"The Millionaire Next Door" - Book Review

I found out about this book after it was highlighted in a recent post on Get Rich Slowly
and since this is a top blog in my mind I decided to pick up a copy from my local library. In fairness to JD and his post it wasn't all about "The Millionaire Next Door" and didn't really highlight what to fully expect from this book.

My overall take is that I'd give "The Millionaire Next Door" a pass given that slugging through 250 pages of dry relatively uninspiring writing leaves you wishing you'd left this book on the shelf at the library. In fairness to Thomas Stanley and William Danko the book was authored in 1996 so some of the findings are fairly old.

Here are the key takeaways from my read of this book:

• Live within your means. A number of stories and examples from this book detail the classic example of people with high incomes that struggle to make ends meet. Why? The simple answer is the rampant consumerism that pervades North American society with the need to have a new luxury car, expensive watch, McMansion and more goods that their friends, neighbors and peers. Example after example preaches to readers that not suprisingly the inordinate focus on material goods versus a frugal approach to life.
  
• Economic outpatient care (EOC). I must admit this is a great term from this book that deals with the bad habit of many well off parents that begin the process of offering "one-time" support to their children that quickly turns into an on-going and negatively reinforcing cycle. The basic message here is clear be careful as to how you aid your children since it could have unintended consequences. The other great point from this section is the impact that your lifestyle and spending as a parent imparts on your children.

"Nocturne" by Ed McBain - Book Review

Another in Ed McBain's series on the 87th precinct "Nocturne" is a great addition to the series and after being somewhat underwhelmed with Hark! this book is a pleasant surprise. Typical of McBain's style in this series its a police procedural set in New York City with no clear timeframe (presumably present to mid 1980s could fit the timing). In an interesting mystery, the detectives at the 87th must track down the killer of an 80 year old former concert pianist and her cat (who unfortunately got in the way). We're lead on a great journey as Detectives Carella, Hawes, Kling and Fat Ollie Weeks track down the killer. As the story opens with the call out going out to Carella and Hawes to come and check the crime scene we start on a journey to find the killer.

This novel also follows another major storyline with what turns out to be a triple homicide of a drug dealer, a prostitute and her pimp. McBain lays out a gritty series of scenes and we see Fat Ollie Weeks chase down the clues to find the unlikely killers (yes, killers!).

Bottom line - this is a solid mystery and I'm now convinced that its worth investing the time in picking up more of the 87th Precinct series novels and following the adventures. Nocturne avoids the gratuitous subplots that kept cropping up and annoying me in Hark! and is a straight up hard driving mystery - well worth a read.

I'm still working on trying to refine my style in terms of providing you with great mystery reviews without revealing too much - email me at the address above and let me know what I could improve.


Want to learn more about Ed McBain's novels - here are a few useful links:
http://www.coffeewithcrime.blogspot.com/ Here is a great site with lots of back information on Ed McBain along with some links to articles that offer interviews with him prior to his passing away.
http://www.edmcbain.com/ The official site.

"Hot Commodities" by Jim Rogers - Book Review

I'm starting to clear through some of the backlog on the books that were recently read that are worthy of posting about. "Hot Commodities: How Anyone Can Invest Profitability In The World's Best Market" by Jim Rogers published in 2003 by Random House picks up where Jim left off in his previous two books "Investment Biker" and "Adventure Capitalist". In earlier books, he hinted at being bullish on commodities but this book lays out for the average investor his thesis and rationale behind a focus on commodities.

True to form, Rogers covers the world of commodities investing in his own unique style describing the basics of investing in commodities and the cyclical nature of these markets.
He covers a range of commodities markets including: Gold, Steel, Nickel/Base Metals, Sugar, and Coffee. In each of these areas he provides his own macro view of supply and demand and makes the case for the respective commodity. Many of his comments highlight the increase in demand from BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) nations which a particular focus on China as a major driver of commodity demand over the coming decades. He also provides an interesting review of facts relating to the lack of supply and under investment in sustaining the supply capability for various commodities.

Overall, Jim Rogers is a highly entertaining author and talented investor that offers some useful insights to investors in terms of the unconventional way in which he approaches investing opportunities. Mr. Rogers is truly a pioneer of what is now termed "global macro" investing although he himself admits that he doesn't think of it in those terms. Rather, he focuses on finding solid investment ideas anywhere in the world, regardless of asset class. He is supposed to be releasing an upcoming book detailing his investment view towards China according to Amazon titled "A Bull in China: Investing Profitably in the World's Greatest Market" scheduled for release in December this year.

http://www.jimrogers.com/ Mr. Rogers' website provides further details regarding his previous books (Highly Recommended) and his part round the world adventures.

Bottom line = This is a great book that leverages Jim Rogers easy reading style and covers the opportunities in investing in commodities. Views are interesting while the data points are somewhat dated given the 2003 publication date. If you're into investing and want to get a take on commodities or even an interesting perspective on the impact that they have on other asset classes give this book a read.

"Hark" by Ed McBain - Book Review

I'm a big fan of long run serials since I really enjoy following the work
of my favorite mystery writers (MC Beaton, Lee Child, Harlan Coben, Michael Connelly, Janet Evanovich, Elmore Leonard) was the reason behind my picking up "Hark".

"Hark", details the adventures of a group of detectives in the 87th precinct in New York as they track a killer known as the "deaf man". Though 300 pages we're lead on a chase by the "deaf man" as the detectives in this police procedural attempt to figure out and prevent his next crime. In general core story line is solid as the detectives work their way through what seems like a never ending stream of coded clues that reveal the "deaf man's" dark intentions. The character development is top notch and the main story line is easy to read. My only complaint is that the story branches off to follow the activities of each of main characters creating at times a few too many subplots for my taste.

In general, I came away intrigued enough to pickup another in the 87th precinct series "Nocturne". I'll have a read and give you an update as to whether this group of characters grows on me.

Bottom line - "Hark" is worth throwing in the suitcase if you're headed for a trip and want a book to distract you.

"Inside the House of Money" by Steve Drobny - Book Review

Inside the House of Money (ITHOM) is a 2006 book by Steve Drobny a former hedge fund salesperson at Deutsche Bank. I picked this title up through a series of Amazon searches to find other interesting investment and personal finance titles. In ordering this book from my local library, my expectation was that ITHOM would be a look at the world of hedge funds by Drobny with his view on their impact on the financial world. While, he does provide some insight into his view on hedge funds ITHOM is a much more interesting read in that it is a book that covers approximately 10 interviews with leading hedge fund managers.

The focus of this book is on covering different investment styles and techniques used by hedge funds that are best classified as "global macro" funds. By "global macro" the common thread is that each fund looks globally and isn't restricted to a specific country, asset (e.g., bonds, currencies, equities) or style in the pursuit of absolute returns. The macro in the title refers to a macroeconomic view or a view towards a global/broader trend that the fund is seeking to exploit. A number of the interviews stood out in my mind as being worth picking up a copy of ITHOM including:

The Pioneer - Jim Rogers = this interview alone is worth the price of admission in typical Rogers style he bluntly lays forth his views on the world and key investment opportunities. In 2006, Rogers was continuing the discussion from his last book "Hot Commodities" and his interest in China two key themes for the coming decade. Mr. Rogers, has an irreverent style that makes for easy reading and provides some interesting insights.

The Family Office - Jim Leitner - a former hedge fund manager who now runs money for his own family.

The Prop Trader - Christian Siva-Jones (Semper Macro) = former head trader for Goldman Sachs proprietary trading desk. He offers a unique look into the operations of a major proprietary trading desk and the challenges of running such an operation.

The Dot Comer - Mr. Thiel = prior to starting his firm Clarium Capital - he founded and ran Pay Pal taking the firm from start-up through to its eventual sale to eBay. An interesting article with a portfolio manager returning to his roots running an investment firm after starting a highly successful technology venture.

Overall, I would highly recommend picking up a copy of ITHOM if you're interesting in investing and the impact that hedge funds are having on the worldwide financial system. ITHOM provides the reader with a unique insight into the workings of global macro hedge funds.

Note - I had to drop the book back to the library early so this review is somewhat truncated there are some good ideas in this text that I haven't fully covered.