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20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Badly written, cliched, simplistic, October 22, 2000
Mr Lanyi sent me an autographed copy of this book in order to solicit me as a client for his private banking practice. I read it out of curiosity; it took me maybe an hour. I can't imagine how he could think that this book would bring him clients. The book is written at a fifth-grade level, using simple sentences arranged into short paragraphs divided by asterisks. The biographical notes are standard Horatio Alger stuff about rags-to-riches; there is nothing telling or insightful in them, just many stretched analogies in which Mr Lanyi attempts to relate his life story to his investing philosophies. The investing methods presented are vague, cliched, and seem to concentrate on unheard-of small-cap stocks. Polanyi says "I look for companies that are growing," as if he were the first to come up with this idea. Worst of all, this book emphasizes the stocks Mr Lanyi picked that ended up skyrocketing -- and there is nary a mention of the failures that even the best stock recommender has. Why doesn't Lanyi include an honest chart of how many successes and how many failures he's had? One would have to be very, very naive to think that Lanyi is telling the entire story when he talks about his successes. Overall, I can't see anything of financial, educational, or literary value in this book. I thought about giving it away to a library, but I don't think financial misinformation such as this should be spread. This book may just end up in the mixed-paper recycling bin. For educational reading about stocks and stockbrokers, try "A Random Walk Down Wall Street," "Reminiscences of a Stock Operator," or "Where Are the Customers' Yachts?"
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by Kenneth S. Rogoff
by Martin D. Shafiroff
