Customer Reviews

Damn Right! Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book is a standard, well-written biography of Mr. Munger, Berkshire Hathaway's vice chairman. From this book, you will learn a great deal about how Mr. Munger became a billionaire, his relationship with Mr. Warren Buffett (Berkshire's more famous chairman), his family life, and his charitable activities. This book is a very enjoyable read from those perspectives. On the other hand, it lacks a full exposition of Mr. Munger's investment philosophy and his interesting ideas about what an ideal education is. Since Mr. Munger is famous for being quite voluble in private and he made himself available for this biography, I was puzzled why both areas are sketchily covered. As a result, this book falls far short of what readers will want to know. Conversely, I suspect that this is the best available book on Mr. Munger, so you may well want to read it until a more complete one emerges.

To me, the most interesting part of the book came in Appendix D where two of Mr. Munger's speeches describe the need for a generalist perspective for applying modern scientific ideas to making good decisions. One talks about the scientific principles that explain Coca-Cola's long-term success. Obviously, this has a nice connection to investing since Berkshire Hathaway is a large investor in Coca-Cola. Presumably, this describes some of the thinking that went into the decision to purchase that stock. But that is never made explicit.

I immediately wanted to know more. How had Mr. Munger analyzed each of the major investments that Mr. Buffett and he had made together? What were the things that turned out to be right about these analyses and what wrong? What are the lessons? You get a great deal about the relationship between Mr. Munger and Mr. Buffett, including how they met, but very little on these kinds of important questions. I had to grade the book down for this because I found this like writing a biography of Michelangelo without discussing his art or creative process.

In these same speeches, Mr. Munger is eloquent about what is right and what is wrong about education and how people apply it. Apparently, he considers himself mostly self-educated despite having a law degree from Harvard. All of us who believe in self-education would have benefited from knowing more about what he believes should be read and how to apply it. I graded the book down a second star for that. This is like writing a biography of Gandhi without considering his ideas on nonviolence.

The book also leaves some loose ends. Mr. Munger is described as a very fine decision maker throughout. Yet in many personal situations, he seems impulsive rather than a good decision maker. The book recounts how he ended up losing his vision in one eye as a result of complications he would not have experienced if his surgeon had used the most modern laser procedure to remove a cataract. Most people would spend quite a bit of time getting the information ahead of time, and opt for the safer surgery. Apparently, Mr. Munger did not take the time to investigate. The book also recounts family tales of Mr. Munger (who doesn't see well, of course) running his boat into the plants and getting stuck, even after being warned that he is about to do so. On another occasion, he swamped a boat by turning backward rapidly in a boat he was unfamiliar with that was not designed for that maneuver. These apparent contradictions are there in the material, but are not developed. Is he someone who is trigger happy and shoots 19 times to hit 3 targets, is he just oblivious to anything except making money, or is he a cautious, careful thinker in all areas? I cannot tell.

The book describes him as Mr. Buffett's "Mr. No" so it may be that Mr. Buffett does not rely on him for ideas, but for checking out Mr. Buffett's ideas. But that doesn't seem right either, because most of Berkshire Hathaway's successful early investments are ones that came from California and related to interests of Mr. Munger's. So it seems likely that he was the source of those ideas. Perhaps Mr. Buffett turns down a lot of Mr. Munger's ideas. You cannot really tell. You can see my frustration with trying to get a whole picture. It's like reading about George Burns without explaining much about Gracie Allen.

Clearly, one lesson of this book is that a team of complementary investors should do better than a lone eagle investor. Consider all of the people you know. Who would be the most complementary to you in finding opportunities, assessing potential investments, and solving problems that arise in the course of the investments? I encourage you to discuss combining your ideas and talents with that person or those persons. When you read this book, watch carefully for how Mr. Munger did that.

May you enjoy the investment and personal results you would like to have!

Janet Lowe has done a reasonable job of chronicling the life of Charlie Munger.

For people who have read a considerable amount about Warren Buffett and Berkshire, a lot of what is included in this book would already be known.

I found that there was too much space devoted to Munger's family at the expense of Munger himself. The book is sub-titled: "Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger" not: "Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger's Family", which is what it risked turning into (especially in the first half or so of the book). Munger might have a wonderful family but no-one is buying the book to read about them.

Munger is obviously known primarily as an extraordinarily successful investor and as such it is a little disappointing that Lowe did not probe deeper into the underlying thought behind some of the major investment decisions that Munger has been involved with during his career, especially given that Munger made himself accessible to the author for the purposes of this book. I was not looking for a Robert Hagstrom type analysis, but some more detailed textual information would have been appropriate. If you want an example of what I'm talking about read Roger Lowenstein's excellent biography Buffett (The Making of an American Capitalist).

I also found it disappointing that Lowe re-published in one of the appendices a talk that Munger gave in 1996 which Andy Kilpatrick had already included in his 1998 edition of Of Permanent Value, perhaps Lowe could have found something previously unpublished for this book.

For the record Page 254 states that See's Candy was purchased for $2m (it should read $25 million), page 255 states that the Buffalo Evening News was purchased for $2.5 million (it should read $32.5 million).

Overall the book is worth having a look at but if you're a seasoned Buffett/Berkshire follower do not expect to learn a lot in addition to what you already know.

Without a doubt, Lowe has written an extremely interesting biography of Charles Munger, vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. We learn about Charlie's background, his family (maybe a little too much about his family), and how he eventually met up with a gentleman named Warren Buffett (maybe you've heard of this guy, eh?).

From a purely biographical standpoint, you'll want to read this book. Gives much insight into Charlie's personal character as well as some insight into Buffett's character.

What I think the book misses on is investment technique. Granted, that's not how the book is advertised...it is a biography. But, I was hoping to get some better insight into the Munger/Buffett investment style. I was hoping the author would--at least--tease me a bit. No such luck.

It's an enjoyable read.

Overall the book is ok, probably a good fast read for someone who wants background information on munger. Unfortunately the book is nothing more than background information source. And if you have read a book on warren buffett then you are going to have a strong feeling of deja vu.

The book seriously misses its main subject and for too long (it gets irritating at times) just talks about mungers family history, his wife's family history and his uncle, aunts and what have you. This is done pretty in-depth so if you are looking for a munger family history - this is going to be a good start.

Unfortunately when you come to the main topic - munger himself - the book looses its sense of depth. It becomes like reading a newspaper - you get to know all the infortanr events that happened but there is no analysis, no attempt to show what factors influenced munger's decision to invest in a particular stock. To compound matters furhter in the midst of some good gripping investment decision janet lowe has the habbit of squezing in some dog and cat story - at times i looked forward to finishing the dog and cat story to read more about the investment decision but guess what - there was nothing more on it - it left me with a feeling of wanting more - a whole lot more.

This book was a disappointment. I expected to gain insight into the way Charlie Munger thinks. Instead I got biographical and familial minutiae. The chapters on See's Candy, Buffalo Evening News, and Blue Chip Stamps filled in background information on Berkshire, but added little about Chralie's thought processes and principles.

The most insightful part of the book appears in Appendix D, but most folks won't get that far. There, the author reprints Charlie's Harvard Law School reunion speech entitled, "Multidisiplinary Skills/Educational Implications", followed by a "hypothetical" argument for investing i Coca Cola. Both are worthwhile. Unfortunately, this material makes up only 19 of the book's 276 pages. You can read that much at the bookstore without buying the book.

In recent years books about Buffet & Co. started to spring like mushrooms. Publishing books about Berkshire Hathaway's incredible success story is rapidly turning into a lucrative industry. 'Damn Right!' is just another one.
If you expect to learn more about Charlie Muger, Buffet's mysterious sidekick, then you will be very disappointed. Ms. Lowe talks in great detail about Munger's aunts, uncles, parents, grandparents, and their dogs but doesn't say much about him. The author seems to be more interested in Munger's life style and his family than in his approach to business and investing.
Ms. Lowe repeats the story of Berkshire Hathaway in a most superficial way. There are much better books on this topic (see Robert Hagstrom's 'The Warren Buffet Way'). I gave it three stars only because there are some bright spots, such as Appendix D and few interesting facts about the man and his way of thinking.

On the whole, a very good book and entertaining. Janet Lowe writes well and gives us a look into Charlie as a biography, which is what was intended. Those who are wanting an investment book need to look elsewhere. The book does have a MAJOR flaw. Through no fault of Lowe the book has an over abundance of typos and grammar mistakes. This must have to do with the publisher and very poor proofreading (or the lack therof!). At times it was so disturbing I had a hard time reading the book. I went through and marked the places, sometimes 2-3 on the same page, as many as 5-6 on facing pages. This is the worst I have seen in a book after publication. I wrote the publisher concerning this and have received no reply at all. If you can overlook these glaring mistakes the book is a joy to read.

For those of us who are fascinated by Warren Buffett and his amazingly successful company, Berkshire Hathaway, there are a number of very satisfying reads. But there's always been a big part of the story that remained mostly in shadow: Charlie Munger. Munger has long been Buffett's partner, and over the years Buffett has credited Munger with teaching him a lot. But most of us were left to wonder what Munger is like and to glean small snippets about him wherever we could. Enter Janet Lowe's new book. It covers Munger's life and character as well as his professional career and is greatly entertaining, informative, and inspiring. It won't be a surprise to Buffett fans to discover that Munger also is a man of great integrity. If you've ever yearned to learn more about Charlie Munger, this book is for you.

This book gives a fascinating look at Warren Buffett's less well known partner. You learn quite a bit about Charlie Munger's life and his personal values. However, if you are looking for much insight into his investment analysis process this may not be a good book to choose. I believe Hagstrom's last book on Buffett is much more beneficial.

Charlie Munger's life story is a version of the classic American Dream: a hard-working young man builds a billion-dollar fortune through hard work and honest business deals, all the while raising eight children with the help of an intelligent, devoted wife. Author Janet Lowe brings this story and Munger's personality to life with well-chosen anecdotes from family, friends and business associates. These include, most notably, Warren Buffett, with whom she already enjoyed a rapport thanks to her work on a previous bestseller, Warren Buffett Speaks. Because Munger's business history is so complex, the chapters are organized thematically rather than strictly chronologically, which can be a bit confusing. Thankfully, Lowe provides a handy timeline in an appendix. We suggest this book to investors, Buffett fans (who may underestimate the contributions others such as Munger have made to the Berkshire Hathaway empire) and to those dismayed by corporate corruption who could use this tale of honest success to renew their faith in capitalism.