Here’s what I’ve been reading for the past three months:
- Value Investing Makes Sense – Jean Marie Eveillard is a French-born value investor who had a successful career that began running a mutual fund at SocGen, which became First Eagle. He describes his journey from the discovery of value investing, why he transitioned from Graham-style to a Buffett-style strategy, and the experiences that led to his long-term success. The book is only available in print, as far as I know, and is not the easiest to find. (notes)
- American Business History – Walter Friedman explains why the U.S. is so unique compared to the rest of the world when it comes to businesses. He covers the factors that drove business dynamism since before the early colonies. If you like history and business, this is a good book for you. (notes)
- Men and Rubber: The Story of Harvey Firestone – Harvey Firestone’s autobiography recalls the story of how he turned a small tire company into an industry leader. The book includes a detailed perspective of the early automobile industry and insights into the problems new businesses continue to run into today. (notes)
- Immoderate Greatness: Why Civilizations Fail – Major civilizations throughout history, much like markets, cycle from rise to peak, to collapse. The book focuses on the primary drivers of the decline and fall of civilizations. It’s not the most optimistic book, nor unbiased, and for a short book, the author over-relies on analogies that could have been cut out. Notes to come.
- The Buffett Essays Symposium – The book is an annotated transcript of an event held in 1996 to discuss topics covered in Warren Buffett’s essays. You get a mix of different views from Buffett, Munger, and others on corporate governance, investing, M&A, accounting, and more. If you’ve read The Essays of Warren Buffett, you might find this interesting. Notes will be published once I’ve finished it.
Need some mid-summer reading ideas? Try these book lists:
- The Ultimate Summer 2023 Reading List – Lithub’s compilation of the most recommended books from different summer reading lists.
- Mauboussin’s Book List – Michael Mauboussin mentioned a reading list on the Tim Ferris podcast and recreated the list on Twitter.
Related Reading:
Quarterly Reading — Spring ’23
Quarterly Reading – Winter ’23
