The Snowball

November 24, 2008
Successful investor Warren Buffett sits down with author Schroeder to give readers deep and erudite insights into his work and personal life. Detailing his views on current trends in the economy and society, Buffet speaks with tremendous wisdom about everything from his family to his business ethics. Richard McGonagle gives an eloquent, straightforward reading. He has a knack for delivering words with a profound importance in his voice, drawing in listeners and holding their interest for hours. Schroeder reads her introduction and sets the tone for this revealing biography. A Bantam hardcover (reviewed online).

January 22, 2009
Verdict: This massive-and highly readable-text (produced with Buffett's full cooperation) is an unvarnished and well-paced biography that is essential for all public and academic business collections. Background: Schroeder, a former Wall Street analyst, profiles the world's most idiosyncratic and successful investor in a book that recounts her subject's sage business mantras ("Be greedy when others are fearful, and fearful when others are greedy, but don't think you can outsmart the market") and a private life dominated by enthusiasm, obsession, and eccentricity. Since childhood, Buffett has been single-minded in his drive to amass wealth, and because of an unhappy relationship with his mother, he surrounds himself with mothering women. Schroeder contrasts his relationships with powerful figures like Katharine Graham and Bill Gates against his simple Omaha lifestyle and such humble details as his picky eating habits and "bathtub memory"-his ability to forget disturbing memories selectively.-Lawrence Maxted, Gannon Univ., Erie, PA

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