Here’s what I’ve been reading for the past three months:
- Deep Simplicity: Bringing Order to Chaos and Complexity – John Gibbin explains how simple rules often describe the complexity and chaos found in math, physics, biology, and more. The book was not an easy read at times — portions of it went over my head and I’m still working through it.
- Successful Stock Speculation – The 1922 classic sits as an introduction to investing. The author, a stockbroker, presents some of the basic investing principles everyone should be aware of — especially today — before putting money to work in the market. (notes)
- The Cycles of Speculation – Thomas Gibson recognized how investors bounced from one speculative frenzy to another throughout the 1800s with the rise and fall of the market cycle. He briefly describes the early cycles and the many errors investors made along the way. (notes)
- Systemantics: How Systems Work and Especially How They Fail – John Gall humorously describes how complex systems work…or do not work. His long list of systems axioms highlight the many potential failure points in any complex system.
- The Splendid and the Vile – Erik Larson tells the story of Winston Churchill’s early days of WWII during the London blitz. I struggled to find a book that held my interest over the past few months. This book came recommended, so I just started it.
Need more fall reading ideas? Try these book lists:
- Mrs. Clark’s Book List (Story behind the list) – Mrs. Clark was a teacher who gave her students a list of 153 fiction and nonfiction books. The list was a way to plant the seed that learning doesn’t stop when you graduate high school. It was also her equivalent to two years of college, for students who couldn’t afford college.
- 20 Best Science Fiction Books of All Time – A solid “best of” list for science fiction books.
- 40 Great Business Books – The title says it all. Most of the books are tied to specific businesses or industries.
Last Call
- Howard Marks: Investing Is a Serious Pursuit of Money, Not a Way to Get Rich Quick – Bloomberg
- Back to Fundamentals – Humble Dollar
- Fear Itself – S. Newcomb
- Persistence of Growth – Verdad
- Google Makes You Overconfident and Ruins Your Performance – Klement on Investing
- Thinking About the Next Warren Buffett – Neckar
- The 5 Best Financial Innovations Ever – J. Rekenthaler
- Legends Of Market History: Tokushichi Nomura II – Investor Amnesia
- Is Having Too Many Choices (vs Too Few) the Greater Problem for Consumers? – Behavioral Scientist
