Even Buffett Isn't Perfect

About the book and its Contents:

This book certainly raises a lot of eyebrows since a lot of people, myself included, admire Warren Buffett, arguably the greatest investor of our time.



The book itself contains only 10 chapters, which explain an investment strategy or characteristic unique to Buffett.

Review

After reading this book, you will appreciate that some of Buffett's strategies for investing won't work for the small investor. For instance, Buffett prefers to focus instead of diversify. For him, this works fine, but the same strategy may not work at all for another investor. 

Difficulty Level = 3/5

This is good for readers who already understand how Warren Buffett thinks and acts. 

Personal Rating = 3.5/5

This is a short book that focuses more on clarifying Buffett's strategies and relating it to the ordinary investor. If you want to learn more about investing in general, one should instead browse from my other recommended books.

Personal finance tip for today:


An investment is an investment when you bought it at a value and not when you bought it expensively and sold it even more expensively. The latter is deemed as speculation.

A Random Walk Down Wall Street

About the book and its Contents:

This is another informative book about finance that states that the best way is to invest in equity index funds instead of actively managed mutual or investment trust funds.

The first chapters explain what is the meaning of Random Walk, as well as the financial manias and bubbles that transpired long ago. The second part discusses in detail the strengths and weaknesses of both technical and fundamental analysis. The Third part discusses the more modern academic theories on investing, which include the Modern Portfolio Theory and the Efficient Market Theory. The last part provides guidance for those who will take the path of 'random walkers,' and includes a chapter about the life cycle guide to investing.

Review

This book provides an excellent argument on why index funds are a better choice than the actively managed funds which may employ technical analysis, fundamental analysis, efficient markets theory, and others.

Difficulty Level = 2.5/5

This book is best read by those who have a more advanced understanding and appreciation of finance and investing knowledge.

Personal Rating = 4.5/5

Personal finance tip for today:
There are pros and cons between choosing an actively managed mutual fund or UITF, and an index fund. There are endless debates over which is better than the other. But before you join in on the argument, it is best to ask first, does investing in equities fit my investment objectives in life?

Money Masters of Our Time

About the book and its Contents:

There are currently a lot of financial planners, advisers, and fund managers in the market nowadays. However, there are only a few who are truly deserving of being considered a Money Master.

This book by John Train, devotes a chapter to each renowned investor or fund manager out there. I will mention only some of them: Georgoe Soros, Richard Rainwater, and Ralph Wanger.

Review

This is an excellent book because it discusses the investment strategy and philosophy of every money master in a fair amount of detail.Unlike other books that  are devoted to only one investor, this book is more diversified.  

Difficulty Level = 3/5

This book is more of a short biography of each master investor or money master. However, to best appreciate this book, it is best to have a fair knowledge of financial terms, like bonds, stocks, credit rating, etc.

Personal Rating = 4/5

This is a good  book to read if you're looking for the investment strategy that best suits your style.

Personal finance tip for today:

Master Investors do not become successful because they copied and pasted someone else's successful investment strategy. Instead, they studied from others and from there, created their own unique investment style.

 

Irrational Exuberance

About the book and its Contents:

Each of us tends to be irrationally exuberant whenever we get to ride the stock market or any asset market all the way to their new all-time-highs.  This book by Robert Shiller, explores the various factors (psychological, cultural, social, political, theoretical) that affect the stock market and the real estate market, throughout history.

Review

In this book, you will learn a lot about the past and prevailing theories about how stock market booms form, and go bust.

Difficulty Level = 2.5/5

It is a moderately challenging read, not because of the financial jargon, but because of its specialized nature and writing style of the author.

Personal Rating = 4/5

It is a good book to read for learning more about the factors affecting the stock market and real estate market.

Personal finance tip for today:

Warren Buffett's words of wisdom " Be fearful when others are greedy; Be greedy when others are fearful."

Devil Take The Hindmost

About the book and its Contents:

If you've watched Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, then you should recall Michael Douglas mentioning something about the Tulip Mania, a financial bubble that occurred around the year 1637.
This book, Devil Take The Hindmost, talks about the history of financial speculation, starting from the 1600s all the way to the present. He provides a detailed story and analysis of each mania or bubble that occurred in the past.

Review

This is a very interesting book that is quite fun to read too because it talks about events that really happened in the past, and shows mistakes that tend to repeat themselves over and over. Even business schools rarely talk about this subject matter, when in fact this should be given a lot of attention as well.

Difficulty Level = 2/5

This is just like reading a history book, the only difference is that there are no exams that require you to memorize facts and details. The only exam you will have is when you start to apply your learning in real-life.

Personal Rating = 5/5

This is one book that every investor must have and read.

Personal finance tip for today:


History does repeat itself, not exactly, but similarly. Hence, it's best to learn from others who have made their financial mistakes so that you can avoid repeating them.