Average customer rating:
|
Wes Craven: The Art of Horror
John Kenneth Muir
Manufacturer: McFarland
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Direction & Production
| Movies
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Movies
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
History & Criticism
| Movies
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
Genre Films
| Movies
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Performing Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Look Inside Entertainment Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
All Titles
| Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007
| Stores
| Books
ASIN: 0786419237 |
Book Description
Filmmaker Wes Craven has consistently and imaginatively scared movie audiences since the early 1970s. His films encompass a variety of styles, elements and themes, from the nihilistic existentialism of The Last House on the Left to the successful A Nightmare on Elm Street (which sent horror in a bold new direction), to the hallucinatory dreamscapes of The Serpent and the Rainbow. And in the nineties, Craven returned with the Scream films, which were simultaneously funny, clever and scary films that overturned the horror clichés of the eighties.
The present work provides a history of Craven's film career since 1972, examining all the themes and techniques the filmmaker explored. For each film, a synopsis, cast and credits, historical context, and critical commentary are provided. Also covered in detail are Craven's forays into television, including movies such as Stranger in the House and work on such series as The New Twilight Zone.
Book Description
Every month or so, a new horror movie hits #1 at the box office no wonder there are dozens of new fright films slated for release in 2007. But if you find yourself trapped in one of these movies, there's no need to be afraid. How to Survive a Horror Movie teaches readers how to cope with every kind of horror movie obstacle, from ax-wielding psychopaths to haunted Japanese VHS tapes. Chapters include:
How to Survive a Night of Babysitting
How to Convince the Skeptical Local Sheriff
How to Perform an Exorcism
How to Tell If You've Been Dead Since the Beginning of the Movie
How to Vanquish a Murderous Doll
Full of illustrated instructions on avoiding ghosts, serial killers, haunted cars, murderous pets, telekinetic prom queens, and countless other hazards, How to Survive a Horror Movie is essential reading for movie buffs of all ages!
Customer Reviews:
Ultimate Survival.......2007-08-10
If you are out to ensure that you live a long and safe life, there are essentials you must get in order to absolutely ensure that so many dangers stay away or how to avoid them. You'll need "The Zombie Survival Guide", "How to Survive the Robot Uprising", and "How to Survive the Apocalypse" among others. Now you can realize your safety in terms of finding out that you are part of a horror movie with "How to Survive a Horror Movie". This covers everything from slashers, evil spirits, haunted houses, possessed cars, exorcism, zombies, aliens, demonic dolls, and even animal attacks.
Seth takes you through how to realize if you are in a horror movie and helps to guide you into your continuing existance of fleshy-ness. There are guidelines on where to avoid (cemetaries, cornfields, cabins), rules for babysitting, what to do with your child-infested cornfield, and the sure fire way to defeat Satan himself.
I began reading this text in public, but had to retreat to private due to people staring at me with odd looks as I laughed my way through the book. It fits well into the humor-based survival guides out on the market and you will easily identify loads of horror movies without the author actually mentioning them (copyright loophole). It loses a star for the whole snakes on a plane garbage and really the exorcism chapter pretty much just outlines the movie events. Otherwise, this is a great book and has a pretty good horror-movie-must-see list at the end, I would add "Wrong Turn" and maybe "Turistas" to the list.
Sooooooo Helpful.......2007-08-02
God Bless Mr. Grahame-Smith. I am not a huge horror fan. However, God forbid the day come that I am under attack by slashers, zombies, the possessed, etc., I will be prepared. This book is brilliant and funny. In the same manner as suggested by the first reviewer, I went to Borders to buy Harry Potter 7 and flipped through this book while there. I could not put it down and bought it on impulse. This might have been one of the smartest moves I've ever made...
A lot of fun.......2007-07-28
I picked up this book to have something to read on a long car ride. I wound up reading passages out loud to my friends, and we all laughed hysterically. This is a quick, funny read that basically takes the conventions of campy horror movies and turns them into a sort of mock self-defense manual. With sections on everything from alien attacks to slashers to how to tell what sort of horror movie you're trapped in, this book covers almost everything you can think of. Grahame-Smith is obviously someone with a deep affection for horror films, but not so deep that he can't point out the absurdity of them. Recommended for fans of Max Brooks' Zombie Survival Guide.
How to Survive a Horror Movie...A mostly funny read.......2007-07-02
While there were attempts at making "self-aware" horror movies before, it could be said that "Scream" was the best attempt at doing so. It is fitting then that Wes Craven writes a short introduction to "How to Survive a Horror Movie," a tongue in cheek manual on doing just that. This is one of those rare books that you could pass by in a book store, start flipping through, and decide then and there you must own it. It starts very strong with chapters on deciding if you are currently in a horror movie, what kind of horror movie you're in, and the unique skills required in surviving the many different genres of horror movies.
There are several laugh-out-loud passages, that I won't spoil here, and the book is filled with decidedly creepy pictures evoking the mood of the old EC comic books. Where the book falters is in the later chapters as the witty, self-aware horror movie depictions give way to simple how-to lists that offer no humor (the worst of which is the snakes on a plane bit that just falls flat).
"How to Survive a Horror Movie" does end with perhaps the funniest tip of the whole book with a "sure fire" way to defeat the devil (do yourself a favor and don't read it until the very end). While not a five star homerun, due to the last third of the book that starts to drag, this is an entertaining and light read that will please any horror fan and even the simple movie buff.
Hysterical!.......2007-06-14
This book's a must-read for any horror movie fanatic. Not only is it funny, but it's full of useful tips, too!
Book Description
Writer, producer, and director Wes Craven has successfully tapped into the horror vein for over thirty years, serving up scary, funny, hip thrillers that demand a second look. His films have been both critical and commercial successes, most notably Nightmare on Elm Street, which spawned a series of sequels and made Craven (and his creation, Freddy Kruger) an international sensation. But Craven's films have also become classics in a field that he continues to reinvent--the horror genre is still reeling from the impact of his most recent project, the brilliant Scream series.
With Screams and Nightmares, author Brian J. Robb covers Craven's entire career, from his low-budget beginnings to his most recent box office hits, from the banned thriller The Last House on the Left and the cult classic The Hills Have Eyes to the outrageous Shocker and The People Under the Stairs. Through exclusive interviews with Craven, Robb provides in-depth accounts of the making of each of the films--including the third installment of the Scream series--Craven's foray into writing novels, and his numerous television projects.
With a full filmography and more than 200 photographs, many from the director's own collection (including a detailed overview of Craven's television work), Screams and Nightmares is quite simply the only book of its kind.
Customer Reviews:
Craven For More!.......2003-12-14
At first thought, many people probably would have thought director Wes Craven to be some kind of unbalanced oddball because of some of the films he has made. Not to mention some of the gnarly and overly violent scenes he has created in his numerous films. What kind of a person would of made "The Last House On The Left", or "The Hills Have Eyes"?. Or have a geiser of blood shooting up from a teenaged boy's bed in the original "A Nightmare On Elm Street"?. Well, Mr. Craven. That's who. Newbies just finding his work and learning more about him, might be surprised to find that Mr. Craven is the exact opposite of what you would of thought. Instead of coming across as some crazy horror film director, he comes across more as a polished and highly intelligent man who looks and dresses like a college professor. "Freddy" star Robert Englund even once made that comment after meeting Wes for the first time after auditioning for the first Freddy movie. This book delves right into the entirety of Wes' career and offers glimpses into the makings of each ones, not to mention his own life. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio on August 2, 1939. One other interesting note was how his family were a deeply religious baptist family. The religion and the nature of his family's religion is something Wes goes on to discuss a bit further in the book. It's also incredibly interesting to know that Wes never saw a movie until
he wasin college. The good and the bad from his work is brought to the forefront and dissected. A running theme thru the book is the effect that horror, and many of Wes' films, have had on the world. Is it good?. Is it harmful to children?. Is it responsible when someone commits a crime and says they did because of watching "Scream" or any other movie?. That is some of the interesting bits you will read about in this book. Author Brian J. Robb, an autobiogrpaher who has done work on such other people as Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp, River Phoenix, and Leonardo DiCaprio, does a nice job of getting the information there and making it easily accessible and interesting to read. Granted, the book isn't entirely perfect. It's a thin and light book that could probably be read in one sitting. Also, many of the quotes seem like they were taken from many other sources. It doesn't feel like Wes had directly talked to this book or was involved in any interviews for it. I'm just guessing. It would of been better if it had a tad more in depth, but I'm not really complaining for as it is a great book. The "Nightmare On Elm Street" films are thoroughly researched and talked about here. It is kind of odd that every single one is accounted for since 4 of them had nothing really to do with Wes at all. I did get the feeling that Wes wasn't properly treated at time by New Line over the "Elm Street" series. These films were what really made Wes known, until a little movie called "Scream" came out to terrify theatergoers in 1996 and made Wes not only a household name again, but proved that he is master and back at the top of the horror list. Much talk and detail goes into all 3 of the "Scream" films as well. Overall, this is avery entertaining and enjoyable read. From his trouble with getting a film done, going without money, and the ever present cencorships board, and other things you will read about in this book, Wes Craven has had his struggles. But as always, he rolls with the punches and he always gets back on his feet again. This is a book that satisfy fans, newcomers to him and his work, and genre buffs all over the world.
For Craven fans only.......2002-01-29
This is designed for big, big, big fans of Wes Craven. It is a slim book whose text seems to be primarily based on magazine articles and newspaper clips. The book gives a fairly good overview of Craven's history and philosophy in a readable and serviceable style.
RECOMMENDED!.......2000-02-29
This is a brilliant book and particually good if your a big fan of Freddy Krueger films, like me. It tells us of Wes Cravens past and of his past and present movies.
INTRIUGING.......1999-06-25
I have been an avid fan of Wes Craven and his movies, But this book gives you more insight on his better movies, and gives you respect for his unsatisfactory movies. As well as getting inside his head and knowing what these movies really mean, After reading it you know what each movie is "really" all about. For anyone who is interested in Horror movies, or any genre of Movies, you should definately read this book.
Average customer rating:
|
40,000 Years of Music: Man in Search of Music (Da Capo Press music reprint series)
Jacques Chailley
Manufacturer: Da Capo Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Music
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
French
| Foreign Language Nonfiction
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Entertainment
| French
| Foreign Language Books
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Nonfiction
| French
| Foreign Language Books
| Specialty Stores
| Books
All French Books
| French
| Foreign Language Books
| Specialty Stores
| Books
ASIN: 030670661X |
Book Description
The Semi-Slav has been one of the most topical openings of the last decade, and its most critical variation is the Botvinnik System (5 Bg5 dxc4). Most of today's top grandmasters, including Kasparov, Kramnik and Shirov, have relied on it as Black, White, or both, especially in make-or-break situations. Written by IM Steffen Pedersen who achieved a GM norm at 16 and has written several highly-regarded books. Other Gambit titles: Test Your Chess, The Meran System, The Main Line French: 3 Nc3, The French: Tarrasch Variation, French: Advance and Other Lines, The Gambit Guide to the Bogo-Indian, The Gambit Guide to the Benko Gambit.
Customer Reviews:
The Botvinnik Bible- Gambit does it again!.......2006-09-25
IM John Watson wrote his book "Play the French 1st, 2nd, and 3rd edditions" and the third eddition has been widly regarded as the "French Player's Bible". Here, Steffen Pedersen presents to you the "Botvinnik Semi-Slav Players Bible". It out-does Glenn Flear's book "The Slav and SemiSlav" by miles. The most amazing this though is that it was written in the year 2001, while Flear's book was written in 2005(!)
Steffen Pedersen is a highly capable author, and did a magnificent job writing this book. He covered some very awesome stuff. He shows the main line: 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. nc3 e6 4. nf3 nf6 5. bg5 dc4 6. e4 b5 7. e5 h6 8. bh4 g5 9. ng5 hg5 10. bg5 nbd7 11. ef6 bb7 12. g3 qb6 13. bg2 c5 14. d5 0-0-0 15. 0-0 b4 16. Na4 Qb5 17. a3
This is the main line, which he covers in depth. Then he looks at the Uhlmann line 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. nc3 e6 4. nf3 nf6 5. bg5 dc4 6. e4 b5 7. e5 h6 8. bh4 g5 9. ng5 hg5 10. bg5 nbd7 11. ef6 bb7 12. g3 qb6 13. bg2 c5 14. d5 0-0-0 15. 0-0 b4 16. Rb1 - The idea being bc3 bc3 with an extremely strong attack; practice has proven that to be winning.
Then he covers alternatives, like if black wants to 12. ... Qc7 or Qa5. I don't suggest those, but they are playable. After that, he goes over white alternatives such as 6. a4, e3 ; 10th move alternatives, such as 10. Qf3 and a comple of other moves. Steffen Pedersen spends 180 pages on the Botvinnik Semi-Slav alone(!) He does a brilliant job annalyzing through all the razor sharp variations of the Botvinnik Semi-Slav.
Then, Steffen Pedersen decided that just the Botvinnik Semi-Slav wasn't enough; he decided to add in there the Moscow Semi Slav which is 5. ... h6 - covering the Bf6 and the "anti Moscow". Once against Mr. Pedersen did not fail me on this part either.
As to conclude my review, I would like to say This was a book that I spent countless hours annalyzing, and had a great time doing so; who said studying chess was always boring? This is an example of when it is not. I would like to conclude with some extra games of players to study to get in touch with the Botvinnik nowadays. It is very good study to study GM Alexei Shirov's games with the Botvinnik Semi-Slav, because of his razor sharp play, and his love for the Semi Slav. I am convinced that with careful study through this book, you will learn to play the botvinnik semi slav, and not only will you learn the opening, you will also learn some attacking ideas.
With the careful study of this book, you might even become a USCF 2000+ rated player through careful study; granted that you are an improving junior or even kid and are already a good player. Overall this book helped me become better at tactics and attacking chess, leawrn a brillant opening, and it was extremely enjoyable to study. Highly reccomended for players anywhere from 1200-2200 (this book), and the opening is highly reccomended from players 1200-2800! I hope this review helped you decide if you are going to buy the book or not.
Effort Rating: 5 stars
Helpfulness Rating: 5 stars
Overall Rating: 5 Stars
The BEST book on this sharp line!.......2003-06-07
Do you play the Botvinnik Gambit? Are you a club player or a correspondence player and you are looking for a good line to play? Do you play in tournaments? Do you enjoy sharp and highly tactical chess? Do you want to study (and play?) one of the most exciting lines in all of chess opening praxis? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this book may be for you.
First let me say something about the quality of this book, since many times in chess books, this is "iffy" at best. First-rate flex-cover, opaque pages, very good and clear diagrams, indexes, a good font, the main lines are in bold, etc. (Gambit publications usually does a more than adequate job here.)
Secondly, I GREATLY enjoy the book. (I don't play these lines, a student purchased this copy for me so we could study the opening together.) It is very well laid out. There is an introduction where the author covers some of the basic ideas of the whole variation, from the endings, to general ideas, outposts, sacrifices in this variation etc. (This is an area missed by many chess books, especially books on the opening.)
The author then begins with the main line of this variation:
(Chapter One, 17. a3.) He covers all of these lines thoroughly and in great detail. Then there are ELEVEN! (11) chapters that cover virtually every line and every variation that this opening generally encompasses. Then you get a BONUS: The author covers the "Moscow Variation." (Bg5, h6!?) This is a very close relative, but many books on the Botvinnik line DON'T cover the Moscow Variation, but Pedersen very thoughtfully has.
Most of the coverage in this book is excellent and in great depth. Virtually every line and every variation is covered in depth. Every player - from a weekend warrior, to the seasoned Master - will find the coverage in this book sufficient.
Now to a few things wrong with this book. NO player index. How are you supposed to find your favorite player? (There is a very detailed index of the variations, however.)
There are also NO deeply annotated games in this book. (In fact, almost no complete games of any kind.) Personally, if I am a `class player' trying to learn this opening, I would benefit greatly from 5-10 briefly annotated games at the end of each chapter.
The layout of the book is a little dense and the numbering of the variations is a little obscure. (A223, page # 95) Some of the analysis of a few of the sub-variations feature parenthesis within parenthesis ... and I have always found this a little hard to follow.
But despite my criticisms, this is a good book. It is MUCH superior to the average opening book on the market today, even the editor and proofreader of this project did a good job. (I found very few errors of any kind.)
If you play these lines in tournaments or postal chess, then you will simply HAVE to have this book. (If you don't, you are going to drop a lot of points to the people who do!)
Good work.......2000-05-06
Pedersen has surpassed himself. This is a timely coverage of a topical opening. Upto now I've been using Wells' 'The Complete Semi-Slav' which itself deserves accolades. However it is beginning to show its age since it came out about five years ago. A book on the Semi-Slav by Sadler came out 3 years ago, but though not bad, it can't be called a treatise. It was oriented towards the average club player. The book by Pedersen gives all the latest dope on some of the most critical and fashionable lines, and does a good job of explaining what's going on. This is no database dump. The author has devoted a lot of thought to the lines and taken pains to explain his thinking.
To give but one example, there's 23 pages devoted to the Anti-Moscow variation: 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 dc. This line gets about a page-and-a-half of coverage in Wells (the line wasn't so much in vogue at the time).
Average customer rating:
|
Semi-Slav Defence Botvinnik Variation: D44
Jerzy Konikowski
Manufacturer: S 1
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Chess
| Board Games
| Puzzles & Games
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Puzzles & Games
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 8886127154 |
Book Description
Everyone from journalists to market pros are turning to behavioral finance to explain, analyze, and predict market direction. In contrast to old-school assumptions of cool-headed rationality, the new behavioral school embraces hot-blooded human irrationality as a core feature of both individuals and financial markets. The 2002 Nobel Prize in Economics was awarded to scholars of this new scientific approach to irrationality. In Mean Markets and Lizard Brains, Terry Burnham, an economist who has a proven ability to translate complex topics into everyday language, reveals the biological causes of irrationality. The human brain contains ancient structures that exert powerful and often unconscious influences on behavior. This "lizard brain" may have helped our ancestors eat and reproduce, but it wreaks havoc with our finances. Going far beyond cataloguing our financial foibles, Dr. Burnham applies this novel approach to all of today's most important financial topics: the stock market, the economy, real estate, bonds, mortgages, inflation, and savings. This broad and scholarly investigation provides an in-depth look at why manias, panics, and crashes happen, and why people are built to want to buy at irrationally high prices and sell at irrationally low prices. Most importantly, by incorporating the new science of irrationality, readers can position themselves to profit from financial markets that often seem downright mean. Mean Markets and Lizard Brains skillfully identifies the craziness that is part of human nature, helps us see it in ourselves, and then shows us how to profit from a world that doesn't always make sense.
TERRY BURNHAM is a leader in the application of biology to economics and finance. He was an economics professor at Harvard for many years, beginning at the Kennedy School and, most recently, at the Harvard Business School. His biological research has taken him to Africa to observe wild chimpanzees and to the laboratory to study the role of testosterone in negotiation. He is coauthor of the international bestseller Mean Genes. Before joining the Harvard faculty, he worked at Goldman Sachs & Co. and was the president and CFO of the successful start-up biotechnology firm, Progenics Pharmaceuticals, whose work in AIDS and cancer treatment has been widely praised. Dr. Burnham has a PhD in business economics from Harvard University, a master's in finance from MIT, an MS in computer science from San Diego State University, and a BS in biophysics from the University of Michigan. He served with distinction as a tank driver in the U.S. Marine Corps. .
Download Description
Everyone from journalists to market pros are turning to behavioral finance to explain, analyze, and predict market direction. In contrast to old-school assumptions of cool-headed rationality, the new behavioral school embraces hot-blooded human irrationality as a core feature of both individuals and financial markets. The 2002 Nobel Prize in Economics was awarded to scholars of this new scientific approach to irrationality. In Mean Markets and Lizard Brains, Terry Burnham, an economist who has a proven ability to translate complex topics into everyday language, reveals the biological causes of irrationality. The human brain contains ancient structures that exert powerful and often unconscious influences on behavior. This "lizard brain" may have helped our ancestors eat and reproduce, but it wreaks havoc with our finances. Going far beyond cataloguing our financial foibles, Dr. Burnham applies this novel approach to all of today's most important financial topics: the stock market, the economy, real estate, bonds, mortgages, inflation, and savings. This broad and scholarly investigation provides an in-depth look at why manias, panics, and crashes happen, and why people are built to want to buy at irrationally high prices and sell at irrationally low prices. Most importantly, by incorporating the new science of irrationality, readers can position themselves to profit from financial markets that often seem downright mean. Mean Markets and Lizard Brains skillfully identifies the craziness that is part of human nature, helps us see it in ourselves, and then shows us how to profit from a world that doesn't always make sense.
TERRY BURNHAM is a leader in the application of biology to economics and finance. He was an economics professor at Harvard for many years, beginning at the Kennedy School and, most recently, at the Harvard Business School. His biological research has taken him to Africa to observe wild chimpanzees and to the laboratory to study the role of testosterone in negotiation. He is coauthor of the international bestseller Mean Genes. Before joining the Harvard faculty, he worked at Goldman Sachs & Co. and was the president and CFO of the successful start-up biotechnology firm, Progenics Pharmaceuticals, whose work in AIDS and cancer treatment has been widely praised. Dr. Burnham has a PhD in business economics from Harvard University, a master's in finance from MIT, an MS in computer science from San Diego State University, and a BS in biophysics from the University of Michigan. He served with distinction as a tank driver in the U.S. Marine Corps. .
Customer Reviews:
How people have built in problems with thinking rationally and how to exploit irrationality in markets.......2007-05-01
What a cool book! Terry Burnham wants to help his readers understand that while we fancy ourselves users of reason and rational beings we still have blind spots in our thinking and behavior that can get us into a great deal of trouble when making investment decisions. That is, unless we are explicitly aware of these problems and consciously work to train ourselves to avoid them and be continuously on guard against falling into their pit.
Burnham organizes the book into four parts. The first chapter is the introduction and presents the gist of the book. What is a mean market? The fact that markets can defy the accepted bromides about rational markets and wipe out investors surprisingly quickly and without any hint of mercy. The idea of cosmological indifference comes to mind. The author's vivid image of the "Lizard Brain" refers less to any explicit structure in the brain or any claim to specific evolutionary path to brain development.
Instead, Burnham is referring to the fact that we all have a set of tendencies, hard wired ways of perceiving the world, and bred in behavioral tendencies that worked well in keeping our ancestors alive in the ancient world. However, they are as out of place in our technological world as a lizard might be at the Met. For example, our brains are very good in seeing patterns. The problem is we often see patterns where none exist. On the other hand, we are terrible at perceiving frequencies. However, with training and discipline we can learn to deal with both of these natural tendencies. Without being aware of these potential problems, we too often get ourselves in trouble.
The first part weighs the traditional Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) of rational markets against the oceans of evidence that people do behave irrationally. Here is where I differ slightly with Burnham. My understanding of EMH does not require that each individual act rationally or that any given price at any instant in time be the "right" price. Instead, it indicates that in the aggregate that most irrationality cancels each other out and resources get allocated surprisingly efficiently. As for prices, the notion is not that the price is free from being too high or too low, but that there is a "right" price at all that will be in the area of most of the trading with some of it too high and some too low.
However, the EMH doesn't help the investor account for irrationality or how to avoid its dangers in one's own behavior or capitalize on its existence in others. And this is where the book's strengths are to be found.
The second part takes us through a survey of evidence of irrationality in the American markets and the limits of growth that are so often ignored in pricing equities. The author also takes us through the uses and perceptions of money, barter, inflation, and deflation. All interesting and useful information.
In part three we get Burnham's actual views on how to pull all this together in viewing Bonds, Stocks, and Real Estate for investments at the time of this book (2005). Burnham is an economist and discounts the optimism of many people who tout these products. I think he makes a great deal of sense. However, it is up to you to make your own decisions.
Part four provides two chapters full of principles for us to apply in making our own investment decisions. The first chapter gives "timeless advice". That is, those principles that are applicable in any type of market at any time. The second chapter offers "timely advice". That is, advice that is market condition specific. Burnham gives us principles to apply in rising or declining markets and how to know when to use them.
The issue is whether we have the discipline to apply them or will we surrender to the emotional pull of the lizard brain and find ourselves in trouble.
Burnham makes this subject quite lively, is able to put some nice color to it with some good anecdotes, illustrative stories, and some actually funny jokes.
Recommended.
Not a Comprehensive Look at the Topic.......2007-03-21
I purchased this book with the assumption that it would be a more in-depth treatise on investor psychology/behavioral economics. There was some of this sprinkled throughout the book, but overall it was not comprehensive. This does not, per se, make it a bad read. In fact, it was an easy read despite the annoying movie references throughout the book. But if you are looking for a more thorough look at this topic, your best bet is to look at the offerings of other authors.
Very good read, more intellectual rigor perhaps.......2006-10-04
I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Almost 2 years before the fact, it was pretty predictive of what might happen to the housing bubble. Actually I am thinking about making career moves in the direction of Behavioral Finance/Economics so was happy to see a 'popular" book in this area. But this is also the problem, I am looking for more scholarly accounts too!
Almost 5 stars; and a very enjoyable read........2006-05-01
A great read; appeals to the counter-intuitive insights of successful investors and explains a lot of human nature and how destructive it can be from an investment standpoint.
I found his advice at the end however strange and incorrect. He argues against adding to a position when it goes down in price. I have added to positions and this I have found to be very effective. For similar reasons, he argues against dollar cost averaging, which I have also found to be profitable. The reasons both of these strategies can be useful are that they are counter intuitive, so his opposition to these strategies seems out of place with the rest of the book. Also, in both these instances, I find his justification not to be persuasive.
The author is clearly a smart guy who writes well. I would have given the book 5 stars if it were not for those 2 issues. I purchased the book on Amazon.com and would recommend that every investor read this book.
Insightful and Fun!.......2006-04-17
I found my time well spent reading this book. For would be readers - it seemed to me that there really were two parts to this book:
1. An investigation of irrational economic decisions by investors with roots in our evolutionary history.
2. A reasoned (but somewhat superficial) analysis of current macroeconomic situation (US debt, current account deficit, stock valuations).
And there are numerous references to modern studies that help debunk some of the myths of investing and finance. I particularly enjoyed learning about 'survivorship-bias'. And finally, loved the sense of humor! Memorable quotes from popular works of arts kept me laughing and makes this a page-turner from the start.
On the downside, by the time I got to the end, I was more than a little tiresome of the repeated references to 'lizard-brain'. That point is made pretty well early on. And while Terry makes a convincing case that the bull market run in U.S. Real Estate, Bonds and Stocks is short on breath - this does not (IMHO) come close to justifying his 10% stock allocation advice. In this respect - not incorporating international stocks into a recommended financial strategy seems particularly glaring. Like never before, investors today have the ability to invest in overseas markets. By Terry's own theories, Japan (and perhaps emerging markets) would seem to be primed for a long bull market (coming off a long period of low growth and adverse investor sentiment). Keeping savings in declining US dollars while overseas currencies and markets appreciate seems ostrich like (if not lizard brained). Material, perhaps, for a second edition ?
Books:
- White Zombie: Anatomy of a Horror Film
- Who Goes There?: 1950'S Horror & Sci-Fi Movie Posters & Lobby Cards
- Who's Sorry Now? (Grace & Favor Mystery Series #6)
- Writer's Guide to Hollywood Producers, Directors, and Screenwriter's Agents, 2002-2003: Who They Are! What They Want! And How to Win Them Over!
- 42nd Street: Piano/Vocal/Chords
- 50 Designers/50 Costumes: Concept to Character
- A Critical Cinema 2: Interviews with Independent Filmmakers (Critical Cinema)
- B Western Actor's Encyclopedia: Facts, Photos and Filmographies for More Than 250 Familiar Faces (McFarland Classics)
- Behind the Scenes of Hindi Cinema: A Visual Journey through the Heart of Bollywood
- Behind the Spanish Lens: Spanish Cinema Under Fascism and Democracy
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution
- Business and Its Environment
- The Nashville Number System
- Three Finger: The Mordecai Brown Story
- Ace the IT Resume!
- Don't Make Me Count to Three: a Mom's Look at Heart-Oriented Discipline
- City Walks: Paris: 50 Adventures on Foot
- Tqc for Accounting: A New Role in Companywide Improvement
- To Profit or Not to Profit: The Commercial Transformation of the Nonprofit Sector
- Wolf to the Slaughter
