Reviews (2)

Market Analysis
If you believe Market Analysis,you ought to choose Jesse Livermore.If you believe Company Analysis,you ought to choose Warren Buffett.If you believe Country Analysis,you ought to choose Jim Rogers.Good lucky!

Picture this; it's the early 1900's, the dawn of the Roaring 20's. Gatsby like characters abound ...
Picture this; it's the early 1900's, the dawn of the Roaring 20's. Gatsby like characters abound and are romanticized in the Saturday Evening Post, Horatio Alger rags to riches stories are all the rave. Along comes Jesse Livermore, a ballsy, throw caution to the wind and risk it all by leveraging it up to the hilt and letting it ride type of guy. It's a time when the market is on fire and behaves something like the late 90's but the regulators are nowhere to be seen. Charles Ponzi takes Boston by storm with his promises of 50% in 45 days with his Ponzi Notes and creates an all out frenzy engulfing what seems like half of the City.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Business    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Finance    6. Investments & Securities - General    7. Investments & Securities - Stocks    8. New York Stock Exchange    9. Personal Memoirs    10. Securities    11. Speculation    12. Stocks    13. Business & Economics / Finance    14. Stocks & shares   

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Business    3. Business & Economics    4. Business/Economics    5. General    6. Personal Memoirs    7. Rich & Famous    8. Business & Economics / General    9. Business & Management   

Reviews (14)

Entertaining but Lacking Any True Gems
This book has a particular appeal for two reasons: 1) Citigroup is the world's largest financial institution 2) it describes in some detail, the conflict between two storied CEO's - John Reed and Sandy Weill.Coming from the school of thought that says analyzing great business leaders may lead to my own success, I considered this book a must.
Disappointing...
I love and admire sandy weill.i purchased this book to learn more about the man and his deal making prowess.although this book was well research,its presentation was what turned me off.i have never read a book so disjointed and dull.it doesnt follow the conventional chronological sequence that most biographies does but skips back and forth from one event to another i.e 60's-to-the-80's-to-the-70's-to 60's again...this goes on and on and on.this can be very very very frustrating.Also i dont think the authors did a good job in capturing the readers since the paragraphs come and go in that fasion throughout the entire book!
A recommended read
I liked the way Stone and Brewster broke the book into small, interesting chapters.It made for an easy read.I felt like I had a good sense of Weill's character and business style by the end of the book.The only criticism I would make is that the book seemed like an "authorized" biography in that it was overly flattering of Weill at times - like commending him for his restraint in only having three large mansions.Also, like all biographies written during the person life, there needs to be more chapters for events that take place after the book stops.In spite of that, I recommend the book to anyone who likes good biographies of business leaders. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bankers    2. Banks & Banking    3. Banks And Banking    4. Biography    5. Biography & Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Business    8. Business / Economics / Finance    9. Citigroup (Firm)    10. Corporate & Business History - Strategies    11. Finance    12. Financial Economics (General)    13. Financial services industry    14. United States    15. Weill, Sandy    16. Banking    17. Biography & Autobiography / Business    18. Biography: general   

Editorial Review

In this autobiography, Virgin Group founder Richard Branson says one of his prime business criteria is "fun." Fun made Branson a billionaire, and few business memoirs are one-billionth as fun as Branson's, nor as niftily written. Not only does it relate his side of near-death corporate experiences, it tells how the chairman literally cheated death by gun, shipwreck, and balloon crash.Read more

Reviews (104)

Thouroughly Impressed, Learned a LOT
After being amazing by Virgin Megastore and Virgin Airlines, I wanted to get to know the man behind the sloping red graphic.Anyways, reading this book was a joy.I am rarely found reading bios or auto-bios for that matter.Branson has such a casual approach and style of speaking, it makes for a nice read.
Business And Pleasure
After having read and thoroughly enjoyed Richard Branson's "Screw it, Let's Do It", this book (an autobiography)helps to fill out the details about this great adventurer and entrepreneur.
Rockstar Entrepreneur
From his 16 year old days of publishing a Student publication, smoking spliffs, and squatting with 20 peers in a London tenement, to his around the world balloon attempts, Richard Branson has never done things the conventional way. Starting off with a description of the rise of Virgin Records with the signing of acts such as the Sex Pistols, Oldfield's Tubular Bells, and Boy George, and ending with the entrepreneurial conglomerate branded "Virgin I Rule the World" - airlines, cola, cell phones, retail, publishing - Branson's journey is a swashbuckling treat. With his fun-loving personality and taste for adventure, Branson corales the reader into his exploratory view of the world.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Airlines    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Business    7. Businesspeople    8. General    9. Great Britain    10. Music trade    11. Biography & Autobiography / Business   

Reviews (16)

A guide to success in advertising
Dubbed "the King of advertising" by Advertising Age, David Ogilvy shared his thoughts and stories on being successful in the adverting industry in this book.His ideas are often overflowing with self-confidence, but for a man who reached his level of success, he's definitely earned the right.
More than just advertising
An advertising guru writes more than just advertising. One can benefit from the general management skills said in the bok. Anyway, it's an interesting book.

Lessons from a Master
Ogilvy might have made his mark starting over 40 years ago, but his approach is timeless.It is often helpful to harken back to the sage advise of the kings of business from an earlier and more genteel time to try to identify the things we have forgotten -- and are worse for having done so.Ogilvy reflects class, an ethos of hard work, and an appreciation for what it takes to be competitive.This book is not about advertising per se -- it's about how to start and run a business that will capture and hold clients for decades, and at the same time make the founder proud of his or her achievements.You'll be proud to place it next to your Benjamin Graham tomes on your bookshelf. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Advertising & Promotion    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Business    4. Business & Economics    5. Business/Economics    6. Corporate & Business History - General    7. General    8. ADVERTISING_BIOGRAPHY    9. Advertising    10. Biography & Autobiography / Business    11. Biography: general   

Editorial Review

Ron Chernow, whose previous books have taken on the Morgan and Warburg financial empires, now turns his attention to the patriarch of the Rockefeller dynasty. John D. was history's first recorded billionaire and one of the most controversial public figures in America at the turn of the 20th century. Standard Oil--which he always referred to as the result of financial "cooperation," never as a "cartel" or a "monopoly"--controlled at its peak nearly 90 percent of the United States oil industry. Rockefeller drew sharp criticism, as well as the attention of federal probes, for business practices like underpricing his competitors out of the market and bribing politicians to secure his dominant market share. Read more

Reviews (123)

Bigger than life personalities?
Rockefeller is reported to have searched endlessly for golf balls lost in an attempt to recover them, yet could nearly buy the world - why?
Lessons from a Self Made Billionaire

Good Stuff In This One!

Read more

Subjects:  1. (John Davison),    2. 1839-1937    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Business    8. Capitalists and financiers    9. Historical - U.S.    10. Industrial History    11. Industrialists    12. Philanthropists    13. Rich & Famous    14. Rockefeller, John D    15. United States    16. Biography & Autobiography / Business    17. Biography: general    18. USA   

Editorial Review

Like the carefully engineered dies which created his company's first products--steel pitons and carabiners which climbing enthusiasts would recognize as primitive forerunners of today's sleeker gear--Yvon Chouinard is if nothing else an original. How many other shy French-Canadian boys become surf-and-climbing bums, then blacksmiths forging their own play tools, and eventually founders of world-renowned sports equipment and apparel companies like Patagonia? How many other heads of multi-million dollar enterprises open their memoirs by stating bluntly, "The Lee Iacoccas, Donald Trumps, and Jack Welches of the business world are heroes to no one except other businessmen with similar values. I wanted to be a fur trapper when I grew up." The proverbial mold from which Chouinard was cast got broken.Read more

Reviews (28)

Practical and Inspiring
Chouinard provides both an historical account of Patagonia's (and his) growth and a point-by-point account of what he sees as the important aspects of each part of his business.Chouinard has developed a full understanding and appreciation for how brand and customer experience touch every aspect of a business, from materials selection to returns.This is a quick and valuable read for any entrepreneur, especially if manufacturing is part of your business plan.It will save you from making a few mistakes.

All businesses should be run this way!
I was enthralled with this book--it's refreshing, entertaining, and a wonderful tale of how one can operate a business with ethics, making a lot of money and doing a lot of good. I love the freewheeling atmosphere he creates in his workplace - there are pictures of barefoot employees in relaxed positions working on computers. Patagonia hires people who actually use the products involved in adventure sports--rock climbing, surfing, etc. Their flex time is really flex time--Chouinard says you don't plan to go surfing next Tuesday at 2:00 - you go surfing when the surf is up! A great read, with an environmental message for all of us that will spur you to action.

Change Your Worldview
This is a book that every businessperson should read, in fact must read, for the future survival of our planet.I run an environmental organization and, before beginning the book, thought that I would already know most of what Yvon has to say.I was wrong.His words opened many new doors for me, and made me think about the world in a completely new way.He is the zen master of corporate responsibility, the guru of a worldwide movement towards a more sustainable way of living.Pass this book along to your friends.He has proven that the world can be both pro-business and pro-environment, and if all CEO's ran their companies like he does, we would most certainly live in a better world, and leave a better legacy to our children. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Business    3. Business & Economics    4. Business Ethics    5. Business/Economics    6. Entrepreneurship    7. History Of Specific Companies    8. Industries - Textile Industry    9. Personal Memoirs    10. Biography & Autobiography / Personal Memoirs   

Reviews (63)

Praise
It is a very good book , but it has too much praise about Warren Buffet too much introduction stuff and Warren Buffet's praises

Agood basic introduction to Warren Buffett Investing
Buy this book if you are looking for a very basic book to start learning Warren Buffett's investing style. You will only get information on the companies he has purchased and their performance and a very basic explanation on why Mr. Buffett thought they were such great values when he bought them.There is no technical explanation here on how to figure book value or how to find your own value stocks. It reads like "The history of Warren Buffett" not "How to invest like Warren Buffett".
Not much depth, but interesting for a casual reader
Unlike many reviewers of this book, I did not expect an in-depth analysis of Warren Buffett's investment methods when I read this work.In fact I approached it as casual reading-at the time I wasn't really interested in finance and was just reading it more for biographical reasons.I enjoyed the book because of that-I didn't really expect much and therefore wasn't let down.The book is fairly well written and goes into enough detail for the casual reader.There's enough information about Buffett's investment strategy to have a basic understanding of why he's so good at what he does, but not so much information that someone uninterested in finance would find it tedious.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Buffett, Warren    4. Business    5. Business & Economics    6. Business / Economics / Finance    7. Business/Economics    8. Capitalists and financiers    9. Finance    10. Investment Analysis    11. Investments    12. Investments & Securities - General    13. United States    14. Business & Economics / Investments & Securities    15. Finance & Accounting   

Reviews (22)

Touching & Inspirational
This book is fascinating, can be entertaining; a wonderful book.
inspiring and uplifting
Going through a tough time? Looking for a way out? Wishing you could just "do" something to change your life? Read this book and know you are not alone. Read this book and know you CAN do it. Believe there are difficult days, accept that life is not a bed of roses, and follow Chris as he grows from a confused little boy into a deservedly respected man. What a powerful message to send to boys and young men in this United States. Thank you, Chris Gardner... I look forward to the movie!

Kudos to Gardner for believing and for not giving up
Gardner's story is amazing and inspiring. It will make you ponder: Are you reaching your full potential? Can you turn negatives into positives? Are you willing to work smart and hard to achieve and succeed? Gardner has certainly proven that he is a believer in the creation of his own happiness. Great job Mr. Gardner, you are truly an inspiration.
Read more

Subjects:  1. (Chris P.)    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Blacks In The U.S.    7. Business    8. Gardner Rich & Co    9. Gardner, Chris    10. General    11. People of Color    12. Personal Memoirs    13. Stockbrokers    14. Stocks    15. United States    16. Biography & Autobiography / General   

Reviews (6)

Capitalismasitwasmeanttobe

An Excellent Concise Treatment of Smith
There is no good substitute for reading Adam Smith's own beautiful prose.But if you don't have the time or the inclination to do so, I would recommend The Authentic Adam Smith.Buchan summarizes Smith's life and ideas.Of special note is his ability to convey Smith's humanity.I have a few minor quibbles about emphasis, but overall the book is accurate, readable and concise.Not many books of this type can make a similar claim.

The best short treatment ever written aboutAdam Smith's philosophy
Buchan's book reveals Smith as the greatest conservative thinker and moral philosopher of the last 250 years.Clearly,Buchan is one of the very few economists who has in fact read all of Smith's Wealth of Nations(WN)and Theory of Moral Sentiments(TMS).The best lesson of this book is Buchan's overwhelming demonstration that Smithcompletely rejected the libertarian approach to economics and politics of L von Mises,Milton Friedman,Murray Rothbard,and Ayn Rand.TMS demonstrates Smith's complete and total rejection of libertarianism on moral grounds alone.Smith emphasized the neeed formoral and ethical norms as prerequisitesin a capitalist society .This review will consider only one policy area where this is demonstrated-education.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography And Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Business    6. Business / Economics / Finance    7. Economic History    8. Economics    9. Economists    10. Great Britain    11. History Of Economic Thought    12. Business & Economics / Economic History    13. History    14. Miscellaneous Items   

Subjects:  1. (Joseph Chamberlain),    2. 1909-1971    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Business    5. Business & Economics    6. Business/Economics    7. Copying machine industry    8. Corporate & Business History - General    9. History    10. United States    11. Wilson, Joseph C.    12. Xerography    13. Xerox Corporation    14. Biography & Autobiography / Business    15. Business & Management    16. Industry & Industrial Studies   

Reviews (34)

A dry examination of an intriguing story
Connie Bruck's tale of greed on (off) Wall Street in the 1980s, focusing solely on Drexel and its Milken-led rise and fall is thorough.Unfortunately, it is a little too meticulous.To understand the junk bond empire Milken created is to understand the meteoric rise and subsequent fall of both him and the company he led to prominance.But the pages upon pages of specific deal details are best understood by investment banking professionals, financiers, etc.I enjoy reading (and for the most part understand) the inner workings of wall street deals,but the level of detail Bruck provides was a little overwhelming.
Good book to inspire big thinking.
This book is fun to read and it full of interesting stories about specific takeovers and deals that took place.It is lacking however in detailing what happened to Milken in the end.
The Junk Bond King When Much of Corporate America Was His Fiefdom.
"Predator's Ball" follows the rise of the junk bond market, from Michael Milken's ambitions in the 1970s through Drexel Burnham's dominance of the market under Milken's leadership in the 1980s, including Drexel's controversial financing of high-profile hostile takeovers, to the beginning of legal trouble for Drexel in 1986. Author Connie Bruck interviewed hundreds of people over a 2 �-year period, including Drexel employees and Drexel clients, to learn what went on inside "the Department", Drexel's mythic Beverly Hills junk bond offices. Bruck becomes increasingly critical of Michael Milken's tactics as the book progresses, but it is worth noting that she did not set out to write an expos�. Bruck approached the project with sympathies "more toward Milken and his band of renegades than toward the corporate establishment they were attacking", but years of peering inside the Department changed her mind. Regardless of where your sympathies lie, there is a lot of admirable research and fascinating detail in "The Predator's Ball".
Read more

Subjects:  1. Business    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Consolidation and merger of co    6. Consolidation and merger of corporations    7. Corporate & Business History - General    8. Drexel Burnham Lambert Incorpo    9. Economic History    10. Investments & Securities - Bonds    11. Junk bonds    12. Milken, Michael    13. Stockbrokers    14. United States    15. Business & Economics / Economic History    16. Modern fiction   

Reviews (70)

Best Business Book YTD in my life.
I read this book a few years ago- made my son read it last year and have read it again recently highlighting what applies to my ambitions (in service). What a great reflection Sam Walton is of the opportunities of our country. When I speak to young people about money- I love telling them Sam Walton was a paper boy starting at age 11, worked and paid his way through college during the depression delivering papers. I began working at 11 for 35 cents an hour saving $286 my first summer, significant experience....America is a great place with great opportunities and people to serve. This book reflects infinite opportunities we have and share with the world. It should be required reading in high school and again in college, current affairs on a productive topic like business.

with a co writer, but still good
Made in America had a co writer- John Huey, and that usually makes me strongly not like the style of a book.However, I think Huey and Sam did a great job on this one.It's engaging without being pedantic, and the interspersed quotes made it hum right along.
a handy book
it is a simple book, but provides a lot of deep insight about business. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Business    5. Businessmen    6. Corporate & Business History - General    7. Discount stores (Retail trade)    8. History    9. Industries - Retailing    10. Millionaires    11. United States    12. Biography & Autobiography / Business    13. Biography: general    14. USA   

Reviews (6)

WAY TOO EXPENSIVE...
WAY TOO EXPENSIVE...ILLUSTRATIONS ARE JUST AS GOOD AS WHAT YOU FIND ONLINE...EBAY EVEN.HISTORY IS HIGHLY INFORMATIVE, HOWEVER. THANKS.

Beautiful.
Fantastic history and beautiful illustrations. It has almost everything you've wanted to know about Louis Vuitton.
Full of History
This book is filled with the history of the company from the person, Louis Vuitton's childhood, up through the generations that came after him.There are pictures of LV pieces scattered throughout the book.Not enough for those of us who love to look at LV bags and luggage.Overall a great addition to a collectors collection.The book retails in the boutique for $135. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Art & Art Instruction    2. Business    3. Business & Economics    4. Business History    5. Business/Economics    6. Corporate & Business History - General    7. Design    8. Fashion    9. History    10. Infrastructure    11. Luggage    12. Rich & Famous    13. Trunks (Luggage)    14. Art / Fashion    15. History of specific subjects    16. Product design   

Reviews (7)

Not just a successful start up story
Philosophy, international labor, high tech, economics, globalization, the internet and virtual universes are all neatly wrapped together in this book.It is a very successful telling by Mr. Dibbell of what is going on right now...not just in the MMO world but in many aspects of society.It was so fascinating for me to read.He did not hype up the metaverse phenomenon.But, he did make it a bit less complicated.You really get the message that what is currently undergoing is not trivial and has serious implications to how we all live our lives.Play versus work, the lines are getting more blurry.But, it might not necessarily be a bad thing.If "Liar's Poker" is the must read for the financial markets, "Play Money" should definitely be the counterpart for virtual economies.

Patchy
This book is well-written (mostly) and a good look at an interesting subject.However, the author seems not to trust his own subject, since he constantly moves away from the interesting part of the book (the story of how the strange market in imaginary goods works) in order to pad the book out with boring digressions on watching his daughter play, or even more boring half-baked essays on What It All Means (no surprise that the author is a contributor to Wired magazine.)Still, if you read the reporting parts, which are good,and skip over the self-indulgent, meandering attempts at philosophy, which are not, you'll learn a lot and enjoy yourself.

Making Hay
Play money is a fantastic read.It pulls you into its tale of Internet adventure and doesn't let go until the final word.I loved its refusal to separate the author's exploration of internet games, and his meditation on the economies they've generated, from the events of his off-line life -- child care, depresssion, marital break-up.Like a teenager, he starts out killing lizardmen in the fabulous realm of Ultima Online and ends up selling enchanted swords, pieces of gold, and miraculous suits of armor for a living.A real living, not a virtual one. (Is this play or is it work is the question.) The race to see if he can meet a deadline proving that he can earn more selling magic weapons and gold pieces than he can at his day job keeps the pages turning, and the painful -- and sometimes joyful -- unfolding of events in his actual life is riveting.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Business    3. Business & Economics    4. Business/Economics    5. E-Commerce - General    6. Economic aspects    7. Electronic commerce    8. Fantasy games    9. History - General History    10. Modern - General    11. Sales    12. Video & Electronic - General    13. Virtual Reality    14. Investment & securities   

Editorial Review

It's hard to think of anyone more intense or opinionated, or who wears as many hats as James Cramer. In Read more

Reviews (132)

Good autobiography but bad investing book
This book is more about his autobiography, and albiet amusing at times, isn't a real investing book. His other one: Jim Cramer's Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World is much better.

Honest
Unlike most, I wasn't a big Cramer fan before picking up this book.I'd read his columns at the [...] during the dot com craze, but now only occasionally catch his act while channel surfing.However, I'm a big fan of biographies and thought his would make an interesting read.
Tells it as it is
By far one of the best AutoBiography I have read, fast paced with his ups and downs, not really a book for learning to trade but has a lot of hidden wisdom if you can read between the lines.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Business    5. Hedging (Finance)    6. Investment Finance    7. Investments & Securities - General    8. Journalism, Commercial    9. Securities industry    10. Stockbrokers    11. Wall Street (New York, N.Y.)    12. Biography & Autobiography / Business    13. Entrepreneurship    14. Investment & securities   

Reviews (75)

The most entertaining book I've read since Liar's Poker
I had to give this book 5 stars. It is so entertaining at times I was laughing and other times introspective...just like the author.
Beware of superbookdeals seller
If you want to buy the book, go ahead, just be careful of superbookdeals, they take your money but don't deliver and don't answer emails. Caveat Emptor.

Engrossing, funny, practically useful
I absolutely loved this book, and Buzzy's ideas and methods presented in this book helped me come up with some profitable methods of my own, although the book would be best described as an autobiography. It contains some strong language, but if you are a grown-up this shouldn't be a problem. It is an interesting and funny read dealing with various issues in the life of a trader. I wish I could give this book 10 stars! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Futures And Options Trading    6. Investments & Securities - General    7. Business & Economics / Investments & Securities    8. Investment & securities   

Reviews (37)

Good book; post-modern primitivism
Don't believe the hype about China and so-called thousand year traditions.This is a bane of modern life, and in fact is a post-modern myth.An analogy:it was found by anthropologists that certain tribes in Papua New Guinea practiced cannibalism (that spread harmful prions).Upon further research, it was found this practice was not thousands of years old as claimed, but about 100 years old.This justified eradicating this deadly 'tradition' by force (and put an end to the prion disease).See Richard Rhodes excellent book "Deadly Feasts".
Resonantes with anyone who has experienced chinese culture from the west
Clissold's book is an excellent stand-alone for those who have never been or done business in China.I imagine it reads slightly like fantasy--it's hard to reconcile the view presented with the Business Today magazine type presentations.