Suggested Reading

Do you love reading finance books?  Are you looking for which finance books are actually useful and which ones take are just the same old 'you can do it!' without any real information? I've reviewed a lot of finance books over the last few years but have never listed them all on one page.  So here's the list - I've linked all of them to both Amazon and to the full review of the book.

Note: I've reviewed a lot of books over the years but this is certainly not a comprehensive list.  If I've missed a favourite of yours feel free to suggest it below and I'll review it as soon as possible.

Investment Books that I love

  1. You Can Be A Stock Market Genius - (full review) - A great special situations investment book for investors with some experience.  Coming up with investment ideas is one of the hardest things to do and this one has plenty of examples with full workings and risks to consider.  A must read for experienced investors 
  2. The Intelligent Investor - (full review) - One of the most well known and most recommended investment books of all time..and with good reason.  Incredibly dense and not for people just looking to start out but if you know a little already I highly recommend it
  3. The Little Book that Still Beats the Market - (full review) - This book is written by a super successful fund manager specifically for small investors.  It focuses on one strategy and explains (in a very understandable way) how and why that strategy works.  Highly recommended reading.
  4. The Big Secret for the Small Investor - (full review) - A follow on from The Little Book that Still Beats the Market (see above) this book goes through a simple way of implementing the strategy from that book.  It also has a really interesting discussion on the fundamental flaw with index funds.
Financial Industry Books that I love
  1. Monkey Business: Swinging through the Wall Street jungle - (full review) - my favourite book on the Investment Banking industry.  It made me laugh until I cried and in my career I experienced (almost) everything written about in that book.  Budding investment bankers: read this book!
  2. Too Big to Fail - (full review) - This book took a really in depth look at the credit crunch and the way in which the US government tried to protect the financial system.  It has an amazing amount of detail although it is one of the most dense books I have ever read
  3. The Big Short - (full review) - A look into the causes, winners and losers from the sub prime debt crisis.  The real strength of this book is the ability of the author to distill quite complex financial products so that anyone can understand what is going on
  4. Liar's Poker - (full review) - A really revealing look at Wall Street and sales and trading during the 1980s hay day.  It's funny, revealing and insightful and worth reading if only to realise how short sighted the financial industry is
  5. When Genius Failed: The rise and fall of Long Term Capital management - (full review) - You so rarely get an insight into large hedge funds and how they operate and why they fail.  This book is full of details and a fascinating read for anyone interested in the industry.
  6. Damn it feels good to be a banker - (full review) - A satirical look at the investment banking industry from an analysts view point.  Hilarious and cringe worthy at the same time - worth reading if you work or know someone that works in investment banking.
  7. Freakonomics - (full review) - Not strictly about the financial industry, Freakonomics looks at interesting questions such as "why do drug dealers live with their mothers?" through the lens of economics.
Business and personal development books I love
  1. The 4-Hour Workweek - (full review) - This is one of the few books that immediately had an impact on my life.  I set better goals, became more efficient and started taking steps towards achieving what I wanted to in life.  
  2. The Adventure Capitalist - (full review) - I read this book and immediately wanted to sell everything and travel the world trying to make a profit by buying and selling goods like the author.  Funny and thought provoking at the same time.
  3. Pitch Anything - (full review) - This book is all about the art of closing the deal and how to train yourself to be able to sell effectively.  Better than most books on selling that I've read.
  4. What they don't teach you at Harvard Business School - (full review) - This book is a great read for those interested how to do business in the real world, how to interact in the workplace and how to sell to customers

Books I do not recommend
  1. Rich Dad Poor Dad - (full review) - A book that stayed on the best seller list for years - I thought this book would make a real difference and have some real insights.  I found it to be simplistic and often times misleading and dangerous.
  2. The Black Swan: The impact of the highly improbable - (full review) - Although the premise behind this book was really interesting (that by nature we tend to discount high value low probability events), it was incredibly poorly written and a tough read to get through
  3. The Essential Buffett - (full review) - I feel a bit harsh putting this on the 'do not recommend' list. It is a decent book which introduces Warren Buffett and his investment philosophy but it just does not live up to it's potential.  Worth reading as an introduction to Buffett and value investing.
  4. Who moved my Cheese - (full review) - A short rather simple book about embracing change.  I'd read it if someone gave it to you but it is definitely not on my favourites list.

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