Wall Street Wizard: Sound Ideas from a Savvy Teen Investor
Grade 7 Up-A clear-sighted, pragmatic investment manual for students who are interested in making money and who know a bit about how the economy works. After briefly introducing the basic concepts of investment, stocks, markets, and brokerages, Liebowitz gives investment tips and financial-planning guidance. He clearly espouses the philosophy: "get rich slow" and advises investors to do their own research on companies rather than rely on newsletters, rumors, bank officers, or mutual-fund managers. He gives similarly hardheaded advice on owning one's own business rather than working for someone else and the pros and cons of various forms of business organization. The author minimizes the use of fictional scenarios, drawing on his own observations and experiences instead. The tone is sufficiently insouciant to attract teen readers, and the use of language is fairly colorful and engaging. The author's practical attitude and constant suggestions to seek more information from reliable sources allow him to avoid oversimplification of complex topics. His last chapter, "Where to Learn More," highlights and compares available books in the field. While Marion Rendon and Rachel Kranz's Straight Talk about Money (Facts On File, 1992) offers more explanation than advice and much less detail on how to invest, it provides a much better overall perspective on the economy and the individual's place in it. Liebowitz's thorough approach will hold more interest for eager potential investors.Jonathan Betz-Zall, Sno-Isle Regional Library System, Edmonds, WACopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.