#14 Summer reads
A list of the 18 books I have read so far this year about investing, business, biographies, geopolitics, and more. Find some unknown gems and avoid repetitive bestsellers.
Summer is getting closer and it is time to start planning your summer reads. In this article, I briefly review the books I have been reading during the first 6 months of 2022. They are all graded from 1 to 100. I hope you will find some new ideas for the long summer days. Full list at the end of the post.
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Investing
I love reading investment classics. The content is many times repetitive, but quoting Heraclitus, “no man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man”. The same happens to me when I read similar words at different times. The thoughts they bring are always new.
Capital returns (92%)
Edward chancellor wrote this book in 2015 as a set of reflections from Marathon Asset Management. The book focuses on the cycle of capital. “The key is not to invest in sectors where investment spending is excessive and there is fierce competition, and instead to place the money where the competitive conditions are more favorable and, consequently, the returns on investment are higher”. Analyzing the offer (easier than forecasting the demand) is the key to running successful capital cycles. The book also offers interesting reflections on management incentives and how Marathon handles meetings differently with the company’s management teams. A must-read for any investor, independently of your investment strategy and philosophy.
The rebel capital allocator (86%)
An unknown and hidden gem. Charlie Munger read the book and loved it. He called the author and encouraged him to make it a movie. When Taylor (the author) decided to write the book, he wanted to create a manual of good capital allocators, but trying to make it more accessible, he wrote this fantastic fiction book with all the learnings embedded.
Richer, wiser, happier (78%)
Life lessons from 8 great long-term investors and the frameworks they used to succeed. From Monish Pabrai, Sir John Templeton, Joel Greenblatt, Howard Marks, Munger, and the managers of Nomad Investment Partnership, Nick Sleep and Zak Zakaria. The chapter on the last ones is my preferred one, by far. Reading the book is already worthy just for this one. The “low” grade is just the result of some chapters which missed to engage me.
The Zürich axioms (55%)
Atemporal principles for a market speculator. A classic book from 1985 with 12 major and 16 minor axioms as a set of principles providing a practical philosophy for the management of risk. Interesting.
Free Capital (23%)
Despite the good reviews found on Amazon which made me buy and start reading the book, I found it boring and superficial, hence I stopped reading after some pages. The book outlines the investing strategies, wisdom, and lifestyles of 12 private investors. Maybe I will give it another try in the future.
Biographies
I hadn’t read many biographies in the last few years, so I decided it was time to start remedying the situation.
Buffett: the making of an American capitalist (95%)
Wow. Enjoyed every single page of it. The book was written in 1995, but even if it is missing almost 30 years of history now, it is just wonderful to read. Don’t miss the opportunity.
Red Notice (93%)
If Buffett is a well-known figure, I was unaware of Bill Browder. In this kind of “autobiography”, Bill relates brilliantly how he lived through all the economic privatization in the post-Soviet eastern countries and Russia as a consultant first, and later as the first and almost only foreign investment fund manager. I couldn't stop reading. Awesome and perfect to understand the origin of the relationship between Putin, the State, and the oligarchs.
Cable Cowboy: John Malone and the rise of the modern cable business (72%)
I discovered John Malone reading The Outsiders and got my attention. This guy “changed” Wall Street's focus on earnings towards Free Cash Flow. Or at least he tried. It surprised me how Malone achieved to create so much shareholder wealth without generating positive earnings and hence, avoiding taxes as part of his libertarian fight against the State. The book is just an interesting biography released in 2002.
Ray Dalio: a biography of the legendary investor (55%)
Disappointing. Quite superficial for what should be a very interesting personality.
Tim Cook: the genius who took Apple to the next level (43%)
Even more disappointing. Tim is known for how much he has always valued his privacy. After reading this book, his privacy is still his. It is more of an outsider review of Apple’s history during his tenure as CEO.
Geopolitics
With all the controversy of the last months regarding the “uninvestable” Chinese market, I decided it was time to read a bit about China. I am a true believer in incentives. Incentives move the world. The question was, why would Chinese leaders want to say goodbye to the goose that lays golden eggs, impeding Chinese Big Techs from further development?
The new map: energy, climate, and the clash of nations (97%)
Do you want an intensive introduction to geopolitics and energy world balance? Read this. Amazing and well written. It analyses the shale revolution in the US and the implications for the world order. Released in 2020, it explains the origins of the Russian - Ukrainian conflict. China’s interest in the South China Sea and its strategic needs, the Middle East regimes, etc. Best book I have read this year.
China’s leaders: from Mao to now (81%)
A history of China and its leaders since Mao’s Communist Revolutions. I reviewed the book in this post:
China’s disruptors: how Alibaba, Xiaomi, Tencent, and other companies are changing the rules of business (73%)
How a socialist economy has released such a degree of innovation? Edward Tse brings some explanation of how China's tech industry emerged. Interesting reading to get to know further the Chinese way of thinking.
Business
Back to earth. After reading about the infinity of the ethereal, big concepts, and great individuals, sometimes it is also important to make things tangible. In this case, three books on how to solve customer pains and key metrics and processes to make a business grow.
Talking to humans: success starts with understanding the customers (75%)
Every entrepreneur with an idea should read this book. Understanding your potential customers is the first step to success. Super short and straight to the point. 1 day read. You can get a free digital copy here: https://www.talkingtohumans.com/download.html
$100M offers (73%)
I liked nothing about this book before reading it. The author, the title, the way it is written, and the pictures. BUT, a good friend recommended it to me and I have to say, the book makes some great points to master a sales process, price setting, and other commercial tricks. It goes to the sentiment and feelings of the person. Never forget that even B2B sales are about people. If you somehow are close to a commercial role, it is worth taking a look.
Scaling up: how a few companies make it…and why the rest don’t (72%)
Practical tools and methodologies to implement in any business to arrange all the processes to be able to grow efficiently. It focuses on people management, setting up a real strategy and vision, execution, and cash flow management. A must if you are running and growing your business.
Personal development
I have to be honest and say I am not much into this kind of book, but still, you have to give them a try from time to time.
The pyramid principle: logic in writing and thinking (75%)
Expressing and talking clearly is very difficult and it takes time to improve. Writing is easier because you have time to think, but we all still receive terrible long emails every day. The pyramid principle is all about communicating effectively. Very interesting for anyone who wants to improve his communications skills.
Atomic habits (55%)
I am completely biased with these kinds of books. I don’t like them. They cover important points, but what can I say? I feel they could write everything in 1/3 of the size and still not provide the methodology. I end up bored. But don’t trust my opinion with this one.
And this is it. I hope I can update you at the end of the year with some other interesting books. I leave you the full list ordered and definitely encourage you to read any of the top 3 if you ever had the chance.
My list:
The new map: energy, climate, and the clash of nations (97%)
Buffett: the making of an American capitalist (95%)
Red Notice (93%)
Capital returns (92%)
The rebel capital allocator (86%)
China’s leaders: from Mao to now (81%)
Richer, wiser, happier (78%)
The pyramid principle: logic in writing and thinking (75%)
Talking to humans: success starts with understanding the customers (75%)
China’s disruptors: how Alibaba, Xiaomi, Tencent, and other companies are changing the rules of business (73%)
$100M offers (73%)
Scaling up: how a few companies make it…and why the rest don’t (72%)
Cable Cowboy: John Malone and the rise of the modern cable business (72%)
The Zürich axioms (55%)
Ray Dalio: a biography of the legendary investor (55%)
Atomic habits (55%)
Tim Cook: the genius who took Apple to the next level (43%)
Free Capital (23%)
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