Principles of Corporate Finance + Student CD + Ethics in Finance PowerWeb + Standard and Poor's (McGraw-Hill/Irwin Series in Finance, Insurance, and Real Est) [Hardcover]

Richard A Brealey (Author), Stewart C Myers (Author), Franklin Allen (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0073130826 | ISBN-13: 978-0073130828 | Publication Date: January 25, 2005 | Edition: 8

Principles of Corporate Finance is the worldwide leading text that describes the theory and practice of corporate finance. Throughout the book the authors show how managers use financial theory to solve practical problems and as a way of learning how to respond to change by showing not just how but why companies and management act as they do. The text is comprehensive, authoritative, and modern and yet the material is presented at a common sense level. The discussions and illustrations are unique due to the depth of detail blended with a distinct sense of humor for which the book is well known and highly regarded. This text is a valued reference for thousands of practicing financial managers. Richard A. Brealey and Stewart C. Myers welcome Franklin Allen as a new coauthor to this Eighth Edition. Sometimes the addition of a new coauthor means that one of the existing authors proposes to take a back seat. That is not the case with this team. Dr. Allen’s addition represents a genuine increase in capacity and brings fresh expertise and ideas to an already tremendously successful textbook and partnership.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

McGraw-Hill authors represent the leading experts in their fields and are dedicated to improving the lives, careers, and interests of readers worldwide

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1330 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill/Irwin; 8 edition (January 25, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0073130826
• ISBN-13: 978-0073130828
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #81,500 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Frustrating and unclear text..., November 25, 2006

By 

David Corcoran "irishdavey" (Brooklyn, New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Principles of Corporate Finance + Student CD + Ethics in Finance PowerWeb + Standard and Poor's (McGraw-Hill/Irwin Series in Finance, Insurance, and Real Est) (Hardcover)

This text book has drawn howls of protest from my fellow class mates based on its impenetrable and inaccessible style. There is no step by step explanation of concepts or proper derivations - you are forced to plough on through the chapters with an increasing sense of disconnectedness from the material being taught. This is a shame since I believe the authors are leaders in their field - I suppose there is a true difference between knowing your subject and being able to convey that knowledge.
The text jumps from introductory concepts to advanced material without laying the groundwork for that leap. I would recommend Fundamentals of Corporate Finance (Ross, Westerfield and Jordan) in preference if you want to maintain your sanity and come to grips with the material.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars confusing and unwieldy, May 21, 2006

By 

a_guy_in_boston "a_guy_in_boston" (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Principles of Corporate Finance + Student CD + Ethics in Finance PowerWeb + Standard and Poor's (McGraw-Hill/Irwin Series in Finance, Insurance, and Real Est) (Hardcover)

I am sad to report that this book is an inadequate and frustrating introduction to finance. Important concepts are buried; there are no derivations; there are few clear explanations of concepts; and definitions of terms are sparse at best. The many jokes come as a welcome relief from the generally poor writing, but provide no educational value. The book is rendered even more confusing because its organization is wayward, jumping unpredictably back and forth between topics. Overall, I find this textbook to be incredibly opaque, and I constantly have to supplement my readings elsewhere. If you have had prior exposure to finance, then I suspect this textbook will be far more digestible, but if this is your first exposure to the field you may wish to try an alternate text.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Lacking Full Explanations, June 6, 2007

By 

Sweetness "totallycats10" (Westboro, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Principles of Corporate Finance + Student CD + Ethics in Finance PowerWeb + Standard and Poor's (McGraw-Hill/Irwin Series in Finance, Insurance, and Real Est) (Hardcover)

This book leaves me with more questions about finance than I have answers. Who do the authors think they are writing for? It surely is not the beginner MBA student. It seems like words are expensive because they do not fully or even partially explain concepts. Finance is difficult but it should not be impossible. I should not have to read and reread to figure out what the heck they are talking about. Maybe they should serve as advisors to this text and let someone who knows how to write actually write the book. These guys may be leaders and brillant but they are poor communicators. I'm not thrilled with my professor either. Is he a cheerleader or a teacher?