5 comments about Complete Guide to Real Estate Tax Liens and Foreclosure Deeds: Learn in 7 Days-Investing Without Losing Series (Investing Without Losing).

1. I've bought a couple of tax lien books after seeing some commercials on TV. This is the easiest so far to understand because it breaks down the auction process and the research process into steps and checklists. The other books tend to give you an encyclopedia article of what tax liens are, but this one clearly tells you HOW to do it not just WHAT it is.



2. I was curious about the topic of tax liens after reading about it. This book clearly explained what it is. It showed examples, and illustrations. And it didn't carry the usual garbage of having too many pages with no content. This book is a quick read but every page is filled with information that I was able to use.



3. This is a very very quick read and a definite time saver for people on the go. I think if you are new to this and didn't know how tax liens work, you will really find this book to be helpful as it guides you step by step. It is very specific on what you should do and what forms to fill out. I have looked at other tax lien resources mainly John Beck's expensive tax lien program on TV. I found this book to be cheaper and more direct to the point, while the latter having little or no resources unless you want to pay more for coaching and stuff.
   
   Also I was surprised to find the free online community with this book. It makes the learning process a little easier when you have questions and you can ask people including the author directly.



4. A good book that demistifies any confusion about tax sales throughout the country. Easy to read and easy to follow. Breaks down all the information into an organization fashion. Unfortunately, the author's website isn't working.



5. This book is very easy to understand. It gives you step by step information and resources on tax liens and deed. I would recommend this book to any one that wants to know about tax lien and deeds.

5 comments about The Only Three Questions That Count: Investing by Knowing What Others Don't.

1. Fisher's book explodes a number of market myths that are taken as conventional wisdom by most investors, very much to their disadvantage. Fisher not only puts matters in perspective, he teaches you how to think about markets, how to identify opportunities, when to take risks, when to play safe, when to get in, when to get out, etc. I like the way he writes, stating general principles and backing them up with solid facts. I think it's a good book for new investors, because he takes the time to explain basic investment terms and concepts experienced investors and professionals know backwards and forwards.



2. The book has a repetitive writing style that simply doesn't get to the point. It would be a good read if it was about 25% as long.



3. What a valuable read. This is not like any other investing book I've read. The chapter on oil is worth the price of the book alone, particularly now that everyone's so worried about oil. This was just one eye-opening shocker after another.
   
   If you want real advice on how to beat markets, get this book. If you want another fad diet book on some magic formula that doesn't really work, this isn't it.
   
   Also, its pretty darn funny in parts! That was another nice surprise. I found this to be a good read, not too technical, but with enough real, front-line-of-the-war advice.



4. Ken Fisher is an interesting guy. But don't let me tell you about him - let him talk about himself. He does that a lot in this book.
   
   The book itself feels like a sort of wandering conversation in which Ken takes you through his mindset to approaching stocks, how he questions market myths that the unwashed common masses take as gospel truth. To avoid following the herd, he asks three questions to make sure his mind is focused on uncovering 'real' truths of market movement. Stuff like 'deficit spending is good for the economy', and 'high p/e ratios do not necessarily signal over-priced stocks'.
   
   Ken Fisher is a smart guy; having a conversation with him that lasts this long is a lot of fun, and it will make you all the wiser in your general approach to investing. I enjoyed his random rants on politics, and his general advice on finding your own causations and correlations in an increasingly complex world.
   
   Where I fault this book is in its organization and its mild contradictions. Ken flat out denies for example that he's a contrarian by defining what he thinks is a contrarian and then describing why he isn't like that definition. He's also quite contradictory in his effusing of the efficient market hypothesis while bragging about his discovery of the p/s ratio to find undervalued stocks.
   
   Finally, Ken has a lot of pent-up anger toward the financial industry, and he writes like he feels he's never received the respect he deserves. Kind of put a sour taste in my mouth when taking in the advice.
   
   I recommend this book all the same. Like I said - Ken is an interesting guy; see through the faults, and you'll realize a wealth of interesting advice from a guy who knows what he's talking about.



5. I haven't gotten all the way through the book yet. But so far so good. Questioning what we all "know" makes sense. And I am a believer in most data is already built into the stock price. So you have to determine what is true that everyone else does not know. Good so far.

2 comments about The Essays of Warren Buffett: Lessons for Corporate America, Second Edition.

1. This is the new edition of the classic original The Essays of Warren Buffett: Lessons for Corporate America, making its debut at Berkshire's 2008 Annual Meeting. I just skimmed this one and it is even more amazing than the original (which, as the reviews over there show, is also awesome).



2. Without a doubt, The Essays of Warren Buffett : Lessons for Corporate America was a definitive and clear insight into the mind of a genius - just see my review for this first edition. The Second Edition, however, adds another dimension reflective of today's business and investing environment.
   
   Specifically:
   
   Corporate Governance
   - addition of "Audit Committees" section. As usual, a frank and down-to-earth assessment of just how honest an "audit committee" can be (it can't) - great addition, brings investors back to reality for believing these jokers.
   
   Corporate Finance and Investing
   - addition of "Debt" section, and in particular how Berkshire views debt, a section just about every business owner (home-owner too!) and profit/loss manager should read.
   
   Alternatives to Common Stock:
   - addition of "Foreign Currencies and Equities" section. Frankly, the decline of the dollar has made this topic of relevance to all investors - but Berkshire still loves America's "dynamism and resiliency." Yet another great, topical addition.
   - addition of "derivatives" section. Hedge funds have made this a household term, yet don't be fooled. Not surprisingly, Charlie Munger and Warren call them "time bombs."
   
   Accounting and Valuation:
   - addition of "Accounting for Mergers" section. Here, Charlie and Warren put forth their idea for dealing with accounting for acquisitions, whether it be "purchase" or "pooling."
   - addition of "Some Insurance History and Accounting" section. True to its name, Warren guides the reader from the birth of Lloyd's, through the asbestos crisis to Berkshire issuing a massive retroactive reinsurance contract. If you invest in Berkshire, you'll want to read this section too.
   
   In all, this updated version provides investors with a timely resource for investing in today's world. Additionally, all managers (and professionals who want to grow) should read this book because here, Cunningham neatly organizes selections from Warren Buffet's annual essays and guides them through a tough-minded, down-to-earth and common sensical manual for reference in today's (sometimes exceedingly) complex business environment.
   
   For these reasons, this reviewer highly recommends "The Essays of Warren Buffett: Lessons for Corporate America" - Second Edition.

5 comments about The Exceptional Presenter: A Proven Formula to Open Up and Own the Room.

1. This is a fantastic book we have adopted it as a manual for all of our training team. I read the book quickly and refer to it to help structure effective presentations. I would recomend this to anyone doing presentations oral and written. Could be used as a fantastic selling tool.



2. Whether you're a seasoned speaker, or are just starting out and need an edge in today's competitive market, this book is for you. It's like having your own professional coach at your fingertips. Both a quick read and a quick reference, the techniques are simple and easy to apply. The skills you will learn are critical to improving your communication in a group setting or one-on-one.
   
   Prior to reading this book, I had the privilege of speaking to 1500 business professionals at a national convention that taped my presentation. I had received outstanding feedback from those running the convention and invited guests. Yesterday, I reviewed the CD and listened for verbal grafitti, pacing, tone, inflection and anything that would make the message less impactful. I found several areas where I excelled and others I could work on to make this presentation exceptional. You won't regret investing in this book. Carry it with you and use it often. I highly recommend it.



3. Although I was lucky enough to be introduced to this book after seeing his presentation, this one is a gem. I have tons of books on public speaking. Typically, they list a bunch of typical rules such as...
   
   - Get there early
   - How to use eye contact
   - Use visual aids effectively
   - Be enthusiastic
   - Use humor
   - Dress for success
   
   ...and so on. And so what? So what, indeed. But not this time.
   
   Why buy yet another book on public speaking? Because this one isn't like the rest. It really does give you suggestions that can be read in a night or two and be used instantly. Instead of being told, "It's not what you say but how you say it," you will actually receive some actual tricks on the "how to say it." Among a sea of public speaking books, his specific ideas on the popular suggestions takes away the next conceptual step and injects a dose of solid suggestions. It is very unique and considers your time by not forcing you to waste time imagining intent.



4. This is a short, readable, down-to-earth guidebook to improving oral communication in a business context. The author's purpose is in the title-- The Exceptional Presenter-- and everything in the book is directed toward that purpose.
   
   The advice ranges from how to stand in front of your audience and gesture without feeling awkward to how to deal with challenges during question/answer sessions. Every tip is a short, easily digested block, and the tone is just right. He focuses on one point: Public speaking can be very stressful, and a lot can go wrong during a presentation; however, some thought about the structure of the presentation and some work on the mechanics of presentation can lower that stress and give the presenter a much greater chance of success.
   
   He stresses one principle above all others: Preparation and practice are critical. Public speaking is a skill that, like all other skills, requires practice.
   
   I'm a former college debater and high school debate coach, and I'm currently an active member of Toastmasters. I know quite a bit about public speaking, but I learned some things from this book. It's a practical, well-written guidebook that will almost certainly reward anyone who reads it.



5. The Exceptional Presenter: A Proven Formula to Open Up and Own the Room
   What a great book. Covers speaking to body language. However I'm surprised that he never mentioned Toastmasters. This is a great book for a new Toastmaster or a seasoned TM.

5 comments about Manias, Panics, and Crashes: A History of Financial Crises (Wiley Investment Classics).

1. Where are the "hilarious anecdotes, the elegant epigrams, and the graceful turns of phrase" promised on the back cover? There are valuable insights and ideas, but they are buried in more historical information than needed, and are somewhat disconnected and undeveloped. The material is not particularly well organized, and,like history, the author repeats himself a lot. The writing is awkward and difficult to read in places. However, I did pick up a good many insights and bits and pieces of historical information that are relevant to the current problems in the credit markets. History does repeat itself. Although I think this book is over-rated, if you are a patient reader and a serious student of financial markets, I would recommend it.



2. This book provides accounts of financial manias in history. Analyze many aspects of manias, how they come about, what are various players in manias, how they end. One thing the book is missing is how to position yourself or profit from these episodes of mania.



3. The REALITY is that the small super-over-incredible-tons rich globalist groups that control the world finances are behind this "financial crisis".
   
   They , in their plans to globalize the world need from one side to remove the middle class in order to build its socialist type (without saying that name) of world and at the same time they need to force a buy-out of banks and industries; that way the biggest ones eat the smallest ones and just a group of transnationals ( which they, of course, are the owners) will control the world economy, and wanted or not, they will impose their will all around the world, making of us modern slaves, just happy to have a car and a permanent job to pay the permanent debts while they will live in limitless richness.
   
   That has been the human history, no matter which one label is used for the System; a group controls the majority with force or beautiful lies. We, that lived communism, we know that, but this is more "perfect" perpetrated, because they will give "bread" and a sense of "false peace".
   
   They take us as stupid and cretins that will be part of the choir which will sing the song of the "good purpose and righteousness plan". My friends, common citizen of this world, they have no ideology, it only matters for them just power and control. Now as never before.
   
   As soon as such a control is possible, any "circus" can be orchestrated against any opponent or opponents. Look back to over 6000 years of human history.
   
   Alejandro.



4. Kindleberger does a great job of demonstrating what the root cause of economic downturns is.The process starts as bubbles of speculation on a sea of enterprise and entrepreneurship as pointed out by Keynes.However,as time passes the bankers decide to shift loans to speculators as well as starting to engage in speculation themselves.The situation changes as one observes a sea of speculation with few bubbles of enterprise floating on top.This sets the stage for the bubble to start growing with the finance coming from the bankers who fuel the expansion in the bubble.This leads to the mania stage.All it takes here is for some tiny liquidity disruption to set off a panic of selling which leads to the Crash as various participants discover that their paper wealth has evaporated ,leaving them with crushing debt loans as their debt leveraging and margin account financing now becomes an albatross around their necks.The end result is various bankruptcies and defaults and a recession or depression.
   
   
   Kindleberger shows how this pattern occurs over and over again in history.Unfortunately,Kindleberger fails to provide the reader with a simplified summary from the earlier work of Adam Smith and J M Keynes that explains the crucial steps involved in inflating,but not creating, the bubble-(a)loans from the commercial bankers to loanees whom the bank knows for certain are going to be engaged in speculative behavior and (b)the decision by the banks themselves to enter the market as active speculators.It is true that the bubbles themseves start irrespective of the banking system since individuals are free to engage in speculative finance with their own money and assets.However,the bubbles could not grow and expand over time if the bankers refused to allow the speculators to leverage their debt position by obtaining extensive lines of credit from the bankers to expand their debt positions.
   
   
   Everyone who reads this book should also read pp.290-340 of The Wealth of Nations[1776;Modern Library(Cannan)edition]and chapters 12 and 22 of The General Theory of Employment,Interest and Money(1936).Keynes proves mathematically that it is uncertainty and speculation(the speculative demand for money) that cause involuntary unemployment in chapter 21 on pp.305-306.The neoclassical(monetarism,rational expectations,real business cycles,etc.) schools must,therefore ,deny that there is anything called uncertainty or ignorance;there is only risk, which is represented by the standard deviation sigma.Similarly ,they must deny that there is any significant speculative demand for money;there is only a transactions demand for money.Kindleberger essentially demonstates that the neoclassical schools have absolutely no historical support.This also means that there would be no statistical support for their claims that the normal probability distribution is applicable to a wide range of industrial and financial markets.Kindleberger, as well as the new coauthors of this latest edition, overlooked the immense support that Kindleberger could have used to buttress his overwhelming historical evidence that has been madee available by Benoit Mandelbrot. Benoit Mandelbrot has presented massive amounts of statistical evidence, for over 50 years ,demonstrating that the neoclassical school's claims about the normal distribution do not have a shred of evidence to support them.It should not be surprising to discover that NO neoclassical economist in the 20th or 21st century has ever done a single goodness of fit test on the various time series data sets in order to supply support for their claims that price changes in all markets are normally distributed over time.
   
   
   
   I recommend this book .It will allow a reader to understand the negatives that could very well happen in the 2008-2010 time period.Ben Bernanke's 1.2 trillion dollar banker and Wall Street bailout,from August,2007-May,2008, has merely delayed the inevitable while creating massive new bubbles in oil and commodities and driving the value of the dollar to new lows.Bernanke has merely substituted future stagflation for recession.



5. I gave this book to my grandson who is majoring at UCSD in economics. He has not had any course yet covering the history of financial crashes, etc. and finds it fascinating to compare past times with the present economic slowdown. Manias, Panics, and Crashes: A History of Financial Crises (Wiley Investment Classics)

5 comments about Go Green, Live Rich: 50 Simple Ways to Save the Earth and Get Rich Trying.

1. This book is well written, well designed and very easy to read. It contains great tips for living green, and saving money in the process. It also lists ways of investing in green funds.
   
   I've been researching this topic for the last year and I find that the resources and facts from this book are more accurate than the ones in other "green books".



2. In typical David Bach fashion, he has simply restated the obvious, added a snappy title and failed to come up with even one new or original idea of his own. Need an example? How about Tip #3: Increase Your Fuel Economy by downsizing from your SUV or big truck which averages 18 mpg, to a Honda Civic which averages 36 mpg on the highway and 25 mpg in the city. Brilliant and terribly, terribly obvious. I recommend saving your green and your time.



3. In an entertaining way, David Bach gets listeners thinking green and making choices that are good for their wallets and the planet. While everyone knows about hybrid cars, most people don't realize that your home contributes more greenhouse gases, and Bach will show you tons of ways to make your home more energy efficient and less wasteful. You will be horrified by his statistics on the amount of waste generated by something as small as buying a cup of coffee to-go. His statistics are quite interesting even for those who already feel they make green choices. Who knew that plasma TVs use twice as much electricity? I was especially pleased to see that Bach had a lengthy section on biodiesel. With so many green ideas offered, any listener will find something in this book that they can incorporate into their lives.
   
   This is a very successful non-fiction book in audio format. Each chapter is broken down into separate tracks titled 1a, 1b, 1c so the information is easily referenced. Bach details the environmental problem, then discusses how consumers can solve the problem, and follows up with "go green action steps". Listeners will want to go back and reference the action steps and this is easily done since they are on separate tracks. Go Green, Live Rich is a non fiction book that is as easily used in audio format as in the print edition. This is an excellent production and worthwhile material.



4. Easy and quick to read. Simple to follow. Read a page or two a day and implement these ideas. I have shared this book with others and they have appreciated it as well. This book has many wonderful ideas on how to help our amazing planet and this is something we all need to do NOW. Let's Save Our Earth!



5. Many tips fall under the category of obvious, such as maintaining your home and automobile to save money and resources. This wouldn't be too bad on its own, but many of the extreme green tips are questionable in practicality or point. For example, Bach suggests taking your home off the grid by going completely solar without any mention of what to do at night when the sun doesn't shine. The silliest suggestion is using recycled toilet paper instead of the soft stuff made from "virgin fiber" that comes from "old growth trees, and entire forests of them are clear-cut in order to produce it". This forty year old argument is just plain wrong considering that the forest community plants over 1.5 billion trees a year in the US and forests are growing at rate faster than they are harvested according to [...]. Overall the book is disappointing compared to Bach's previous works. I was really hoping for some innovative, practical, and well researched ideas. It seemed like if an organization said something was green then it made it in the book regardless of what more thorough research might have said.

5 comments about Smart Couples Finish Rich: 9 Steps to Creating a Rich Future for You and Your Partner.

1. This book is awesome! If it was a diet book, I would be 20 pounds thinner by now. There is so much good information, even if you don't apply everything. I was given this book as a Christmas gift, and I have already bought it for 2 of my brother's. I don't usually read financial books because they will put me to sleep. But, this one does not read like a financial book. It reads like a good true life story. I highly recommend this book to anyone that wants to improve their life.



2. SMART COUPLES FINISH RICH by David Bach is one of those rare books that actually have the ability to change your life, dramatically. As a minister who spends a great deal of time coaching couples, I know first hand that the main cause of marital problems revolves around finances. This book charts the course for any couple to achieve financial wealth without making dramatic changes.
   
   Of course this doesn't solve all marital problems, but it certainly makes the others easier to deal with. As someone once said, "Money may not buy happiness, but it sure is easier to smile when there's money in your pocket." When a couple learns just how painless it truly can be to have a solid financial plan even on a fairly limited income, the everyday stresses of life become much easier to deal with.
   
   Much of Bach's work here focuses on reducing spending rather than increasing earnings. He shows many examples that bring into focus just how much money we waste each day on frivolous spending and to alter our entire futures by making some very simple and very basic spending habits.
   
   This book is broken into steps rather than chapters. Steps one through eight are brilliant. Step nine sort of falls short for me. In fact I question Bach's advice of changing jobs to increase income. Though at times that may be well warranted, I caution readers not to get overly aggressive here. The consequences aren't always what people hope for.
   
   The first eight chapters more than make this a must read for every married couple, as well as anyone contemplating marriage. The earlier in your marriage you will read this book, the better off you will be in later years. The worksheets here are quite helpful as well.
   
   Pastor Monty Rainey



3. I read "Smart Couples Finish Rich" after reading a few Dave Ramsey and Robert Kiyosaki books and I have to say that I much prefer Bach's no-nonsense and informational style of writing. Although all authors offer good advice and interesting case studies, David's plan is more solid and easier to follow. Other books are more story-telling than facts but this one is not, which is refreshing. The book is full of information and resources that make reaching your goal seem much more realistic. I loved it and am already implementing some of the steps. I feel more optimistic about my family's financial future and wish I had started saving sooner! This book is a "must read" for all couples, especially newlyweds just starting their financial life together. I also bought the single person's equivalent -- "The Automatic Millionaire" -- and gave it to my 30 year-old brother as a gift. I want him to start his retirement account sooner than later.



4. I am a financial advisor and I keep a copy of this in my office to lend to clients. It has excellent advice, is easy and fun to read, and helps get couples on the same page in setting goals, saving, budgeting, etc.



5. This book is one of the greatest books I have gotten my hands on. I am a newlywed and in my young adult-hood, I have decided that it is time to get my finances on track. I have taken my husband by the hand and we have now made it a ritual that every Wednesday we make time to sit down and plan our finances and our future together. We are only on the second chapter because we complete all of the exercises in the book. The author David Bach has a writing style that is simple, fun, imaginative and to the point. Every time I pick up the book I feel like I have my own personal financial advisor advising my husband and me. Getting your finances in order is a step by step process that requires the mind, patience, discipline and the willing to achieve. Check out what I have written in a year from now and I'll tell you how I am managing my millions!!!

5 comments about The Volatility Edge in Options Trading: New Technical Strategies for Investing in Unstable Markets.

1. Certainly worth the money paid. If you trade options on a regular basis, you will appreciate the fine points that the author has tried to highlight. Although, I must say, its not an easy read; certainly not for people who do not trade options regularly or do not understand options mysterious behaviors. You will find "meeting of minds" between the author and a seasoned option traders.



2. This is an excellent resource for those who want to really understand more complex option positions and trade management. He explains the theory and mathematics very well. I've been able to replicate his "spike" analysis in MS Excel and have back tested many of his examples. Jeff is top notch as far as applying his background from life sciences and technology to trading financial markets. One key thing I learned was to manage the option trade itself and not the underlying or holding until expiration. Also there are several examples of market behavior that are inexplicable with Black-Scholes theory and he shows you how to spot those opportunities. You'll find good suggestions for trading the earnings and expiration cycle too. Volatility and Time are what you are trading with options. One caution, some of the trades involve short positions and he explains delta-neutral tips from professional hedgers. You just have to manage your own risk and work with what you are comfortable with. I've found this book very useful in setting up option income trades like Long Iron Condors and selling Put or Call spreads. You'll need to go through the book a few times. It makes much more sense as you apply these principles to real trades.



3. A well-written book with clear explanations. Not enough to make money on a consistent basis.



4. Definitely worth the price. I have been trading options for only one year and I believe that with enough study, it is easy to understand the power of Augen's methods for trading around earnings and expiration. His analysis on standard deviation spikes alone opened up my eyes to how you can gain that edge around those two important times in an options life. He definitely opened my eyes to how volatility truly plays into options. I would highly recommend if you want that true edge in options.



5. The author, Augen, trades for a living but has spent more than a decade developing his own method for trading (page xii ).
   In his book he shares his own personal knowledge and experience utilizing a ying and yang cast to communicate the message.
   He discusses the Black - Scholes pricing model and the Cox - Ross - Rubenstein model. Then he compares the standard deviation of volitility of option prices with the standard deviation of equity prices as seen in Bollinger Bands. He explains how arbitrageurs make their money from option trading and how ordinary folk make money from option trading. He describes his option strategies as either simple or complex and finally he applies those strategies to the earnings cycle and the expiration cycle.
   
   Overall, the book was easy and enjoyable to read.

5 comments about The Complete Guide to Investing in Short Term Trading: How to Earn High Rates of Returns Safely.

1. Just reading through the table of contents may seem daunting for this incredibly detailed and well broken-down text. But don't put it back on the shelves simply because of information overload! This book claims to be a complete guide to investing, and it takes that claim seriously. The strength of this book, in my opinion, is its variety of voice. Technically, it has one author. But between the covers are numerous interviews and personal stories on success and failure of stock market trades- not fictional scenarios, but real anecdotes from real (and often well known) `expert' traders. There is also the layman's approach to it all, with a glossary of terms and handy information `bullets' in the back of each chapter (in case the words were making your head spin). The author also does not cushion us readers with false hope or any sugar-coated lies about ease and success- which, as a beginning stock trader, I greatly appreciate. So, although it may take you weeks to fully comprehend the mass of information here, stick with it. Because, as we all know, playing the market is based on education, not luck, and so if you're a beginner in short term trading you should do your best to educate yourself fully. And this book should be a part of that education.



2. This book is a full-on crash course in short term trading. Although it's designed to educate beginners there's a ton of advanced material in here. Luckily, Alan Northcott breaks down this dense subject matter into clearly-defined subsections and tackles each piece individually. It made me feel like I had a good understanding of concepts that I previously had no knowledge of, like how to place different types of orders and buying stocks on margin. Before I picked up this book my eyes would just glaze over when I looked at a price chart, but by the time I got through the chapter "Caught on the Technicalities" I was actually excited to watch CNBC!
   
   Throughout the text there are short "Success Stories" that are enjoyable to read and that help put the high volume of technical information into a more personal context. Overall, it's a well-presented introduction to an intimidating subject. Of course, there were several sections I had to read a few times (as well as others that were much quicker to read through). I found it very useful that bullet points and lists of key words to know are provided at the end of each chapter. The glossary in the back of the book is also great for quick reference.
   
   I really appreciated Northcott's blunt approach and constant cautions not to get carried away. While I've read other books on investing that emphasize how much can be gained from the markets, Northcott rarely goes a few pages without reminding the reader that thrilling highs can easily turn into devastating lows. (This point hits home especially hard when he discusses the current state of the economy.)
   
   This is easily one of the most useful books I've read in a long time and one I'll return to when making potentially expensive decisions. Hands down, any book that could help me feel confident about tracking indicators and questioning an analyst deserves a full five stars.



3. The Complete Guide to Investing In Short Term Trading by Alan Northcott is a great tool for the novice and seasoned trader alike. It gives real life examples of how traders have won big, lost their shirt and everything in between. The author is much like a personal business consultant. He shows you how to get started and build your business into a long-term, profitable entity. The strategies in this book are priceless. Industry experts convey the same information at seminars and workshops for enormous sums of money.
   
   So whether you are trying to decide if trading is for you or you're reaching for the stars. The Complete Guide to Investing In Short Term Trading is sure to launch you to new levels of success.



4. I've read quite a few books on investing stocks and bonds and this is the first one that addresses the motive behind it all; Emotions. I particularly liked the "Success Stories," a brief yet in depth look at those who have prospered from using this book. As the chapters proceed, stock market buzz words and other important terms are explained in easy to understand, layman's terms. This book provides an entertaining and practical read.



5. This is a book that lacks any substance. There are no real nitty gritty strategies in this book. I thought that it was a poor purchase.

5 comments about Rule #1: The Simple Strategy for Successful Investing in Only 15 Minutes a Week!.

1. First off, I was actually embarrassed to pick and read this book given its cheesy marketing. On the surface it looks like a ridiculous infomercial with outrageous claims. For example, the author claims he turned $1000 to 1 million in 5 years. That is approximately a 400% rate of return. Very impressive but I was and still am skeptical. 15 minutes a week is also an exaggeration. He also portrays himself as a guy with average intelligence and drive. I don't believe that and I mean that as a complement to Phil Town. He strikes me as well read, driven, and with above average intelligence. He is also an outstanding teacher.
   
   But getting past the marketing, I am extremely impressed with Town's book. It is very clearly written, engaging, and has sound investment advice. As a Warren Buffett fan, I have tried to copy his investment strategy but no other time have I seen his strategy laid out so clearly for readers to follow. Of course, I believe there are some points that diverge from the Buffet school of investing. For example, I don't believe Buffett would endorse technical analysis as much as Town. Partially this is due to Buffett dealing with enormous sums of money but even if that were not the case, I don't think Buffet would ever talk about tools like stochastics or MACD. I understand Town's rationale for introducing these concepts to individual investors but am still skeptical. Furthermore, his explanation of how these tools work was unsatisfactory. In all fairness, he does admit that he does not want to go into details as to how the tools work.
   
   Phil Town does an outstanding job spoon-feeding his methodology. He definitely deserves praise for that. The book is valuable to the reader especially for a non-professional investor, but if you really step back and try to understand what drives his model, you will find it to be a very simple and perhaps un-elegant model. Basically you look at past growth rates and assume that the company will continue its trajectory (huge assumption). If the growth rates are over 15% (which is rare in a company that has been in business for awhile. Microsoft grew at about 8%) and the current PE ratio is significantly below historical levels (or 2 times growth rates) then you buy the stock. Using this methodology does give the investor a huge margin of safety but good luck finding companies that meet the criteria. If they do fit then you have to find out if there is a good reason why they are trading at such a large discount.
   
   Phil Town does a great job enlightening readers but I think he probably makes most of his money now by giving advice and not by actually investing his own money.



2. I first saw Phil Town on "The Millionaire Inside" on CNBC, which prompted me to pick up his book. I found his book provides clear, step-by-step instructions on how to buy wonderful companies that have personal meaning, and purchasing them for at least a 50% discount, and then watching how they perform in the market. He introduced "tools" to check every day for a couple of minutes, depending on how many companies you purchase, but he advises to start slow with one company until you get familiar with what you are doing. I thought this book was great and has motivated me to find my first company to invest in and start earning those 15% returns.



3. Turns $1000 into $1Million....but does not tell you how he did it. This book to all about timing the market. So much for his "strategy" because it is allready priced into the markets.
   Numerous references to Warren Buffet in this book...Warren Buffet would not endorse this book.
   The way this guy is a millionaire is by selling this hoax.
   Better reading would be: The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing
   SAVE YOUR MONEY!!!!!!



4. Great book about the strategy of investing. Solid advice written in practical language for the novice; good even for seasoned "I know it all" investors and investment consultants. Common sense to the max!!!



5. Phil seems like a nice guy and I'm glad he is sharing his investment knowledge because it appears by all accounts rock solid. But this book could have easily been cut in half in terms of number of pages to reduce the number of times he repeats himself. It seems like he mentions the calculators on his website every other page. It's almost as if the book was written so that if you picked it up in the bookstore and opened it to any random section there would be a mention of his website or the term "Rule #1". In addition, he dangles the carrot in front of you forever before getting to the goods. Folks this gets VERY tiring when you just want to get to at least a morsel of pertinent information. This book would get only one star from me had the strategy laid out not been so enlightening. I am not an author and I have never written a negative book review before...