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by Mary Hunt (Get the Book)
According to a 2012 survey, 92 percent of women of all ages in the United States don't feel they know enough to reach their retirement savings goals. So states columnist Hunt in her different kind of book, which eliminates jargon while presenting facts and motivation for women of all ages to manage their future retirement planning. The best way to prepare for retirement is for a woman to take care of herself and her money every day. (Hunt refers to the reader as you but considers the reference to be plural, depending on marital status.) She presents six important strategies for her retirement savings plan, which include developing a money management system, building an emergency fund, getting out of debt, maximizing retirement accounts, owning your home outright, and building a personal investment portfolio. Hunt concludes there is more to retirement than just money and emphasizes good health, relationships, and meaningful activities. Important information for a wide range of library patrons, including a valuable glossary of financial terms. --Booklist
by Alan Greenspan (Get the Book)
Greenspan, Federal Reserve Bank chairman from 1987 to 2006, investigates the financial crisis of 2008 with a focus on economic forecasting, and he sets out to understand how we got it wrong and what we can learn from our mistakes. The author determines there is something more systematic about the way people behave irrationally, especially during economic crises, and this behavior can be measured and incorporated into economic forecasting and setting economic policy. Greenspan's considerations include behavioral imperatives (fear, optimism, etc.) and their role in rational economic behavior and market outcomes; bubbles and their differences; and the roots of the crisis in securitized U.S. subprime mortgages. He identifies too big to fail as the most problematic trend from the recent financial debacle and strongly supports modern industrial capitalism, although he notes its inherent creative destruction in a system of winners and losers that imposes hardship on workers who lose jobs and homes. This challenging, thought-provoking book sheds an important perspective on events that triggered possibly the greatest financial crisis ever. --Booklist
by Duff McDonald (Get the Book)
McDonald is a contributing editor at Fortune magazine and the New York Observer; he has also written for Vanity Fair, New York, Esquire, Business Week, GQ, WIRED, and other publications. His first book, Last Man Standing (2009), delved into the 2008 financial crisis through a profile of Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan Chase. In his new one, he examines one of the world's most influential companies that you probably never heard of, the consulting firm of McKinsey & Company. Ranked among the top-rated consulting organizations for decades, McKinsey & Company has been a top-brass advisor to most of the Fortune 500 corporations at one time or another, though its client list has always been a well-guarded secret. This is a company that has prided itself as having the highest standards in the industry yet has contributed behind the scenes to severe cost cutting and downsizing, acted as enablers to the Enron and General Motors bankruptcies, and seen a former CEO hauled off to jail for insider trading. McDonald's reporting reveals how and why this Teflon firm has continued to thrive through the years. --Booklist
by Sheri J. Saplan (Get the Book)
When Caplan (securities arbitrator, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority [FINRA], former VP, asst. general counsel, Goldman Sachs) couldn't find a book on the history of women in Wall Street and the financial world, she wrote one herself and presents the information here, chronologically from Colonial times to the present, through women's stories presented in a clear, readable format. Using humor and detail, the author offers up a glimpse of life when banks had "stocking rooms" and when Hetty Green (1834-1916) was nicknamed the Witch of Wall Street. While emphasizing the difficulties of women in a male-dominated business, the book is neither strident nor discordant. Caplan illustrates how repeatedly women in the financial world have stepped forward during the nation's time of need only to be marginalized when situations return to normal. The recent death of Muriel Siebert (1928-2013), the first woman to purchase a seat on the New York Stock Exchange, reminds us this is not ancient history but rather a contemporary narrative as women continue to search for equity in the world of finance. Verdict A great read for those interested in business, history, women's studies, and/or money. --Library Journal
S.H. Axilrod (Get the Book)
Axilrod (Federal Reserve staffer, 1952-86) takes on the task of explaining the system's intricacies. After an introduction covering central banking basics, he uses a question-and answer format to describe the organization, powers, objectives, and methods of the U.S. Federal Reserve (the Fed). In the chapter covering instruments of monetary policy, he looks at how Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decisions adapt to market uncertainties, how open market operations avoid creating inflation, and whether monetary policy influences spending. Where there are gray areas, Axilrod offers his interpretations. His explanations often run several pages and, while not overly technical, do require readers to have some financial background. The problem comes in fulfilling the book's conflicting goals of clarifying the Fed for a broad public audience while still being of interest to professionals. The level of detail here is more than general readers will want to wade through and too little for seasoned Fed watchers. Verdict The book's likely audience is among students of finance and economics. Readers wishing the ultimate insider's take on the Federal Reserve's reaction to the 2007 financial crisis would find Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke's 2013 The Federal Reserve and the Financial Crisis a lucid and accessible account. [On October 9, Janet Yellen was nominated by President Obama to be the Fed's new chief; if confirmed, she would be the first woman in the bank's 100-year-history to hold that position. --Library Journal
by Brian J. O'Connor (Get the Book)
O'Connor, a personal finance editor and syndicated "Funny Money" columnist at the Detroit News, bases this guide on a series he wrote for the paper on coping with the Great Recession, and here conducts a 10-week experiment to cut his family's monthly living expenses by $1,000. Each category (transportation, child care) is addressed in a chapter that offers budget-trimming suggestions. The author's agile wit elevates the book above similar titles. Though O'Connor may hope to join the likes of Suze Orman, the fact that he is struggling to support his family via his newspaper writing makes him more relatable. Suggestions range from the obvious (refinancing the mortgage), to the ingenious (finding a variety of sources of affordable child care for a special-needs child). O'Connor also writes, hilariously, of cost-cutting strategies gone awry-such as roasting four on-sale whole chickens at once using budget beer. The fact that O'Connor actually succeeded in his experiment lends credibility to this funny, pragmatic guide, which will have you laughing all the way to the bank. --Publishers Weekly
Handle employee problems effectively, without getting into legal trouble. Dealing With Problem Employees provides proven techniques that will help you get employees back on track. Every workplace has occasional problems with employees. This book is packed with the legal and practical information you need to handle those problems without getting into legal trouble. It provides proven techniques—and immediate solutions. (summary)
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by Mary Hunt (Get the Book)
