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Business and Personal Finance December 2016 |
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| Earning It: Hard-Won Lessons from Trailblazing Women at the Top of the Business World by Joann S. LublinPulitzer Prize winner and Wall Street Journal editor Joann Lublin is familiar with working in a male-dominated industry. Here, she shares interviews with 52 women who have blazed trails in similar situations, achieving executive roles in places where women are generally underrepresented. These inspiring stories of breaking the glass ceiling also offer unconventional insights and advice for others hoping to follow in their footsteps, covering topics from pay inequity to mentoring and bias in the boardroom. |
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| The Man Who Knew: The Life and Times of Alan Greenspan by Sebastian MallabyShortlisted for the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award, this new biography on the former Chairman of the Federal Reserve also provides an intelligent history of modern finance -- the Economist says it "throws a sharp light on American policy and policymaking over four decades." Thoroughly and impartially, prize-winning author Sebastian Mallaby examines Alan Greenspan's time at the Fed as well as his political savvy and his ideological leanings. He also analyzes the conditions that led to the 2008 financial crisis. "Masterful," says Publishers Weekly. |
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| Get What's Yours for Medicare: Maximize Your Coverage, Minimize Your Costs by Philip MoellerIf you're nearing retirement age and are considering your options as far as health care goes, you'll need to learn the ins and outs of Medicare, a governmental program that provides health insurance to those 65 and older. Understanding how to sign up and what the costs are -- as well as how to maximize your coverage and picking the right plans -- are the main priorities of this helpful guide, which also offers a glossary of common terms. Health care in the U.S. is a complex system; this guide will help you understand how Medicare works within it. |
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| The Fix: How Nations Survive and Thrive in a World in Decline by Jonathan TeppermanNominated for the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year, The Fix identifies ten big challenges -- such as income inequality and immigration reform -- and shows solutions that have been created and implemented somewhere in the world. Ideal for readers interested in global affairs and foreign policy, this book also addresses key economic concerns, like how Brazil expanded their middle class, and how South Korea keeps growing their economy. You might not agree with all of author Jonathan Tepperman's analyses, but they're sure to prompt discussion. |
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The Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year
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| The Smartest Places on Earth: Why Rustbelts Are the Emerging Hotspots of Global... by Antoine van Agtmael and Fred BakkerIn Europe and the U.S., industrial regions seem to have earned the moniker "rustbelts." But in recent years, they've also become surprising centers of innovation and renewal. In The Smartest Places on Earth, authors Antoine van Agtmael and Fred Bakker examine how some of these once-desolate regions are coming back to life through the efforts of entrepreneurs, start-ups, big corporations, and universities, with the support of government initiatives. While the focus is on technology and innovation, the move from rustbelts to "brainbelts" is having a positive impact in places from Akron to Dresden. |
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| Brazillionaires: Wealth, Power, Decadence, and Hope in an American Country by Alex CuadrosBrazil has more than 50 billionaires -- and a huge divide between the hyper-rich and the poor. In Brazillionaires, American journalist Alex Cuadros shares the stories of some of these billionaires to illustrate just how their success has been achieved -- often through corrupt and sometimes violent means -- and how they influence the rest of the country. From energy barons to media magnates and elected politicians, this fascinating book (rumored to have been banned in Brazil) is a compelling look at the connection between wealth and power in Brazil. "Gripping from the first page," says the Globe and Mail. |
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| The Profiteers: Bechtel and the Men Who Built the World by Sally DentonBechtel is the world's largest construction company, responsible for building the Hoover Dam and involved in the Channel Tunnel, the Big Dig, and construction in Iraq, among other large projects. For the last 70 years, it has been deeply entangled with the U.S. and foreign governments, and it's hard to tell who's profited more from those relationships. In this revealing book, investigative journalist Sally Denton presents a detailed and informative corporate history and a biography of the family behind it, including those influential relationships with high-ranking government leaders. This "taut, page-turning narrative" (Kirkus Reviews) exposes a great deal of greed and corruption. |
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| Makers and Takers: The Rise of Finance and the Fall of American Business by Rana ForooharThis provocative book tackles the complex and controversial topic of "financialization" -- the trend towards short-term, risky thinking that values immediate profits over innovation and economic growth. Defining "makers" as those people, companies, and ideas that create growth and "takers" as those who care only about enriching themselves (from politicians and CEOs to financial institutions as a whole), business and economics journalist Rana Foroohar discusses the causes and consequences of various aspects of the 2008 financial crisis, as well as the ways that a predatory financial sector has hamstrung the economy. "Masterly," says Forbes of this insightful analysis. |
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| Chaos Monkeys: Obscene Fortune and Random Failure in Silicon Valley by Antonio García MartínezAuthor Antonio Garcia Martinez may be known as much for his professional antics (forced out at Facebook, he landed at rival Twitter) as he is for his decidedly unprofessional ones (he once flooded Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's desk while brewing beer illegally). In his first irreverent, contrarian book, he shares his role in how social media and online marketing have invaded and influenced our daily lives -- all with subversive humor, peppered with scathing critiques of his former employers. Anecdotes from his hedonistic lifestyle also make appearances as he merrily burns bridges left, right, and center. |
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| The Rise and Fall of American Growth: The U.S. Standard of Living Since the Civil War by Robert J. GordonIn this intellectual book, author Robert Gordon traces how the advent of the First Industrial Revolution changed the American way of life after centuries of mostly manual, usually rural subsistence living. Then, starting in 1870 as part of the Second Industrial Revolution, innovations and technologies began drastically improving the lives of the average person -- think electricity, improved medicines, canned foods, telephones, and cars. But, Gordon argues, that initial burst of rapid improvements slowed and has continued to do so since 1970 -- and will likely not return. Though not all will agree with his conclusions, his arguments are thought-provoking. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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