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Loading... The Mind of Wall Street: A Legendary Financier on the Perils of Greed and the Mysteries of the Marketby Leon Levy
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.  PointedPundit | Mar 31, 2008 |   If not for some of the concise wisdom sprinkled here and there in easily quotable format, a 2-star may have sufficed. Got summary here if you dont feel like reading the book (which can feel too long) http://wikisummaries.org/The_Mind_of_Wall_Street (  ) davekong | Feb 25, 2008 | no reviews | add a review
As stock prices and investor confidence have collapsed in the wake of Enron, WorldCom, and the dot-com crash, people want to know how this happened and how to make sense of the uncertain times to come. Into the breach comes one of Wall Street's legendary investors, Leon Levy, to explain why the market so often confounds us, and why those who ought to understand it tend to get chewed up and spat out. Levy, who pioneered many of the innovations and investment instruments that we now take for granted, has prospered in every market for the past fifty years, particularly in today's bear market. In The Mind of Wall Street he recounts stories of his successes and failures to illustrate how investor psychology and willful self-deception so often play critical roles in the process. Like his peers George Soros and Warren Buffett, Levy takes a long and broad view of the rhythms of the markets and the economy. He also offers a provocative analysis of the spectacular Internet bubble, showing that the market has not yet completely recovered from its bout of "irrational exuberance." The Mind of Wall Street is essential reading for all of us, whether we are active traders or simply modest contributors to our 401(k) plans, as volatile and unnerving markets come to define so much of our net worth. No library descriptions found. |
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Wikipedia in English (2)
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If you are looking for a secret formula to accumulate wealth in the stock market, don’t buy this book.
Leon Levy, a founder of Oppenheimer Funds, Odyssey Partners and legendary investor, reflects on his more than 50 years of investing experience to explain why the market confounds so many. He borrows from his avocations, psychology and archaeology, for perceptive insights into the financial landscape.
Success in finance, he says, is an art form, not a science. It relies on the vagaries of the human condition. Readers who search this book for a secret wealth formula will be disappointed. The only door, Levy says, that leads consistently to wealth, is access to privileged information. As many have recently discovered, this path is fraught with peril.
Yet, if investing is an art form, it can be learned. The best way is to put yourself on the line. Take a position. Players outperform professors. Recognize your weaknesses. Seek to control them.
I was particularly interested in Levy’s insights into the collapse of Savings and Loans, the hedge fund Long Term Capital Management and the Internet Bubble.
This book does not belong in the class bad books written by bored billionaire investors, too many of whom have confused luck with insight. Although these individuals have a high regard for themselves, clarity, coherence and conciseness are not among the qualities which contributed to their success.
Leon Levy is likeable, incredibly informed and nothing short of brilliant. Investors for generations to come will be grateful he finished his discourse on of greed’s perils and the market’s mysteries. (