Books : The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 332.6092
EAN: 9780553805093
Format: Roughcut
ISBN: 0553805096
Label: Bantam
Manufacturer: Bantam
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 976
Publication Date: September 29, 2008
Publisher: Bantam
Release Date: September 29, 2008
Sales Rank: 27
Studio: Bantam
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Product Description:
Here is THE book recounting the life and times of one of the most respected men in the world, Warren Buffett. The legendary Omaha investor has never written a memoir, but now he has allowed one writer, Alice Schroeder, unprecedented access to explore directly with him and with those closest to him his work, opinions, struggles, triumphs, follies, and wisdom. The result is the personally revealing and complete biography of the man known everywhere as “The Oracle of Omaha.”
Although the media track him constantly, Buffett himself has never told his full life story. His reality is private, especially by celebrity standards. Indeed, while the homespun persona that the public sees is true as far as it goes, it goes only so far. Warren Buffett is an array of paradoxes. He set out to prove that nice guys can finish first. Over the years he treated his investors as partners, acted as their steward, and championed honesty as an investor, CEO, board member, essayist, and speaker. At the same time he became the world’s richest man, all from the modest Omaha headquarters of his company Berkshire Hathaway. None of this fits the term “simple.”
When Alice Schroeder met Warren Buffett she was an insurance industry analyst and a gifted writer known for her keen perception and business acumen. Her writings on finance impressed him, and as she came to know him she realized that while much had been written on the subject of his investing style, no one had moved beyond that to explore his larger philosophy, which is bound up in a complex personality and the details of his life. Out of this came his decision to cooperate with her on the book about himself that he would never write.
Never before has Buffett spent countless hours responding to a writer’s questions, talking, giving complete access to his wife, children, friends, and business associates—opening his files, recalling his childhood. It was an act of courage, as The Snowball makes immensely clear. Being human, his own life, like most lives, has been a mix of strengths and frailties. Yet notable though his wealth may be, Buffett’s legacy will not be his ranking on the scorecard of wealth; it will be his principles and ideas that have enriched people’s lives. This book tells you why Warren Buffett is the most fascinating American success story of our time.
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
This is a very enjoyable book, particularly for those hoping to get a "feel" for how Buffett has lived his life, over his many years.
What it WON'T do is go into any practical depth as to how he evaluates an investment decision. High-level generalities, yes, specifics, no.
Still, it's a great read. His early (9-13yrs old) business dealings.....his first stab at stock investing.....his first date.....etc.etc......on to the "lifestyles of the rich and famous" existence that he has enjoyed for probably 2 decades now. Hint: yes, he likes hamburgers, non-styling clothes, and his house in Omaha, but he also likes jet-setting and hanging out with the movers and shakers of the world. All while doing multi-billion-dollar-deals.
If you want to learn investing, go elsewhere.....unless you have never heard of "the power of compounding" or "buy with a margin of error" or "don't trade, buy and hold"....etc.
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i think this book is really thoughtful, no matter in investment or others. It really got into deeply the greatest investor's life. Also it provides a lot of his opinions about investing. I really enjoyed this book.
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Unlike what many have been hoping for, "The Snowball" is not a book on what and how of value investing. You won't find detailed breakdowns of the Berkshire Hathaway deals, or the motivation behind them - the deals are discussed in passing, but the focus is always on Warren Buffet himself.
The book is a chronological look at the upbringing, the early years, and his consequent rise to the status of 'Oracle of Omaha'. Alice Schroeder provides an in depth look at Warren Buffets family and his immediate circle of friends throughout his life - without a doubt, the most complete biography of Warren Buffet.
If you're looking for Warren Buffets investment philosophy, take a look at "The Warren Buffet Way" by Robert Hagstrom, but if you want to learn about the man himself, then this is your book.
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Warren Buffett is always on the cutting edge when it comes to the economic travails of this great country. Inciteful and witty, Buffett is never dull exploring an oft dull subject. He tells it like it is with no sass and back talk. God he's so fresh. Ughhhhhhh. OH GOD!
True story: I met Mister Buffett once and when I greeted him, he replied, with a gravelly bravado: "OUTTA MY WAY KID I GOTTA TAKE A BM"
The End
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I recently re-read Roger Lowenstein's biography, Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist (first published in 1995 and now re-issued with a new Afterword), and then read this more recent one by Alice Schroeder. Both are first-rate. Which to select if reading only one? That depends on how much you wish to know about Buffett's personal life, including his relations with various family members, and how curious you are about his personal hang-ups, peculiarities, eccentricities, fetishes, etc. If you can do without any of that, Roger Lowenstein's biography is the one to read. I also highly recommend the recently published Second Edition of The Essays of Warren Buffet: Lessons for Corporate America, with content selected, arranged, and introduced by Lawrence Cunningham.
The heft of Schroeder's biography may discourage some people from obtaining a copy. To them I presume to suggest that they not be deterred by that factor. Schroeder has a lively, often entertaining writing style that drives the narrative through just about every period and (yes) interlude of Warren Buffett's life and career thus far. There is much more information provided than most readers either need or desire. However, she had unprecedented access not only to Buffett but to just about everyone else with whom he is (or once was) associated as well as to previously inaccessible research resources. It is possible but highly unlikely that anyone else will write a more comprehensive biography ... Read More
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