Warren Buffett and Sherlock Holmes

	Bull! A History of the Boom, 1982-1999: What drove the Breakneck Market--and What Every Investor Needs to Know About Financial Cycles Maggie Mahar This book vividly details the trends and outsized egos that fueled the recent bull market including the surge of leveraged buyouts of 1984-1987, the mania for junk bonds, falling short-term interest rates, the rush of individual investors into 401(k) retirement plans, the power (and appetites) of mutual funds and the media frenzy that lent an unlikely allure to quarterly corporate earnings reports
	Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind They are not a likeable lot. This book deals with the ruthless power brokers behind the Enron collapse such as the CEO Ken Lay (dubbed "Kenny Boy" by George W. Bush, one of many prominent public figures with whom he rubbed shoulders), cutthroat man-behind-the-curtain Jeff Skilling, and ethically blind numbers whiz Andy Fastow. They vividly come to life as they make a mockery of conventional accounting practices and grow increasingly arrogant and bind to their collective hubris.
	In an Uncertain World: Tough Choices from Wall Street to Washington Robert E. Rubin and Jacob Weisberg Waren Buffett wrote about this book, "As Secretary of the Treasury, Bob Rubin ranked with the best. This drama-packed account of his years on the job should be read by all who are interested in what happens when politics and economics intersect." This book takes us behind the closed doors and into the nerve center of Wall Street, the White House and the Treasury Department during a historic time in the global economy.

Other Great Investment Books
	Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits Philip Fisher He can be long-winded but is worth the effort. As Warren Buffett said, "I am an eager reader of everything that Phil has to say, and I recommend him to you." He is one of the pioneers of modern investment theory and is most well-known for his fifteen points making up the "scuttlebutt" approach to investing. A book that should be on the shelves of every serious investor.
	Market Wizards: Interviews with Top Traders Jack Schwager I can hardly admit to reading this book, let alone putting it in my list of favorites. But this book is great! Here I was thinking that I had nothing to learn from short-term traders. That I was the cool long-term investor. This book opened my eyes. The guys in this book have done it all -- and they tell it as it is. As a group they have made every mistake their is. But they have survived and now have more money than most can even dream about. No matter what sort of trader/investor you are, you could not help learning from the experiences and tenacity of the people in this book.
	The New Market Wizards: Conversations with America's Top Traders Jack Schwager This is a follow up to Market Wizards. More great stories and ideas from the frontiers of trading. Even if you are strictly a long-term investor, you will learn a lot from these books. Especially since they are all so honest about the mistakes they have made.
	The Essays of Warren Buffett: Lessons for Corporate America prepared by Lawrence A. Cunningham. New version just released. New sections include the technology stock bubble that burst, the circle of competence, share repurchases, stock option accounting, and accounting shenanigans. This is the book for understanding the investment methods and ideas of Warren Buffett. It is a compilation of his famous "Letters to Shareholders" appearing in the annual reports of Berkshire Hathaway. Why get his ideas second hand? At the 1998 annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway he said that if he had to pick a single book describing his methods, this would be the one.
	Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist Robert Lowenstein I love this book because we see the human side of Warren Buffett — honesty, integrity, patience and a down-home sense of humor. Some of the tales are timeless such as when during an SEC investigation, Buffett would wander into the investigator's office to see if he could help him understand the case more clearly (p. 177) or his debate in 1984 at Columbia Business School with Michael Jensen, an efficient market proponent (p. 316).
	Warren Buffett Speaks: Wit and Wisdom from the World's Greatest Investor - Janet Lowe. A wonderful source of the most quotable quotes of Warren Buffet. How about, "It's only when the tide goes out that you learn who's been swimming naked" (p. 108) or "With enough inside information and a million dollars, you can go broke in a year" (p 189).