Summer reading round-up: the best investment books for flights and sun loungers

The sun is out and the days are long – so what better time than now to consider which paperback to buy or download onto your Kindle ?

If you’re setting off on holiday and looking for reading material for the flight and/or sun lounger, or you’ve found yourself at a bit of a loose end during these lazy summer days, why not consider investment over romance or mystery for a change?

We’ve asked four of our Elite Rated fund managers for their top book recommendations for investors.

Marcus Brookes: The Flash Boys

Marcus, who runs the Schroder MM Diversity and Schroder MM Diversity Tactical funds, said: “My summer investment reading needs to be relatively easy to digest, otherwise I will procrastinate and never end up benefiting from the book’s contents. A couple of summers ago I read ‘The Flash Boys’ by Michael Lewis, which I heartily recommend. It is about high-frequency trading and how it has impacted the US stock market.

“This year I am aiming to read another Michael Lewis book, ‘The Undoing Project’, which tells the story of behavioural finance. It can be a heavy subject, but I am hoping the author has managed to make it more engaging.”

Gary Potter: The World’s 99 Greatest Investors: The Secrets of Success

Gary co-runs the F&C MM Navigator Distribution fund alongside Rob Burdett. “I continually read as part of the job, so I try not to burden my relaxation time too heavily with more financial markets reading. And, not being someone who can sit and read for hours on end, I find books with many short chapters a godsend,” he told us.

“To this end, one book that fits all the criteria for me that does relate to financial markets is called ‘The World’s 99 Greatest Investors: The Secret of Success’ – by Magnus Underfelt. As a fund selector this book is one of the best. It identifies 99 of the world’s greatest investment managers and, over two pages per manager, in a common format, neatly distils their history, education, career, investment results and, most importantly, their investment philosophy. It is packed with great quotes and one liners.”

Jonathan Gumpel: The Big Short

Jonathan, who runs the Brooks MacDonald Defensive Capital fund, said: “’The Big Short’ is a fascinating story linked to the cause of the 2008 financial crisis.

“It was made into a very good film, featuring the actress Margot Robbie explaining difficult finance terms from a bubble bath. Nonetheless the book is a very good read. An alternative finance book is ‘Wolf of Wall Street’, telling the incredible tale of rogue stock brokers in the late 1980s. Also made into a splendid film, strangely also featuring Margot Robbie!”

Hutch Vernon: 100 to 1 in the Stock Market

Hutch co-manages the Brown Advisory US Flexible Equity fund alongside Maneesh Bajaj.

“’100 to 1 in the Stock Market’; is out of print, but it’s still available,” he said. “It’s a great catalogue of the various ways one could have made 100 times your money on some stocks over the prior 40 years to 1972, when this book was published. It is full of practical observations.

“Given that financial history often repeats previous examples, the variety of past great stocks is a useful way to help spot opportunities for the future.”