2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Mutual Funds, 2005-08-02
This is a great book to have in your library, whether it is an introduction to the topic, a refresher, or to fill in the blanks of what you already know. It discusses finance in easy-to-understand language and is great at clarifying its points. It was recommended to me by my employer, a leading financial advisor, who regularly recommends books on the subject. This is the first of many recommendations he made.
29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
See Inside the Wrapper of Your Mutual Fund, 2000-04-28
Even though the authors are academics, this book is not bogged down with heavy, collegiate, turgid text and calculations. Rather, Fredman and colleagues have simply gone about explaining the various difficult-to-understand aspects of the mutual funds industry. This information is essential to your understanding of the various ratings and types of mutual funds.As a securities industry manager and former regulator, I first began to use the book to become familiar with the details of such things as 12b-1 fees, expense ratios, comparative assessment of funds, features offered as sales incentives or to ease transactions (e.g. dividend reinvestment, 1035 exchanges, intra-fund familiy exchanges, etc.).
As time went on I have kept this book in my office. It has become essential to answer the occasional questions that arise and which are more detailed and technical than my memory can answer. The book has never come up short on this count.
You should also look for other publications of NYIF (New York Institute of Finance). This is formerly the publishing arm of the NYSE. The material published by NYIF is "from the horse's mouth" and right on the mark for those seeking to learn details of how the profession of finance works. Despite this, the material is never overly technical and theoretical. Rather, the material is practical day-to-day information which will wind up on your reference shelf.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
A Comprehensive and well-written book. Very enjoyable., 2000-02-29
I have read several books on mutual funds but this one by far is the best. Fredman and Wiles cover almost every topic that you could think of: how to analyze the fund, sorting out costs, evaluating risks and much more. The authors make no assumptions about what the reader is likely to know about mutual funds and write in a manner that is both engaging and enjoyable. Also, it is not just an academic treatment of the subject matter. The reader is invited to perform his own calculations and check things out. This is accomplished in one of the concluding chapters where a mutual fund action plan is dicussed in great detail. The book is topped off with some very good sources of additional information for mutual fund investors and appendices which help the reader perform some of the calculations discussed in the book. Overall, this book makes for a good read for a beginner or even a seasoned mutual fund investor.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
An excellent introduction to the world of mutual funds., 1999-06-25
I read this book as a student and consequently learned far more than I expected. The language is easy to understand and the comlexity of the subject/language increases at an acceptable pace. The opinion of the book leans more towards a conservative form of investing...one should expect a decent return but not get too greedy.