Bond-fund

This excellent book is highly commended to anyone who is truly serious about investing. Peter Hupalo is a consultant and frequent columnist on money and entrepreneurship matters. With clear and convincing data to support him, Mr. Hupalo debunks many of the myths Wall Street pushes on the investing public. Author demonstrates the futility of trying to "beat the market", whether through stock picking and market timing or by following mutual funds that have shown high levels of performance in the past. After he makes a convincing case for trying to meet, rather than beat the market. Thus, Mr. Hupalo advocates investing in a diversified basket of mutual funds. The chapter on investing during retirement is particularly insightful.

Whether or not one ultimately agrees with Mr. Hupalo's point of view, "Becoming An Investor: Building Wealth By Investing In Stocks, Bonds, And Mutual Funds" is a book, which deserves attention. Anyone wishing to base his/her investment decisions on solid methodology needs to read this book. You will have a much clearer understanding of markets, and your investment decisions will be firmly rooted in proven soil.

I highly recommend this book for everyone.

Alexander Petrochenkov

Only available in paperback, no fancy artwork on the cover, no glowing reviews by a big time newspaper publisher, no forward by a prestigious luminary, even the editing is second rate. In a word, this is a rough book.

However, when it comes to content, this book is loaded as the author does not include a lot of fluff or selfish stories about himself. However, the author is obviously very well read, because he includes numerous references to plently of other investing books. Some may conclude it's a value investing book, but growth investing is covered as well.

So, what this book presents is a careful and comprehensive distillation of just about everything commonly available on the subject of investing. Also included are numerous clever stories which illustrate important investment truths and strategies and a recognition that a lot of what the mass media presents is almost worthless for somebody wishing to become an investor.

Becoming An Investor: Building Wealth By Investing In Stocks, Bonds, And Mutual Funds is a straightforward primer to the basics of conservative financial investment specifically written for the novice investor seeking to establish a profitable portfolio. From evaluating risks and ratios to diversifying to improve one's margin of safety, just about everything a beginning investor must know is included. For anyone considering putting their money to work for them, Becoming An Investor is urgently recommended, essential reading for participants in today's volatile stock and bond markets in order to help them to make the most of their risk-calculated investment activities.

I read this book cover to cover and it was an education to say the least. Looking for income strategies, I found a foundation to build off of here.

I also give it a Aaa rating!

The best guide to investing in bond funds available anywhere!

Perfect for income investors looking to increase their understanding and income potential.

Strategies are a real eye opener!

Ralph does a terrific job introducing the investor to the sometimes complicated world of bonds and bond mutual funds. For any investor who is looking to round out an equity portfolio with fixed income products, or who wants to invest entirely in bonds, this book is absolutely the best place to start.

I found this book to be extremely helpful in explaining (in simple easy-to-understand terms) the basics of stocks, mutual funds and bonds. To get someone up to speed quickly this is the book for you! A lot of valuable information is packed into this inexpensive little book.

At last a point of reference which simplies the Wall Street maze.
This audio book makes it all so easy to understand and grasp.
I love it, Every time I listen to it again: I learn something new, and gain a deeper understanding of what I learned before.
Its worth your time.

Since I am just learning about the investment world I have read ten books so far about how to invest, where to invest, how much one should invest, and so on. "How To Invest The Smart Way" by Stephen Littauer is the best investment book that I have read. Since it covers Stocks, Bonds, and Mutual Funds it covers hows to invest in each and what to watch out for in a very concise manner. I borrowed this book from our local library and I hope to purchase it in order to have it as a resource book for future use. Of the ten books that I have read so far this is the only one that I have selected to put into my own library. So if you want to learn the basics about investing that is in a clear, concise, and understandable language then select this book.

Johnny F. Payne

The Small Investor is an excellent book to read if you are looking for a complete and basic introduction to the subject of investing. I found the chapters on Professional Help and Selecting Mutual Funds to be particularly helpful. A feature that Jim Gard included that I really appreciate is the "Recommended Further Reading" that is at the end of each chapter. It gives you a place to go to examine the subject in more detail than would be appropriate in a "Primer." This book is ideal for anyone just entering the world of investments. Financial Planners and Money Managers should consider giving a copy of this book to each of their new clients. Jim Hagen

If you like investing or curious...check this one out. The text in the book broke down simple definitions and helped me comprehend more. It was enlightening experience to find out about the bond, money market industry. If you are an investor, add this to your library. I did! it's worth it.

This was my first book on investing, three years ago. It starts with the assumption that you know nothing, but it treats you like an educated, intelligent person. The pace goes quickly, and by the end of the book you know everything you need to know to be an intelligent investor.
I have recommended this book to several friends who wanted a good investing primer.

Groz's book is just the kind of investment book that has been needed to fill the gap between market kitch and high-brow professional narrative. It leaves the reader feeling well informed but piques her curiousity -- and prepares her for -- an even deeper understanding of the markets and investing. It is clear that this was Groz's intention. A great book for journeyman investors seeking to negotiate markets and market-speak on a daily basis.

After reading many books on investing, this is the first I've found that offers keen insights to beginners and advanced investors. I would have no problem recommending this book to any of my Wall Street friends--or to my parents.

As the title would suggest, this is very basic investing information. If you are a new investor, and seek a very broad overview of investing, and your options, then this is the book for you. I bought this book for my mother, who has never invested outside of a savings account. I read the book to be sure it would give her the information I was hoping for. It was exactly what I wanted, written in easy to follow terminology. If you're an experienced investor, this book is not for you, however if you're seeking basic investing information, give it a read.

This book does such a wonderful job introducing the beginners to the investing world. Different types of securities, different ways of investing ... this book has them all. If you just start investing or are interested in investing, this book is for you, don't miss out such a good book !

Covers everything a beginner needs to know and filled in a couple gaps in my personal knowledge as well. Sorts investment options into categories (short-term, long-term, growth, income, speculative, etc.) and helps you figure out which is appropriate for you. Has a section that breaks down common goals and the appropriate investment for each. Writing style is very easy to read. Highly recommended.

If you, like me, are getting started in the wonderful world of investing, this is a book that you need to get. It covers in very simple-to-understand language everything that investing entails from the perspective of the Wall Stree Journal, i.e. if you were to get into and/or follow investments using WSJ as a tool, and what a tool it certainly is. The material is nicely laid out in five sections, all of which can be covered without any specific order, depending on the type of information you're looking for: they also can be read linearly, in order to get a better understanding of the complete picture.

The sections are:
-Money: allows you to better understand what money really stands for, the cycle of money, the role of the Fed in regulating the economy, etc.
-Stocks: from what they are, how they "look" like, to how the market works and what cycles characterize it, how to evaluate companies, etc.
-Bonds: same thing, but applied to bonds.
-Mutual Funds: "putting it all together."
-Futures and Options: the higher end of investment.

This book, which also will not take too much time to process, contains a world of wisdom if you're serious about investing, or if you just want to better understand money and investing. Perhaps, if you're not convinced now, after you read it, you might end up more interested in investing, somthing which all of us should in one way or another do!

The Wall Street Journal is, bar none, the best financial paper in the country, but the "Guide to Understanding Money & Investing" is written in a very differnt and interesting manner: the information in it is top-notch, but there are pictures and drawings throughout it, many of which make the book seem like it should be in a junior high social studies class. Despite its physical appearance, the book makes an excellent effort at explaining the stock markets, world currencies, bonds, futures & options, and much more. It is easy for many people to simply dismiss the global economy as being something that they'd rather not be concerned with, but when you examine it closely, the world of finance may be one of the most complex creations ever made by man. The "Guide to Understanding Money & Investing" shrinks that world down into one that can be understood, and by the end of the book, you'll realize just how smart the people on Wall Street are - and just how much closer you are to their level of knowledge. This is not a book that is meant to be read in one sitting; it may be better used as a reference. An excellent addition to any investor's library.

Even now, after much study of investing, I always come back to this book for clarification. Consider this book as the very basic starting point for all other investing knowledge.

YOU CANNOT GO WRONG WITH THIS BOOK!!!!