Suggested reading & book reviews

Marc Faber's top 6 investment books

Booms and Depressions

Irving Fisher, Binghampton 1932
In this book Fisher explains the causes of the stock market boom of the late 1920s and why the boom came to an abrupt end. Fisher's account of the events around the 1929 crash is particularly relevant to the present as there are so many similarities to the present economic environment.

The Stock Market Crash and After

Irving Fisher, New York 1930
Written in November 1929, this book captures the mood of the time extremely well. The book's last sentence is particularly noteworthy: "For the immediate future, at least, the outlook is bright." A few months later this century's greatest depression got underway.

The Economics of Inflation

Constantino Bresciani Turroni, Bocconi 1931
This book explains the impact of hyperinflation on real estate prices, wages, stock prices, etc and why hyperinflation does create life-time buying opportunities. This is the best book ever written about the mechanics of inflation and the problems and opportunities in hyperinflationary times.

Works of Jules Vernes

Jules Vernes
Jules Vernes did not just extrapolate past trends into the future, but made bold predictions, considered at the time to be fantasies of a lunatic. Yet, all his predictions were realized and, therefore, I consider Jules Vernes to be the greatest forecaster of all times.

The Alchemist

Paulo Coelho, Harper 1994
It is a remarkable tale about the most magical of all journeys: The quest to fulfill one's own destiny. The shepherd's boy Santiago joins the ranks of Candid and Marco Polo by taking the reader on a adventures journey full of hardship, which he overcomes with perseverance and the conviction that in order to fulfill one's dream nothing is an obstacle. The book will make you understand more about yourself and the world of business and investments.

A History of Interest Rates

Sidney Homer, New Jersey 1977
This book was edited by Henry Kaufman and is the bible of credit markets. Online traders will not find any "hot tips" in this monumental work, but the student of financial markets will use it as a reference for putting current trends into a historical perspective.