The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life - Softcover

Schroeder, Alice

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0553384619 ISBN 13: 9780553384611

Publisher: Bantam, 2009

Title: The Snowball( Warren Buffett and the Business of Life) <>Binding: Paperback <>Author: AliceSchroeder <>Publisher: Bantam

Review:

Alice Schroeder’s The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life might well be one of the most important books you will ever read -- particularly in a period when the world's various economies appear to be entering freefall. This arm-straining (at nearly a thousand pages) but utterly fascinating book has already -- against all the odds -- achieved an astonishing level of success, given its initially daunting appearance. But it will only take a chapter or so for most readers to see just why this book is enjoying such an unprecedented level of acclaim.

The subject is the life and career of one of the most revered men in the western hemisphere, Warren Buffett (an advisor to new US President Barack Obama) – despite the fact that his name may not be known to most of the general public. Buffett’s story is one that currently has resonances for all of us: a remarkable financial success story. The name of this investor from Omaha is spoken of with admiration by all who know him, despite the fact that he has never written a book on his career or the secrets of his business success. However, he has been persuaded to allow Alice Schroeder to spend time with him and those with whom he works to investigate his business triumphs, his opinions, his mistakes (Buffett is rather winning in admitting to several of the latter – how common is that in his profession?) -- and what emerges is a totally comprehensive biography of the man known throughout the world as ‘The Oracle of Omaha’.

What is most revealing about the picture of the man that emerges from these pages (and Schroeder had access not just to her subject and his business associates but also his wife, children and friends) is that we meet a man of intellect – of course – but also of humanity and understanding, with a philosphy and worldview that is both judicious and principled. In an era in which those in Buffet’s profession are more prone to excoriation than praise, the man we encounter here has a sane and clear-eyed philosophy of life and an attitude to business success that is generously instructive -- and inspiring. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

"The mandatory book to read in these treacherous times of financial crisis. . . . A thoughtful and intimate biography of the globe's wisest investor."--Forbes

"Will mesmerize anyone interested in who Mr. Buffett is or how he got that way. The Snowball tells a fascinating story."--New York Times

"If the replication of any great achievement first requires knowledge of how it was done, then The Snowball, the most detailed glimpse inside Warren Buffett and his world that we likely will ever get, should become a Bible for capitalists."--Washington Post

"Anyone who has been watching events unfold in recent months--which would be everyone--can now appreciate the wisdom of Buffett. . . . The most authoritative portrait of one of the most important American investors of our time."--Los Angeles Times

"Even people who don't care a whit about business will be intrigued by this portrait. . . . Schroeder, a former insurance-industry analyst, spent years interviewing Buffett, and the result is a side of the Oracle of Omaha that has rarely been seen."--Time Magazine

"Schroeder . . . has a meat-and-potatoes style that matches the homespun wisdom of her subject. . . . Now more than ever, Buffett's emphasis on fundamentals seems like genius. It's the perfect moment for a great book on an immensely inspiring capitalist."--People, four stars

"Schroeder . . . is well equipped to elucidate Buffett's deals [and] Buffett's life abounds with good stories."--New Yorker

"You will learn a lot about one of the nation's most compelling and important men from reading The Snowball."--Boston Globe

"In The Snowball, novice biographer Alice Schroeder gives us one of the most detailed, candid life stories ever published. . . . It is almost impossible to stop reading."--Christian Science Monitor

"A penetrating and personal look at the Oracle of Omaha . . . An astute, and at times riveting, read--especially now."--BusinessWeek

"Everyone knows that in a deep and liquid capital market like that of the US, it is just about impossible to beat the stock market averages over anything more than the short term. But Buffett has been ahead of the curve for most of the past 50 years, making him one of the world's richest people. Alice Schroeder's massive authorized biography, The Snowball, provides some clues about how he's done it."--Financial Times

"In this startlingly frank account of Buffett's life, Schroeder, a former managing director at Morgan Stanley--and hand picked by Buffett to be his biographer--strips away the mystery that has long cloaked the word's richest man to reveal a life and fortune erected around lucid and inspired business vision and unimaginable personal complexity."--Publishers Weekly

"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."--Library Journal

"For students of the Oracle of Omaha, or even those looking for a little reassurance during the crisis, Schroeder's book is a fascinating study of America's most successful investor."--New York Post

"Alice Schroeder's accumulation of detail, her vivid, artless descriptions of people and places, and the resulting narrative fluidity make this a compelling book. It has the bouncing vitality of an early Sinclair Lewis novel."--Times Literary Supplement

"An excellent and highly enjoyable look at the business titan . . . If you've looked at your 401(k) statement and started to fear that everyone in financial markets is either greedy, predatory or incompetent, do yourself a favor. Take $35 out of the mattress and buy a copy of Alice Schroeder's The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life. At a time like this, it's a real comfort: Buffet is living proof there's at least one wholly rational person managing money."--Houston Chronicle

"Ms. Schroeder does a good job of pulling . . . volunteered disclosures out of Mr. Buffett but her real contribution is her own investment expertise which enables her to make the convoluted financing schemes over the last 50 years understandable to lay readers and truly instructive to the business information junkie."--Washington Times

"This is a fast-paced, precisely drawn profile of a man who, despite his high visibility in the financial world, isn't someone we've known much about. . . . We do now."--Kansas City Star

"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."--Library Journal

"Top-notch biographies demand thorough research and crisp, finely honed writing. Schroeder exhibits both. . . . It's hard to imagine a more complete account of Buffett's life had he written it himself."--Buffalo News

"Riveting and encyclopedic . . . The overall power of the story carries The Snowball forward. There is much to be learned from it."--Wall Street Journal

"A monumental biography . . . Schroeder got the best access yet of any Buffett biographer. . . . She deals out marvelously funny and poignant stories about Buffett and the conglomerate he runs, Berkshire Hathaway."--Forbes

• Publisher: Bantam
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0553384619
• ISBN 13: 9780553384611
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 832