. For example take a look at all the reviews. Most read just like the editors review of the book. Very long and touting promise. Next he gave the book to several of the reviewers and asked them to review it. They actually mention that in their reviews. The result being that all the longer reviews sound the same as if he gave them some press release to put their own spin on without reading the book. And lastly, a good number of reviewers come from the city where he teaches at, Denver. Most likely associates of some sort just doing him a favor.
If you think that unlikely, Google the book. You'll find the same reviews of the book from Amazon on other investors websites.

Bottom line. Don't buy this book. I'll be putting mine on here for .01 cent if you really must have it.

Vitaliy Katsenelson's book is written in three sections: a background section, a section on active value investing strategy, and a section on applying his active value investing strategy. It's quite a friendly read which any reader with a basic knowledge of investing terms could make sense of and learn from it. The writing style is colloqial however, and the author uses pop culture references to illustrate his points. An example of bad taste is a paragraph that attempts to use Steve Irwin's tragic death as an analogy for risk and risk management strategies.

Despite these qualms, the content of this book has shining moments. The Active Value Investing strategy, while not necessarily novel, puts together many important lessons on investing in a very simple and understandable way through his QVG (Quality, Valuation, and Growth) framework. The author uses simple metrics like "P/E" to build a framework for analysing companies. In view of the recent accounting irregularities associated with the "E" in P/E, however, this one dimentional metric may be too simplistic for anybody but the most novice investor. Still, it's a start.

The last third of the book shares with the reader a lot of the author's own thoughts on buying, holding, and selling stocks. Probably the most interesting chapter to see was a chapter on "selling" and how to develop a strong sell strategy. (Useful for traveling salespeople)

Two portions of Vitaliy's book - his active value investing strategy and his various chapters on practical application - would probably be enough for a strong entry into a sea of investing books usually heavy on promises and light on actual content. Basically, the author's idea is that markets typically have two long-term "trends" and they are not bull and bear. Instead, he believes there are bull markets (the last of which finished in 2000) and flat, range-bound markets. Between 1960 and 1980, major indexes moved up and down and up and down but over the entire twenty year period there was little or no appreciation in either the Dow Jones or the S&P 500. He believes that in 2000, we started yet another one. His chapters on range bound markets are interesting and provide some very enlightening analysis of the psychology which drives long-term trends in the markets.

All-in-all, Active Value Investing: Making Money in Range-Bound Markets is an enlightening book for anyone starting out in investing. That said, some of the writing can drag and Vitaliy's strategy may feel a bit "dumbed down" for more experienced investors. Furthermore, statistically a passive index has been found to beat active investing around 60% of the time, going back to the turn of the last century. A better book on investing would be Jeremy J Siegel's "Stocks for the Long Run".

I don't normally write reviews on anything, but I've been recommending this book to anyone who will listen for years. It spells out a lifeplan for looking at how you spend your money that is so easy to follow. It provides for the future and still allows you to enjoy today. If you've ever asked -- Can I afford that? This is the book for you.

I only wish I'd had a copy when I was in my twenties...

Once I started this book I didn't put it down.

As a CFP, I have seen plans before. Some are so meticulous as to be impractical. Others are designed to show the necessity of a product.

This plan is elegant, easy to implement, flexible and balanced.

Very well written with a lot of good advice on how to turn your current financial picture around. Lots of great advice and worksheets to help you make the most of your money.

I thought this book was very refreshing. I get so tired of people claiming that debt is someone else's fault besides the consumer. I love the suggestions in this book like, if you can't afford your house, get a roommate, or if you can't afford the big SUV, sell it and get a more cost effective car. It's kind of a tough love approach while still being upbeat. I feel that I have had my finances in order for a while now, but I found inspiration in this book to do even better. I loved the simple formula and encouraging language. I think this is a book that everyone should read, even if they think they are doing just fine. There are a few worksheets, but no huge complicated budgets that tend to overwhelm people. They are simple and get right to the heart of your spending. I would (and will!) recommend this book to anyone!

This book is helpful to anyone who is truly motivated to change their relationship with money.