5 comments about Foundations of Finance: The Logic and Practice of Financial Management (6th Edition) (MyFinanceLab Series).

1. This is an excellent text. I've read it thoroughly. The material , as presented, assumes a robust course in accounting at the college level. This text is for a student desiring a complete rendition in basic finance topics and techniques. The text is replete with many examples and challenging problems of various complexities. The presentation is easy to read. The book is directed to students perhaps majoring in economics or finance. It is not a purely descriptive rendition of finance. A

   considerable amount of so called "numbers crunching" is involved in reviewing this text. As such, the book serves the analytic student optimally. The text is devoid of the most complicated analytics inherent in "quantitatively oriented texts". There is a good appendix on the use of financial calculators ,as well as, present value calculations and other useful knowledge supplemental to the study of finance. This book would be most useful to students planning their careers as financial analysts, corporate planners or private entrepreneurs.




2. it seems like the writers of this text's intentions were to confuse the hell out of finance majors and intimidate them so that they would stay away from the finance 'game'.
   
   I'm sure the book is chockfull of information, but using it for the two past semesters, i havent learned as much as i wanted to. Perhaps in the next edition they will be able to make the text easier to understand and read.
   
   Finance can be a very intimidating subject, and the writers of this book seemed to have no intention of making the topic easy to understand.



3. I am a junior finance faculty. After instructing economics courses for several years it was the first time I'd be teaching finance. I've been using this book for almost 2 months now. It is clear and very well organized.
   
   The first 4 chapters elaborates on how to read the financial statements of a firm. The chapters that follow discuss the valuation of financial securities. The appendix is very concise since it focuses on how to use a financial calculator, which is a must for a financial manager. The remaining chapters of the book focus on various topics like investment and capital budgeting decisions as well as dividend policy of a firm.
   
   I highly recommend this book as a primary text for undergraduate finance courses.



4. Assuming no prior knowledge of finance, the text affords you an extensive education in the subject. The authors span a wide gamut of ideas. As in discussing the time value of money. Nowadays, this involves extensive simulations via spreadsheets, and the book shows using Excel how you can gainfully tweak parameters to see differing results. The ready availability of spreadsheets and calculators is put to good use throughout the book. Burdensome calculations are delegated to those devices, leaving you to deal with the higher level issues.
   
   There is a huge number of exercises in each chapter. Clearly aimed at the undergrad environment. There is also a "Web Works" section ending the chapters. Here, the authors refer you to numerous websites germane to the chapter. The book avoids a reference section in each chapter, where this would give a list of texts or journal papers. Instead, the Web Works takes its place. A good call. Today's readers are far more likely to actually utilise it and peruse the links. Simply because it is a lot easier to type in those URLs (yes, even manually type them into a browser) than it is to go to a library and hunt down a bunch of texts.



5. Seller was very cooperative when i needed to return the book, book was exactly as described, fast delivery

No comments about Principles of Money, Banking & Financial Markets plus MyEconLab plus eBook 1-semester Student Access Kit (12th Edition).

4 comments about Collecting and Investing Strategies for United States Gold Coins.

1. You would be better off buying the Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins. It gives much more information in much greater detail. If you already own the Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins or a similar book, you definately don't need this one, as it contains only redundant information.



2. I found this book to offer all of the basic information on coins without being overly dry and dull, as often books of this type can be. The format is easy to follow and skim. Overall a good book worth the money.



3. The price of gold just hit $1,000 an ounce. With the decreasing value of the dollar, the emergence of significant inflation, the unpredictability of the stock market, and the expanding recession within the general American economy, gold and precious metals has resumed its traditional role as a place that capital is being invested to protect it from the instability of the national and global economies. Part of the Zyrus Press 'Official Strategy Guide Series', Jeff Ambio's "Collecting And Investing Strategies For U.S. Gold Coins" is a premier instruction guide to understanding the specialty investments in, and collections of, rare American gold coins. From gold dollars, quarter eagles, gold pieces, gold stellas, half eagles, and double eagles, each variety and sub-variety of gold coin is identified, illustrated, described, backgrounded, and provided with investment tips. An indispensable manual, "Collecting And Investing Strategies For U.S. Gold Coins" is a core and essential addition to personal, professional, academic, and community library gold coin collection and investment reference shelves.



4. Maloney has written the book that newcomers to gold and silver investing
   should read before they sink their money in these metals. There are great pitfalls and Maloney reveals them more clearly than any sales pitch hacked out by other writers.

5 comments about Illegal Tender: Gold, Greed, and the Mystery of the Lost 1933 Double Eagle.

1. The author is a journalist. It is clear that he accustomed to writing shorter essays and getting paid by the word. He spared no words or overstatements. This book is about a federal investigation of a coin wanted by collectors. I am a federal investigator and a coin collector. The first eighty pages of the book are a good read and a nice discussion of U.S. coins and the double eagle. The book then drones on and on discussing an unlikely series of circular interviews described with pointless details. The author attempts to tell the story in a colorful fashion by including passages that are reminiscent of detective novels but falling far short - to the point of being trite. Face it, this investigation lagged for 60 years. Obviously, evidence discovery was slow.
   
   If you are getting on an airplane and want a pleasant read that will put you to sleep, go ahead and buy it. The price is cheap.



2. Although hard core coin collectors will enjoy this book, those of us who enjoy reading non-fiction crime stories will be a little disappointed. The author does a good job in describing the history of the coin at stake but loses something in the translation. The sad fact is that this coin's history is checkered and unknown. Therefore, the reader is always left guessing and speculating about how it ended up at auction. There is very little that is "known" when it comes to how this coin escaped the melt-down. Perhaps this is not the author's fault as he is limited by his subject. The book is readable and grabs the reader at times with the description of the auction as well as the FBI investigation in the 1930's as they tried to track down where the coins came from and who had them. All in all, the author did a competent job but the subject, which could have been fascinating, is somewhat dull.



3. This book is about a 7.5 million dollar gold coin. Obviously, this cannot be a normal coin. The book explain how the 1933 gold double eagle came to be. It begins with Saint Guadens designing the design because Teddy Rosevelt wanted new and inspiring designs. From there heads into the depression and the recall of all gold. The book invesitigates the murky beginning of all the 1933 double eagles. From there, it gets interesting. The secret service has a major headache on their hands. The plot thickens as more people come into play with these rare coins. However, you will have to read the book to see how everything plays out!
   I would reccomend this book to any numismatic interested in the history of these coins. However, some parts of the book can be slow. Do not stop reading it; keep going because the action picks up. Just remember, 10 more 1933 double eagles were just (2005) recently found which would add a new chapter to the book. That development makes the story even more interesting.



4. As with any thriller, the book opens with the background and history of the our protagonist, in this case, the Saint-Gaudens $20 Double Eagle. Tripp repeats the well known history of how President Theodore Roosevelt wanted to extend the gilded age and update the design of US coinage. Roosevelt thought the design of the Mint's Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber's were bland and not fitting of a great nation. Tripp reproduces reports of conversations and letters from Roosevelt to Barber and other US Mint officials demanding they follow the instructions of sculptor, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, as to how the coin would be minted. If you have not heard the details of this history, the first chapter is a must read.
   
   From the history of the rise of the Saint-Gaudens $20 Double Eagle, Tripp then talks about its demise. With the country in the throes of the Great Depression and the country revolting against President Herbert Hoover at the polls, Tripp discusses the tension between Hoover and the transition team of Franklin D. Roosevelt. While the country was experience a near total economic collapse, Tripp writes how FDR did not want to do anything that would give Hoover credit for doing anything before the March, 1933 inauguration.
   
   Hours after FDR's inauguration, the Senate approved the appointment of William H. Woodin as the Secretary of the Treasury. Woodin worked tirelessly with the Hoover administration to try to stop the damage. Tripp paints a great word picture as to how Woodin and FDR created a policy that helped the country pull out of the depression.
   
   One of the problem was the amount of gold leaving the United States and being used for overseas trade. More gold was leaving the Treasury than they were taking in. At Woodin's urging, FDR signed an executive order recalling all privately held gold. As this executive order goes through many updates, Tripp brings us inside the Philadelphia Mint facilities as they continue to mint 1933 $20 Double Eagles. Tripp puts us right in the Mint and traces the path of these gold beauties.
   
   With the order to melt these coins in 1934, the mystery begins. Tripp weaves the story in true mystery novel style following the trail of several of these coins as they leave the Mint. This includes the one coin with a legal export receipt that was shipped to King Farouk of Egypt. Tripp' coverage of the "Palace Collections of Egypt" or King Farouk's by the Egyptian government (website in English) is a classic twist of capitalism and greed meeting politics.
   
   The book bogs down a bit starting in the late 1950s as the trail for all of the Double Eagles gets cold and the various law suits are settled. The story picks up again with the discovery of the Farouk coin. Tripp follows the trail from its consignment in England through the seizure in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City by the United States Secret Service. From there, the book reads like an episode of Law and Order leading up to the settlement and auction of this one-of-a-kind coin.
   
   The only thing that makes this only a four-star book is that Tripp's prosaic tome makes this composition a somewhat arduous read. One may require a dictionary close at hand to fully understand the lexicon he uses. If nothing else, the book did help improve my vocabulary. Otherwise, Illegal Tender is a wonderful book to read and better than most mystery novels because it is true!
   
   Illegal Tender won the 2005 Book of the Year award from the Numismatic Literary Guild.



5. I'm not a coin collector. There are one or two coins I'd love to own. And I do own a few lovely ones. I say this so you'll know I'm not a member of the society of coin collectors --- that closed society of people who have their own vocabulary and ways of doing business.
   
   But I wanted to read this book because I became interested in why Roosevelt the second opted to steal gold from the American public, making it illegal. I also was enchanted with this coin that Roosevelt the First wanted so badly. He wanted it to not contain the motto, "In God We Trust" because he believed in separation of church and state. So the story begins in 1907.
   
   Well, I got much more from this book than I bargained for. To begin with, it's written wonderfully well. If you remember the old Dragnet radio and television shows, you'll recall how Joe Friday always said, "It was Tuesday, March 1 in Los Angeles. It was raining. ETC." It drew you in. You could picture it, get a feel for it. Well, Tripp does that in this book. He accurately tells the reader when the action takes place --- sometimes including the exact time. He often tells what the weather was like that day.
   
   The book is exceedingly well documented. It is a true historical drama and mystery that, even today, is not really solved. All but one of these lovely coins are illegal. Yet we have reason to believe others exist --- somewhere.
   
   You'll enter the rather mysterious world of the true coin collector and dealer. You'll be thrilled at what you find. You'll meet people of greed. Just to hold this illegal coin, this beautiful, magnificent piece of history, must be the thrill of a lifetime. Yet few people have done so or ever will.
   
   You'll follow the coin from the mint to the final auction that makes this one coin legal (the others, if there are others, are illegal.)
   
   This is a fascinating book and I recommend it highly.
   
   -Susanna K. Hutcheson

5 comments about Credit Derivatives Pricing Models: Model, Pricing and Implementation.

1. The state of theory is in such tremendous flux at present with a majority of research unpublished and a growing consensus that the state of the art is entirely inadequate. No book could possibly please industry researchers at this point, but Philipp contributes some ideas and clarification here and there and some leads which are valuable. He is perhaps a little dismissive and pessimistic when the theory wanders into hard mathematical problems, and to to a large extent his book ends where the fun stuff begins. Nontheless I would recommend, especially to those entering the field.



2. The book is a look at credit risk through the glasses of mathematics, and is not a beginner's book. It is a bit dry in the beginning, yet after that I discovered lots of valuable intuitive explanations. While it does require a certain level of probability knowledge, the author walks you through most necessary steps for the presented models. The book covers almost everything needed for an intermediate course on credit modelling. The lack of numerical implementation menthods took the last star.



3. The book is written by a Professor in a insightful way.
   The reader needs to be well prepared in knowledge, and be ready for frustration.



4. The author should rewrite this book. The presentation and organisation are terrible. Often you will see formulas come out without an explanation.
   
   Would definitely not recommend it.
   
   Grab any papers wrote by the market-practitioners, you will find they are much easier for you to understand the concepts of various credit derivatives models than the book could.
   
   BTW, I wrote a negative review in amazon.co.uk, but was deleted twice.



5. The book covers the basics of credit risk modeling and derivative pricing (both structural and intensity type of models), explained in a clear style with enough detail to enable implementation (a rarity in financial literature!). Basics of the theory of stochastic processes and risk-neutral pricing are also covered. Calibration methods for the models are clearly explained. Due to the limited scope, some topics are given only cursory coverage (Copula function methods, role of interest-rates models etc.), but even then, enough references are provided. A very useful, concisely written tome!

No comments about Manarin on Money.

5 comments about Inefficient Markets: An Introduction to Behavioral Finance (Clarendon Lectures in Economics).

1. There is too much maths in the book. However, the comments and interpretation on various models are very interesting. The authour distinguish between arbitrageurs and noise traders. He also give us a theory of substituability which is interesting but inapplicable in reality. Too much theory also with a lot of hypothesis that are not respected in real markets.
   I was looking more for a book on investment psychology and I was disappointed.



2. Markets are not efficient in part because Investor Sentiment is a strong factor creating momentum (either upward or downward trend, whether sentiment is positive or negative). Also, arbitrage is very weak, as there are no proper securities substitutes, shorting the indexes is too risky. The "Noise Trader Risk" is too great. Meaning equity values may continue to diverge long enough for the arbitrageurs to loose their shirt betting on convergence. The investor type is a very important characteristic to factor. This explains the close end fund puzzle. The discount on closed end fund tracks the fate of small cap stocks. When small cap stocks do poorly, the discount on closed end funds deepens. This is because both investments are dominated by the same type of investors: individuals - small investors. Thus, both investment types are subject to small investors' sentiments.



3. Beneath my comments, writes Roseblatt:
   
   =====================
   In chapter 4, he is concerned with the 'limits of arbitrage' (the original title of this paper, published in the JOF in 1997). This paper is definitely worth reading to understand the problems with hedge funds and other arbitrageurs. However, linking the limits of arbitrageurs to 'inefficiency of the market' is erroneous. The very fact that arbitrageurs can not take advantage of what they think are mispriced assets, due to collateral constraints (Schleifer's hypothesis), shows that the market is efficient, since no free money is floating around.
   =============================
   
   No, with the 'limits of arbitrage', the mispricing cannot be corrected quickly. The logic lies like this: suppose A sees the arbitrage opportunity, but due to the "limit", he can only trade certain shares, and makes $10 FREE MONEY. He knows there is still another $10 "on the table", but he cannot take action anymore. At this point, if no one else sees this arbitrage opportunity, the market remains inefficient until another arbitrageir B jumps in and remove that "remaining $10 on the table". Of course A and B made "free money". Shleifer's treatment is perfectly Okay. Roseblatt's rebuttal is illogic and obviously wrong.
   
   However, EMH itself is a hoax. It is not scientific at all. I believe in the early days, financial economics was dominated by people who had little quantitative or science training, therefore, they could only do something like EMH sort of soft libral arts type of research. To me, it is not EMH, it is how quickly the information gets reflected in stock prices; and how big is the limit of arbitrage. Nothing else. I suggest the new generation of high-level finance researchers should totally discard this spurious EMH topic. Period.



4. Inefficient Markets by Harvard economist Andrei Shleifer provides a strong argument against the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) in its various forms and an introduction to Behavioral Finance. Shleifer's main points are summarized below.
   
   1. The EMH comes in three forms. The Weak Form states that an investor can not achieve returns above the market averages based on the analysis of historical stock price patterns (Technical Analysis). The Semi-Strong Form states that all publicly available news is reflected in stock prices almost instantaneously and that an investor can not beat the market averages by diligently tracking company earnings and other events (Fundamental Analysis). Finally, the Strong Form says that an investor can not beat the market even by using information that is not available to the public (Insider Trading). The Strong Form can be dismissed by considering the number of corporate executives currently under indictment or serving time for insider trading. Evidence against the Semi-Strong and Weak Forms can be found in the Small Stock Effect (small stocks outperform the market) and January Effect (the market does best in January) which seemed to hold until they were widely publicized but have presumably been negated since then by arbitrage. Additional evidence against the EMH can be found in the less than perfect correlation between the price movements of Royal Dutch and Shell Transport and Trading shares which jointly own the Royal Dutch Shell enterprise in a fixed 60%/40% ratio. Furthermore, the prevalence of a 10% to 20% discount in the share price of closed end funds relative to their net asset values suggests that the market is less than efficient.
   2. In Chapters 2-4, Shleifer demonstrates the limits of arbitrage in maintaining efficient markets. He develops a mathematical model for predicting the returns of arbitrageurs (who accurately perceive the values of stocks) and noise traders (who incorrectly perceive the same values). His Noise Trader Model explains how noise traders can sometimes achieve higher returns than arbitrageurs based on the "hold more" and "create space" effects. The "hold more" effect is based on the community of noise traders egging each other on as was seen in the technology bubble that burst in 2000. The "create space" effect says that the wider the range of incorrect perceptions held by noise traders, the less effective arbitrageurs will be in bring stock prices back to their correct values. Shleifer uses the Noise Trader Model to make additional predictions about the market behavior of closed end funds and shows that, unlike the EMH, it accurately models such phenomena as the rise in share price to the underlying net asset value upon liquidation or reorganization as an open end fund. Finally, he shows that professional arbitrageurs, such as hedge fund operators, are forced to adopt more conservative tactics than individual arbitrageurs by their need to retain clients and funding.
   3. In Chapters 5 and 6, Shleifer develops a model of Investor Sentiment based on investors' patterns of psychological underreaction and overreaction. Investors tend to underreact to new information (such as reported earnings) by modifying their perception of a stock's value by less that the new information would suggest and continuing to extrapolate the old stock price trend. If confronted with repeated inputs of new information that consistently points in the same direction, investors tend to overreact by discarding the old model, accepting the recent trend as the new model, and extrapolating it into the future. Finally, he shows how investor sentiments can form a positive feedback trading environment in which arbitrage can actually destabilize the market.
   
   This is a book for serious students of finance. It's not a "Behavioral Finance for Dummies". However, the math does not require more than a year of calculus and a good understanding of calculus-based probability and statistics. Shleifer's writing style is remarkably clear for an academic economist (many of whom I find able to obfuscate the simplest concepts). Overall, Inefficient Markets is a long-overdue reexamination of the theoretical underpinnings of modern finance theory.



5. As has been admitted by even the staunchest former proponents of financial economics (such as Burton Malkiel), the multi-decades old dominant intellectual field in academic finance has piled up against itself persistent anomalous data. Thus, it is no surprise, as the science of economics advanced, that a new intellectual field would develop to challenge and replace the old. Behavioral finance, which relaxes some of the key assumptions in financial economics, utilizes survey data, and integrates knowledge from psychology to better understand financial markets, is that new intellectual field.
   
   Although still controversial, young economists and financial professionals should become versed in this new field as early as possible: 1) because there is huge room for new research where creative economists can flex their muscle and 2) financial professionals that drop the old adherence to financial economics will have an edge over those that don't. Andrei Shleifer's work is the best introductory work on behavioral finance that I've come across, and I thus strongly recommend it to those who want a quick and easy to understand introduction to this field which is the wave of the future of academic finance (well, I hope).
   
   Robert Stephenson-Padron
   MSc student (economics & finance)
   University of Navarra, Spain

2 comments about Financial Management for Design Professionals: The Path to Profitability.

1. As a busy Architect who did not double major in business, this book not only helped me understand how to really know how my company was (or wasn't) doing financially, it helped me communicate what my Accountant needed to know (he did not double major in Architecture.) I highly recommend this book to all Sole Proprietor Architects who want to know how much money they need to keep the ship floating! Good luck!



2. Baker's Pro-Guide Lip Balm SPF-15 (Cherry) 3-PACK
   
   This is a great book for both the finance savy and those struggling to get a grip on your company finances. I would highly recommend it for any architect, engineer or graphic design firm; but know that the principles are easily applied to any business. Like a good foundation the authors starts at the beginning and builds to your end goal with each chapter. The most valuable aspect of this book is that the material was presented in a way that is easy to understand, even while watching TV. What would make the book better? I would suggest a section on applying the strategies with QuickBooks. Since the majority of small to medium design firms use QuickBooks for their accounting it would have been really helpful if the book had presented example companies with charts of accounts, budgets, P&L, profit plan, etc using QuickBooks software. Even if your firm is profitable I would recommend reading this book to help you find those subtl;e areas in your business where you can make improvements.

2 comments about Financial Institutions, Markets, and Money.

1. This book is updated to the latest development in financial market, institutions and structure.

   It concisely presented the money and capital markets with a touch of history and functionality.

   I particularly like the balanced view of the authors in their presentations. It successfully illustrates the functional as well as risk consideration of the markets and institutions.

   This book should serve well for student studying in domestic financial market and also as a bridging link to international financial system.




2. This study guide is quite useful for a student studying finance first time.

5 comments about Money Is My Friend.

1. This book does a great job of explaining the reasons for commonplace hang-ups about money and offers a very workable solution. I actually struggled with being an "over saver" - and there aren't many books written for us. Laut outlines a great way to live for today (spending what you have) while also saving for the future. It's easy to read and easy to implement.



2. Money is my friend is a wonderful "how to" guide on how to achieve financial freedom. It is built on sound principles that show you how to eliminate you financial fears and reprogram your conscious and sub conscious mind with affirmations of riches and success. One of the prerequisites that are required in order for you to achieve mega riches is to believe you are worthy of mega riches. This book shows you how to reprogram your mind to believe that you have what it takes. Highly recommend!
   
   Zev Saftlas, Author of Motivation That Works and Founder of www.EmpoweringMessages.com



3. Money making process is a very wide area. Author tried to mention all the ingredients that make a successfull money making formula. In doing so the book is more a list of things, then practical ideas how to accomplish them. Also I do not like how he goes very deep into psychology. Rich Dad's series are much better if you need to change your way of thinking about money.



4. A friend recommned this book to me, and since I trusted this friend, I ordered the book. First of all, I am very sceptical of these money and beliefs books... but after reading through the book and doing the exercises, I realized the definite power this book has. It is extremely practical and provides the indepth work that one needs to do to overcome barriers to wealth.
   
   This book really made me think. Its not a fluffy get rich quick scheme - its about owning up to negative values and habits and how to change them. I gladly recommend this book to anyone who has experienced poverty/and or debt and wants to rise well above it! It has really helped me challenge my beliefs...
   
   BTW, after reading this book and applying these prinicples I ended up with a nice new apartment (and saved $200 in rent), a wonderful girlfriend (now fiance and soon to be wife) and I got rid of my 20 year old car and got a nice reliable vehicle... So there! The principles in this book are great! It WORKS!



5. "If you plan to live in a society that uses money as a means of exchange, then it is intelligent to master money," says Phil Laut author of Money is My Friend. Of course I agree, while noting that I have trouble recalling ever reading that sentiment put quite so bluntly.
   
   Mastering money is, indeed, crucial to succeeding in our society and fortunately, or unfortunately, as the case may be, that task runs right through the task of mastering yourself, according to Laut. He effectively emphasizes the importance of throwing off negative programming and learning to write the script for your life and your financial success. He's 100% on target, but he makes it sounds simple, when, in practice, it may not be so easy.
   
   Aside from the philosophical/psychological approach, Laut appeal's to the reader's analytical side by introducing and expounding on his four laws of wealth -- I. THE EARNING LAW, II. THE SPENDING LAW, III. THE SAVING LAW, and IV. THE INVESTING LAW -- throughout the book. But, where the book really excels is by offering ways we may have acquired "stinkin' thinkin'" regarding money and how to counteract it.
   
   Money is My Friend is actually very similar to Moneylove by Jerry Gillies -- both books offer slightly different takes on very consistent core themes. Since both authors site Leonard Orr as an influence, it should be no surprise. Orr was an earlier proponent of the idea that the state of one's mind and one's beliefs about themself are key factors in manifesting more money. I actually like to think of these books in tandem. I recommend reading both of them in succession, as their slightly different takes form a more comprehensive whole.
   
   In the final analysis, Money is My Friend makes a clear case that money, in and of itself, can not cure financial woes. But, the reader may rest assured in the knowledge that applying the ideas in Money is My Friend, as well as Moneylove, can pay massive, life long, dividends.