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Toolbox | Chris Farrell's Favorites
We are made and shaped by people, by events and experiences, by love and hate, by heredity, by what we eat and whether we hunger, by the things we understand, by pain and joy, by accident and design, by whatever it is that gives us a life and the duty to make what we can of it. But we are also shaped by what we read.
— From Enthusiasms, by Bernard Levin
A lot of Marketplace Money listeners have asked me for book suggestions on personal finance. I decided not to put together a comprehensive or definitive book list. Instead, this is a highly personal, idiosyncratic review of books on finance I've enjoyed and publications I consult regularly. A few are purely informational. Some are beautifully written. No matter what, I've profited immensely from reading all of them.
For those of you who'd like the short list, we'll start with my top twelve. After that, the books are listed alphabetically within each section. I'll add to my reading list over time as I remember an author I should have included or a new book delights me. So check back every once in awhile. And contact us with any suggestions you might have.
Yours,
Chris Farrell
Chris Farrell's Top 12 (in no particular order)
The Four Pillars of Investing
by William Bernstein (McGraw-Hill, April, 2002)
A strong believer of indexing, Bernstein's book ranks among the best.
The Intelligent Investor
by Benjamin Graham (Harper Collins, 1985)
A classic on investing with discipline and your head, rather than haphazardly and with emotion. Warren Buffett captured the book's essence in his introduction to a reissue of the book: "To invest successfully over a lifetime does not require a stratospheric IQ, unusual business insights, or inside information. What's needed is a sound intellectual framework for making decisions and the ability to keep emotions from corroding that framework. This book precisely and clearly prescribes the proper framework. You must supply the emotional discipline."
John Bogle on Investing: The First 50 Years
by John Bogle (McGraw-Hill, September 2000)
A collection of speeches, this book distills the investing wisdom of a giant in the business.
The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need
by Andrew Tobias (Harvest Books, January 2002)
He often uses himself as a financial guinea pig. Brash, funny, good stories — and sound advice as well.
A Random Walk Down Wall Street
by Burton Malkiel (W.W. Norton & Company; 8th edition, April 2003)
Well-written. Good history. Memorable anecdotes. Malkiel has done a superb job translating into layman's language an enormous body of academic and historic research into investing. A bit heavy for some people, though.
Reminiscences of a Stock Operator
by Edwin Lefevre (John Wiley & Sons, May 1994)
Published in 1923, this is a fictionalized biography of Jesse Livermore, a great 19th century speculator. A wonderful discourse on the art and discipline of speculation.
Stocks for the Long Run
by Jeremy Siegel (McGraw-Hill, June 2002)
A finance professor at Wharton, his book illuminated for the new retirement savings crowd the superior long-term returns investors have earned on stocks. Over the long haul, stock returns are so stable that equities are actually "safer" than government bonds or Treasury bills.
Get a Life: You Don't Need a Million to Retire Well
by Ralph Warner (Nolo Press, November 2002)
For many people, this is the retirement book to read. A helpful discussion on how to think creatively about what retirement means, and how planning for retirement is much more than dollars and cents.
Making the Most of Your Money
by Jane Bryant Quinn (Simon & Schuster, November 1997)
A true pioneer in translating sophisticated personal finance for the mass of people. A smart, well-written tome that covers everything from checking accounts to the new Roth IRA. You can't go wrong with Jane Bryant Quinn as your financial muse.
Personal Finance for Dummies
by Eric Tyson (John Wiley & Sons; 3rd edition, March 2000)
I'm tired of the "Dummy" titles. Enough is enough. But this book, by Eric Tyson is a real gem. A good guides to the world of finance for novices and valuable reference resources for everyone else.
Against the Gods
by Peter Bernstein (John Wiley & Sons, August 1998)
Perhaps the most important finance book of the 1990s. "What is it that distinguishes the thousands of years of history from what we think are modern times? The answer goes way beyond the progress of science, technology, capitalism, and democracy. The revolutionary idea that defines the boundary between modern times and the past is the mastery of risk: the notion that the future is more than the whim of the gods and that men and women are not passive before nature." An engrossing history of risk, gambling, probability, and financial markets.
Manias, Panics, and Crashes: A History of Financial Crises
by Charles Kindleberger (John Wiley & Sons; 4th edition, November 2000)
The classic work on financial crisis and speculative disasters. Opens with a quote from Walter Bagehot, the 19th century British thinker that nicely captures Kindleberger's subject. "Much has been written about panics and manias, much more than with the most outstretched intellect we are able to follow or conceive; but one thing is certain, that at particular times a great deal of stupid people have a great deal of stupid money. At intervals, from causes which are not to the present purpose, the money of these people — the blind capital as we call it, of the country — is particularly large and craving; it seeks for someone to devour it, and there is a 'plethora'; it finds someone, and there is 'speculation'; it is devoured, and there is 'panic.'"
Favorite books on investing >>Favorite books on personal finance >>Favorite books on broad trends and economic analysis >>Favorite Web sites >>
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