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Saturday, September 25, 2004

book reviews

a quick look at two investment books....first the new andy kessler, running money..I was fully prepared to not like the book,the title page and blurbs made it seem lightwieght, but it was on sale at the outlets so i picked up a copy..surprise, in spite of plugs form cramer and michael lewis(who I would vote off the island except for moneyball...I hate the guys other stuff but that is a must read) I liked running money..a good look at the tech run of the late 90s the vc deals, ipos, bad ideas and ridiculous valuations..he does a nice job with the concept of price elasticity ion technology..the counter intuitive idea that falling prices actually leads to higher profits...the comparsonn of the development of the intellectual property economy to the industrial revolution is well though out and well presented....the ideas on margin surplus,IP exporting and trade deficiets is thought provoking.....some interesting theores and views on tech investing with some hilarious stories of the boom days thrown in..an easy fun read that still challenges.....its not going to change your life but it might brighten up an evening or two.......

also rather than reproduce the world I ll just reprint the review of the new book on julina robertson, tiger in the land of bulls and bears

when one thinks of the big three investment superstars of the 80's and 90's, there are three names that come to mind..soros, steinhardt and robertson. you can't turn around in a book store with hitting something by or about soros, steinhardt wrote a book detailing his years on the street but little information was available about the man who captained the tiger funds to such an incredible run.Until now I thought the author did a good job of giving a balanced view of robertson, showing the investment success but also the mistakes that led to the funds closing. Robertson has been a very private man and we get a look at him from the viewpoint of past employees and associates that wasnt really available before now. the trasition form pure stock picker to global macro investor and the problems associated with the transition are fascinating reading.I give it 4 stars, an easy read that gives new information on one the greates investors of his time.the fact that robertsons style and viewpoints, so out of favor when toger closed in 2000, have been thoroughly and completely vindicated in the last 5 years makes this a very timely release

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