5 comments about Common Sense on Mutual Funds: Fully Updated 10th Anniversary Edition.

1. John (Jack) Bogle's Common Sense on Mutual Funds is a must read and with the updated data, Mr. Bogle's wise words of wisdom have been confirmed that Index Investing does pay off in the long run. God Bless you Jack in preaching common sense. We are forever indebted to you.



2. Bogle has long promoted the idea that one of the more important aspects of mutual fund investment is to pick low cost funds, among other criteria. It seems hypocritical of him to allow his publisher to charge the outrageous price of $16.47 for the Kindle version of this book. This book should be $9.99 and every Kindle owner who is interested in this book should boycott it until the price comes down to that. The current price suggest greed and arrogance.



3. If you are looking for one book to start with to learn about investing this is a great start. John Bogle founded the Vanguard Group and he is an advocate for low cost index funds. This book will help you learn about mutual fund expenses, how to compare funds against and index and what to look for in management. This book won't teach you everything you need to know about investing but it will make it a lot easier to learn more if you want to.



4. Jack Bogle has produced a real monster of a resource this time! This greatly expanded volume (some 650 pages in all!) has all the verve and audacity of a work you'd expect from industry rogue, Bogle, and is jampacked with new information and updated statistics that help to make his message seem more relevant now than ever before. In the Preface to the 10th Anniversary Edition, Bogle addresses the recent upheaval in the markets in the context of his time-tested formula for ensuring the integral, health of investors' portfolios and posting consistent gains over the long haul. Bogle's investment philosophy emphasizes the importance of maintaining a streamlined portfolio that relies on stock indexing and conservative, long-range predictions regarding growth.
   
   Avoiding the kind of I-told-you-so rhetoric that many readers may find off-putting in these difficult times, Bogle diplomatically explains how recent trends in the markets confirm the advantages of owning a highly diversified portfolio managed according to certain intelligent investment principles, which he has termed the 12 Pillars of Wisdom. He gives hope to investors who may have made some wrong turns or were misled during the housing boom by offering them a practical plan for how to get their investments back on the right track.
   
   Bogle's game has always been mutual funds--he's one of the originators and foremost experts in America on this unique investment type. In the ten years since the original publication of Common Sense on Mutual Funds: New Imperatives for the Intelligent Investor and the 35 years since he founded the Vanguard Group, John C. Bogle has remained the one constant an industry where fortunes and reputations are made and lost practically overnight. This 10th Anniversary Edition explains why mutual funds continue to be effective financial instruments that work by leveraging the combined buying power of a large pool of investors and equitably distributing gains and losses among the ownership pool. Bolge points out which types of mutual funds to add to your portfolio and which to stay away from based on their proven track records of long-range durability. In an insightful final section titled "On Spirit," Bogle offers actionable solutions for dealing with a market that operates according to principles of instability that mirror those of human psychology. Bogle's investment philosophy is perfect for the risk-averse investor, which, let's face it, is pretty much everyone these days.
   
   Another pertinent investment strategy book published this year, which captures the DIY spirit of the John C. Bogle's "Common Sense on Mutual Funds" is Thomas C. Scott's Fasten Your Financial Seatbelt: What A Fatal Plane Crash Taught Me About Retirement Planning. This guide articulates an investment game plan similar to Bogle's. It has the added advantage of being is a quick and easy read, especially when compared with Bogle's more ponderous tome.



5. After 10 years, this classic Jack Bogle book continues to be the clearest and most concise book published to date on why index investing works, and why it will continue to be the superior investment strategy for investors in the future. What has Mr. Bogle changed since his first edition? Not much. And that is strong testament for this strategy.

5 comments about Mutual Funds For Dummies, 5th edition.

1. This is a review for 2nd edition. It's an informative, but it's heavily promoting Vanguard products which aren't the best financial products on the market. I bought two Vanguard mutual funds after read this book in 1999. One broke even after 7 years, which means I loss money on it if you count the 7 years interests. I'm still holding on the other one. After 10 years, it's still 30% in red. Needless to say, my impression of Vanguard mutual funds and this book isn't the best.



2. This was a great overview of mutual funds with specific recommendations for which funds to buy for what purposes and time frames. Definitely a good buy!



3. This is a great resource for those wanting to know more ABOUT mutual funds, not for those wanting to know WHICH mutual funds to buy. Heavy on the explanations, definitions, and categorizations; light on the criticism and praise of individual funds. While you do get a bit of "how to pick the right funds", it is all fairly basic, with nothing very stunning or surprising that will make you a better mutual fund-picker.
   
   For what it is, this is a great book. Clearly written, with only the right amount of detail and very little repetitive content. At times it can be a bit wordy, making this book a bit longer than it really needs to be, but overall it is an easy read with an index and table of contents that will help you find pertinent information quickly.
   
   So, if you want to learn more about mutual funds, how they work, ect., this book is for you. If you already feel like you have a good understanding of what they are and how they work, there isn't probably too much you'll learn from reading this fairly long book.



4. We all know every Mutual Fund associate thinks THEIR fund is the best on the market, hence the NEED for a non-partisan book that helps you understand WHAT to look for in a GOOD Mutual Fund. If that sounds like you, I HIGHLY recommend this book. It is TRULY what it says it is...you may be a beginning investor when you begin the book, but you'll feel confident enough to make thorough investigations into prospective funds by the time you finish it! It is an 'easy read' book with easily understandable text.



5. Eric does a good job of a broad view of the particular subject matter at hand. My only issue is that the books are highly overlapping. A structure with the original book on personal finance with additional chapters on subtopics would likely have avoided all the duplication.

5 comments about The ETF Trend Following Playbook: Profiting from Trends in Bull or Bear Markets with Exchange Traded Funds.

1. So glad I read this book. The author explains the strategy in a language I can understand. This book gave me a solid plan that makes sense and eliminates the guess work. I'm ready to put what I've learned into practice!



2. Thus book is really not much more than a brief introduction to the field of ETFs. As for the "trend following" in the title, readers interested in the technique will be sorely disappointed. The only recommendation is to buy when an ETF trades above the 200-day exponential moving average and sell when it falls below it. That's it. Seriously. Add to that the frequent plugs of the author's website and you really have to wonder why anyone would bother to put out a book like this and seriously claim to be providing any sort of useful service to the investing public.



3. The book failed to deliver on ETF trend-following. Other than the constant repetition of the value of using the 200-day EMA, the book offered few other ideas on following ETF trends or sector rotation. The book did a good job of reviewing the relatively new and expanding world of ETF investing, but did not serve as a playbook at all for a serious ETF investor trying to find other than subjective ideas for moving in and out of ETF trades. In spite of all the hype, it left this ETF investor with that common empty feeling so familiar with many investing how-to publications. Once again, publishing houses do a great job with motivating the buyer, but the authors rarely intend to reveal any truly useful day to day investing playbook ideas.



4. Good book as an introduction to ETFs and the concepts of trend-following. However, as a "Play Book", it is really very limited indeed. The author's rules of trend following cover LESS THAN ONE PAGE. The rest of the book covers what ETFs are and the different types available. All of this information is available for free elsewhere, including the author's own website, and the Seeking Alpha website. I thought of giving the book one star but it is a good introductory book for those who want to know what an ETF is.



5. BOOK HAS A FEW GOOD IDEAS BUT THERE IS ALOT OF FILLER...IT IS LIKE THE MATERIAL COULD HAVE BEEN COVERED IN 10 PAGES...

5 comments about Exchange-Traded Funds For Dummies.

1. I am thoroughly enjoying reading your ETFs for Dummies book, and have delved into Index Investing for Dummies to a lesser extent. You have made investing in ETFs easy for me to understand -and anything but boring- and I feel much more secure about making some upcoming investment choices because of that. Thank you! I also really enjoy the way you write and your sense of humor.



2. If you are pondering whether to press the "select" button on this book, "just do it." Russell Wild has written a very approachable, compelling, fun and smart book for those of us who want to know more about ETF's, create our own portfolios and not be "dumb" about ETF's and our money.



3. Great book. This author is down to earth, and easy to understand. I recommend this book for anyone wanting to get a good understanding of ETF's.



4. "Exchange Traded Funds for Dummies" is the best book I've ever read on the subject. Russell Wild writes about this complicated topic simply, clearly and with a "bucket" load of humor (my lame attempt here at financial wit!).
   
   His book makes learning the ins and outs of ETF's enjoyable and fun. Mr. Wild has a wonderful talent in being able to engage the reader in such a way as to make finances seem, well, interesting! I'm so much more knowledgeable on the subject now and have gained a sense of confidence and understanding that I didn't have before.
   
   Norma Larson
   Covina, California
   (AKA A Dummy No More)



5. PROS
   - enjoyable writing style, easy read.
   - author's knowledge.
   - author provides specific reviews of many ETFs.
   - much additional information on financial management, beyond ETFs.
   
   CONS
   - the author carefully builds a solid case for buying ETFs, but does not adequately address why someone would buy an EFT over a low cost index fund held in a retirement account.
   
   - for some readers (like me), there needs to be more technical discussion of how ETFs are structured and how they operate, as opposed to describing ETFs merely by their benefits and roles in a portfolio.
   
   - the author's case for ETFs does not address one serious drawback of ETFs: difficulty of conducting automatic dollar cost averaging (DCA); of course, this is possible to do transaction-fee-free (or nearly so) at some brokerages, but ETFs require trading commissions and you have to conduct DCA yourself, as brokerage typically will not buy stocks (or ETFs) on an automatic schedule.

5 comments about The ETF Book: All You Need to Know About Exchange-Traded Funds.

1. Very helpful first step book about ETF's. For people new at ETF's this is a great descriptive book. It has tons of explanations about what to take care of and keep an eye on. However, I was expecting more deep analysis about ASSET Allocation, which is without doubt one of the most important things about ETF. There is just a glance about this part. Again, this is very good book for entry level but if you need more deep how to's and strategy about asset allocation, probably you will need to buy another book to fill the gap.



2. This is a very good book and it is well organized. But, I recommend you his previous two books much more: "all about asset allocation" and "all about index funds". The ETF book is basically composed of parts of those two books. This book is not as impressive as those.



3. Please read this along with the following books that I recommend.
   
   Crash Proof: How to Profit From the Coming Economic Collapse (Lynn Sonberg Books)
   The Creature from Jekyll Island: A Second Look at the Federal Reserve
   Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free
   The Revolution: A Manifesto
   America's Financial Apocalypse: How to Profit from the Next Great Depression (Condensed Edition)
   
   On the subject of the ETF, this is one of the best books I have found on Amazon.
   
   I love Richard Ferri's books. His writing style is readable and easy to follow through. Another thing I like about his philosophy is that he is HONEST. He is not like authors selling useless stock trading or stock picking books.
   
   The book covers a broad range of topics, a little history about separation of investment banks and retail banks, how investment banks create etf's and how they generate profit, agencies involved in creating and regulating etf's, sample asset allocation, risk management, etc.



4. I found this book helpful to better understand some of the nuances about ETFs that are quite complex, but I couldn't help noticing the many spelling and grammatical errors that were present throughout the text. It seemed like this book was quickly thrown together so that it could be one of the first comprehensive and detailed looks at a new investment phenomenon that is gaining ground on mutual funds and closed-end funds.
   
   The only problem is that some of the errors in this book go beyond simple spelling mistakes, and may even lead to some serious investment mistakes and negative tax implications if readers aren't otherwise familiar with account types that the author misrepresents in this book. For example, Traditional IRAs are not non-taxable, rather they are tax deferred. Be careful, because if you read this book and invest in an IRA because you think it is non-taxable, you will be in for quite a ruid awakening. These kinds of mistakes undermine an otheriwse helpful and useful text about ETFs.
   
   My other problem with this book is the clear bias the author expreses in favor of passive investment strategies. Without the bias, the book would have felt more academic and objective, and not so skewed.
   
   The book is worth reading, but be careful, because there are some serious flaws that can lead to trouble here.



5. This is a great book for content: very thorough introduction to ETFs; compares ETFs to mutual funds and describes other exchange traded securities that may be confused with real ETFs. Recommended reading before getting into ETF investing. (Recommended supplementary work: the ETF section of morningstar.com. Note: I have no connection to Morningstar, just a long time user).
   
   About the Kindle edition: the Kindle formating is pretty bad. The line spacing compared to the type size is very close and tight, which makes for tiresome reading. Some books' formats simply don't seem to convert well for Kindle, and this is one of them.
   
   On the plus side for Kindle: all the tables and charts are readable; although you may need to look closely, the text is readable, which is more than I can say for some Kindle editions of books with charts & graphs.

5 comments about All About Asset Allocation.

1. This booked helped me greatly in planning my retirement portfolio. It has great examples and plenty of research to make the case for each asset class (and sub-class). I look forward to the second edition.



2. Irrespective of financial competence, it will be beneficial for you to "invest" your time reading this book. It was very helpful in developing and understanding the process of asset allocation and optimizing is depending on your needs. Definitive recommendation.



3. This is an excellent, informative, instructive book. It provides comprehensive advice supported by succinct, meaningful discussions. It is replete with charts and graphs of the results that would have been achieved had the recommended strategies been implemented over the past few decades of data. The author's objective is to deliver an asset allocation strategy that will weather the storms and deliver solid, risk-appropriate returns for the intelligent passive investor. He wants his readers to be able to set up their 401k allocations and forget about them, confident that they are on a good track. As a matter of principle, he does not cover market timing, which he considers too dependent on risk/luck and requiring too much active attention.



4. I love Richard Ferri's books. This is one of them.
   This book explains what asset allocation is, how it works, and how you can take advantage of it. Many beginning investors may focus too much on return and return only and may overlook the importance of diversifying through asset allocation. Moreover, asset allocation is inherently tied to risk management that even many so called professional fund managers seem to overlook.
   
   It is essential that you read this book if you want to get in depth understanding of nature of investing and how it works. There are tons of books out there about charting and stock picking, but not enough books on asset allocation and risk management. Also recommended are All about Index Funds, Serious Money, and The ETF Book. Unlike books that promote sales pitch and sell garbages like (IBD: Investor's Business Daily or even Wall Street Journal) Ferri provides sound studies done on investment strategies, sound strategies, expectation and mindset.
   
   It does not however cover all the things that you have to know. You still need to understand our debt-based economic structure and fractional banking monetary system to avoid heavy losses during severe recession or depression. I recommend The Creature from Jekyll Island: A Second Look at the Federal Reserve and Crash Proof: How to Profit From the Coming Economic Collapse (Lynn Sonberg Books) for that.



5. I love reading investment books, but often get bogged down with basic 101 investing advice...pay yourself first, dollar cost average, live below your means etc.
   
   Thhis book was like taking a professional course on how and why to diversify you portfolio. Simply put it was on of the best books I ever read. Thank you Rickard Fenni!!!!
   John K

5 comments about Morningstar Guide to Mutual Funds: Five-Star Strategies for Success.

1. I'm getting around to reviewing this books years after I purchased it. It is an excellent introduction and strategy guide to investing through mutual funds, but that is not enough. Mutual funds can tank as badly as any stock. If you are like me, pretty darn smart and busy making a living, turn your money over to a professional that will manage a portfolio of mutuals for you. But there is the rub, finding a competent manager. I got lucky and found someone good. So, read the book and use your knowledge to reject the managers that don't really know what they are doing until you find one that does.



2. A good good book for those wishing basic information to start investing in Mutual Funds.



3. My dad read this book & found it one of the best overviews of Mutual Funds. He said it had taken him over 30 years to reach many of the conclusions in the book - and some he learned the hard way. He wished this book had been around when he started investing 30+ years ago.



4. I bought this book because I had read the multi-volume series on investing Benz also wrote for Morningstar, and I also follow her articles on their website. If you are just starting out as an investor, or you are looking for a refresher (or ONE book to give someone who is not an educated investor) this book is an ideal choice. Well done. She takes the mystery [and maybe some of the fear] out of investing in Mutual Funds.



5. Christine Benz is extremely knowledgeable and articulate, explainly the ins and outs of mutual funds in easily understood language. This is your first and last stop if you wish to become informed about this popular way of investing your money. The only downside is that it was published in 2005. A more up-to-date edition would have more--or perhaps changing--information on featured funds.

5 comments about Fund Spy: Morningstar's Inside Secrets to Selecting Mutual Funds that Outperform.

1. I decided to not buy this book because after reading excerpts from it on google I decided that Mr Kinnel's biased approach was more a sales pitch for mutual funds than it was an investment guide. For instance under his 10 reasons to buy a mutual fund He states that diversification is better in a Mutual Fund than an individual can get. I think a truer statement would be that the concept of mutual funds makes it possible to get more diversification than an investor might get on his/her own. Actual diversification would depend on the funds mandate as well as the managements ability to invest.
   He then states that funds have greater tansparency than any other managed account.
   This would seem to be an overstatement since I doubt that Mr.Kinnel has audited all managed accounts and he does not state what he bases his opinion on. I know of no study that would back up his statement.
   
   I could go on about his overstatements and obvious misstatements such as, getting in and out of a fund every day at net asset vailue, until I had a book written, but that is not my intent.
   
   I think his book is a thinly veiled sales pitch and is of little use as an investment guide.



2. Easy read, breaks mutual funds down into easy to understand pieces and if you still don't get it, Kinnel gives you his top 20 favorites.



3. Morningstar was founded in order to cover mutual funds. What better source to learn about mutual funds from if not the SOURCE? Mutual funds are like cars, where in order to find how they work, one has to look under the hood. This is exactly what this book is all about. Kinnel is the Director of Mutual Fund Research for Morningstar, Inc, and he teaches readers how to select the best mutual funds. Since these funds are all different, people will benefit from reading this book.
   
   In selecting the right fund, investors should answer some questions such as:
   
   * Is the fund manager invested in the fund with his or her personal funds?
   * What is the expense ratio?
   * What is the fund's strategy?
   
   Chapter 10 includes funds that passed the author's screening criteria. They include American Funds Fundamental Investors, Fidelity Spartan Total Market Index, and Vanguard Primecap Core.
   
   - Mariusz Skonieczny, author of Why Are We So Clueless about the Stock Market? Learn how to invest your money, how to pick stocks, and how to make money in the stock market



4. If you invest in Mutual Funds, this is one you should have in your library.



5. Morningstar has been at it for a while now and again bring out the best of information for the small investor to read with Fund Spy.With today's market roller coster moves, Kinnel offers steps for the reader to invest their hard earn money with. Also the author offers his top picks in a Morningstar method for investing in mutual funds.

5 comments about All About Index Funds: The Easy Way to Get Started (All About Series).

1. Written well enough, a family member recommend I buy this book, I did, and now know more options for investing my money.



2. I have almost finished reading this book (happily, borrowed from the library, it isn't worth owning) and I think it has a lot of excellent and useful information. I just finished The Four Pillars of Investing and felt that there wasn't quite enough info on how to create my own portfolio - not only asset allocation percentages but the actual choice of funds, ETFs, etc. So, I had hoped this book would help in filling in that gap, and to some degree it does. Although somewhat narrow in scope, I have learned some interesting and helpful details. So, 3 stars.
   
   However, I began writing this review earlier: I am only as far along as page 7 and am already dismayed to see such a poor writing style. For example, this is not a sentence: "Measures market weight is simple" - perhaps this is a typo and it is supposed to read "Measuring...". OK.
   
   Then how about: "....the Dow covered only 12 stocks, people began to view it as an index of stock prices by which to measure stock prices against." Yikes!! "against which to measure stock prices" is some improvement, no?
   
   And the aforementioned, "Thus so far, we have..."
   
   On page 77 the spellchecker error again, vis - "Broad market funds have better tax-management opportunities in a niche market such as a small-cap..." To make sense of this it (I believe) is supposed to read "...opportunities THAN a niche market..." How many little errors like this are there? Which ones did you catch? Worse - which ones did you miss?
   
   Now on page 82, all of the data related to the "Tax Swapping" example is missing - it seems two tables of purchase information were intended. One can still get the idea but having the information (costs/shares/dates) would be quite helpful.
   
   Finally, if you can decipher this, you probably don't need Index Funds and can go ahead and anticipate the market with ease - so buy stocks! ;)
   
   "A successful sector fund investing diversified their portfolio into several sectors so they will not be hurt badly when one sector takes a tumble."
   
   Now on page 252 it gets really frustrating, because here we are creating a portfolio to meet retirement goals. "...we create an asset allocation between stocks and bonds that is expected to deliver a 7 percent return (see Table 14-1)."
   
   But, no that is not what Table 14-1 is about. No as in the next example is Table 14-2 described correctly. So it seems that 2 of the most important tables (how to create a portfolio of bond/stocks that will meet a certain percentage return) are missing. I've read this several times and the these tables are related to something else that is discussed further in the chapter.
   
   And the pitch for one of his now out of print books (saddled with a bad title he explains) is really kind of pathetic. He should suggest other books on the topic rather than suggest you look around used copies!
   
   OK. Small potatoes? Maybe. Nevertheless, it makes one wonder about other errors, right? Perhaps the 3rd edition will be more felicitously edited? A little bit less clanging against the ear in terms of grammar? :) And, more importantly, a thorough and precise read through before it goes off to the press? And not just by the spell checker!! I hope so, as these errors and omissions GREATLY detract from a very practical and useful book.
   
   Two stars wouldn't be unfair.



3. I love Richard Ferri's books. This is one of them.
   If you are clueless about financial investment and want to get started on it, then read this book. Also recommended are All about Index Funds, Serious Money, and The ETF Book. Unlike books that promote sales pitch and sell garbages like (IBD: Investor's Business Daily or even Wall Street Journal) Ferri provides sound studies done on investment strategies, sound strategies, expectation and mindset.
   
   However it does not cover all the story. You still need to understand our debt-based economic structure and fractional banking monetary system to avoid heavy losses during severe recession or depression. I recommend The Creature from Jekyll Island: A Second Look at the Federal Reserve and Crash Proof: How to Profit From the Coming Economic Collapse (Lynn Sonberg Books) for that.



4. I have been doing a self-study on investing topics this year and previously read several books on indexing by Jack Bogle [my hero, and an erudite writer], and Morningstar's Christine Benz [Clear and concise], but I think this is my favorite. Ferri is laser sharp in explaining investing concepts, and reads like you are learning one-on-one from an excellent business school professor. I bought this book because I had already read his also excellent book on asset allocation. This would be a perfect book if it was better edited. The text and content is fine but there are typos, repeated words, etc. Ferri's work deserves better, but I still very highly recommend the book.



5. I have taken advantage of the latest market volatility to confirm my long-term financial strategy. I ordered several books from Amazon on asset allocation and using low-cost index funds or ETFs for investment.
   
   Rick Ferri's books (I also ordered his new ETF book) are well-researched, complete guides to sensible, long-term investing. He avoids the fads, and provides information in clear, understandable terms without all of the emotional "hype" present in many books about the capital markets.
   
   In my opinion, Mr. Ferri's prior books (and the articles he has published in journals for financial professionals) have made me a better investor.
   
   I highly recommend All About Index Funds.

5 comments about Blue Blood and Mutiny: The Fight for the Soul of Morgan Stanley.

1. If you are interested in Investment Banking... It is a good book, so you can see who are the players...



2. The book tells the tale of the history of Morgan Stanley and the eventual coup in an easy to follow read. The language is easy to comprehend and the story flows in a clear path. There are only two issues I have with this book. You can't help but feel that there is an enormous bias towards one side, which is what a good writer should do I guess. You should also avoid reading the pictures area as it gives away a lot of information. The last few chapters drag after Purcell is ousted (not really a spoiler since you would have to know that already). All in all, if you're interested in the history of one of the great old-time firms, this book gives a very interesting and detailed account of the beginnings of the firm as well.



3. This book was interesting. It was very good at describing the differences between Morgan Stanley and Dean Witter Discover. These two companies merged and with the merger, like many before it, the combination did not make a successful chemistry. They had two heir apparent leaders to choose to become CEO. This books talks about wrong choice of CEO Phil Purcell for this new merged company. I enjoyed this book as it described the family-like atmosphere on the Morgan Stanley side and how when "outside" leadership determined to lead, and Phil Purcell stacked the board with his connections and "yes" people and the whole atmosphere changed for the worse. The book covers the long time retired Morgan Stanley leaders (G8) toppling this board and CEO, to put back the better choice of John Mack for Morgan Stanley. It was a very exciting book to read all the way to the end.



4. A great review of the history and culture of Morgan Stanley and how a merger with Dean Witter nearly destroyed the company. The history speaks for itself so the author focuses on the merger. As blue blooded as a firm can be, Morgan Stanley finds itself being run by the Chairman of Dean Witter, a retail brokerage operation. The manager, Purcell, doesn't even live in NY but rather commutes from Chicago. But, what can you do when he has stuffed the board with his friends?
   
   Unfortunately, firms such as Morgan Stanley do not own massive producing assets. Their assets are their culture and the employees who walk in and out of the door each day. The culture quickly disintegrates and top level employees start walking out the door to not return. But who will lead the coup? Former managers step back into the mix with first a private campaign but then a very public campaign generating bad press in soap opera like drama.
   
   Ultimately, this drama plays out and order is restored. But an interesting loss to the firm who has reappeared is Vikram Pandit, the current President of Citicorp. He is considered so talented that Citi paid a massive amount of money to buy his fund and roll him in to Citi. With the current credit crisis it's still early to tell if this has been a good hire but with his CFO leaving today in a power struggle it's not looking great.
   
   Overall, a very good, detailed financial book.



5. This book is an entertaining read that provides a good recap of Morgan Stanley's history up until the Dean Witter merger. The book then goes in great depth of the cultural effects of the merger and details all the events post-merger very well.