John Chatfeild-Roberts, Lead Investment Manager
Winter (Len Deighton)
An historical novel dealing with the rise to power of the Nazis and running through to the denouement in 1945, seen through the eyes of Austrian-born (in 1900) twins of a German father and an American mother. One ends up as a senior SS lawyer and the other a US Colonel. The description of everyday life and the descent into brutality in Nazi Germany is shocking in its very ordinariness. The lesson for the reader is that it doesn’t take much for a population to become accustomed to the turning upside down of civilised norms. A lesson for all times. And a great novel too.
David Lewis, Lead Investment Manager
The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition (Jonathan Tepper with Denise Hearn)
Written by the manager of the Prevatt Global Master fund, which we hold within the Jupiter Merlin Worldwide, Growth and Balanced Portfolios, this book is the result of Jonathan Tepper’s extensive research into the current competitive corporate landscape. It shows that although we may believe we live in a competitive, capitalist world, the reality in many cases is that monopolies, oligopolies and monopsonies dominate huge swathes of business. The result is higher costs and lower standards of living for many around the world than would otherwise be the case, with the antidote being greater anti-trust enforcement. It is a very interesting read with many staggering statistics.
Amanda Sillars, Investment Manager & ESG Director
Rich Dad, Poor Dad (Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter)
An unusual recommendation, you might think: however, whilst presented simply to appeal to more youthful readers, one is never too old to read these powerful and straightforward tips on how to control your own financial future more successfully. My thanks to so many of our analyst role applicants for their repeated praise of this book and to Algy for insisting I read it!
George Fox, Investment Manager
And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails (Wayne Curtis)
Being a fund manager can be a stressful job, carrying with it the risk of suffering from burnout. As a result, one of the questions we often ask in manager meetings is: “What is it you do outside of the day job to switch off?” and so I was glad to have this book recommended to me by a client in Edinburgh (thank you, Stephen). Mercifully it was not because I was knocking back rum during our roadshow presentation … but instead because I have a great interest in pirates, having studied them in a module at university. The book offers an entertaining education on both North American history as well as rum and other spirits, stylishly finishing with a selection of cocktail recipes – happy mixing!
Algy Smith-Maxwell, Research Director
5 Ingredients Mediterranean (Jamie Oliver)
On the basis that I have always believed in running concentrated simple portfolios that don’t try to be too clever I have found the perfect cookery book. All recipes have just 5 ingredients. Simply incredible food, great fun and so easy to cook.
Alastair Irvine, Investment Director
War With Russia 2017 (Richard Shirreff)
General Sir Richard Shirreff, a British former NATO Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe, published this novel in 2016 foretelling of Russia and NATO coming into direct military conflict, the epicentre of which is Russia’s Kaliningrad enclave on the Baltic coast. It is a novel; we clearly did not go to war in 2017; the story is basic; the prose and dialogue are irritatingly clunky. However, ignore all that and concentrate on how he describes strategic and tactical thinking as threat suddenly goes from flash to bang. He is an insider. He knows. Of great insight is what he foretold about Ukraine: written six years before the invasion, his analysis could have been read as fact in any newspaper in 2022. As war with Russia becomes more probable than possible according to NATO itself, Shirreff’s scenario analysis should be absorbing to us all. Persevere: if not exactly an entertaining read, it is certainly illuminating.
Venetia Campbell, Investment Analyst
Freezing Order (Bill Browder)
This non-fictional book reads like a thriller and documents the incredible efforts of Bill Browder, a financier and political activist, who for much of the 21st century has tried to bring down money-laundering in Russia. He is seeking justice for his lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, who was murdered in a Moscow jail for exposing tax-fraud in 2009. The reader quickly understands that money-scheming rot lies at the heart of contemporary Russia, and Browder depicts his close calls with Vladimir Putin’s cronies and hired assassins. A must-read if you want to understand the psyche of Putin.
Authors
The value of active minds – independent thinking
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