Jack Bogle knows mutual funds and invented indexing..

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Product Description

The CEO of a billion-dollar mutual fund company shows investors how to avoid common pitfalls in investing in mutual funds, increase their return without increasing their risk, develop a fully diversified portfolio, and more.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #134064 in Books
• Published on: 1994-10-04
• Released on: 1994-10-04
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In this awesome overview of investment company products and services, Bogle, founder and CEO of the $110-billion Vanguard group of funds, demonstrates that "the abundance of information available about mutual funds is . . . overwhelming." Among the minute details included, Bogle tells not only how to improve your backhand, as it were, but how to get the best grass or clay for the tennis court. Fund categories past and present--index, international, income, growth, industry-specialized (electronic, health), long- and short-term bond (U.S., corporate, "junk"), along with sales charges pro and con (Vanguard has none), high-low expense ratios, management track records and tax considerations--all are dissected to the ultimate percentile in relation to investor objectives and an inconstant economic climate. There is certainly something here for everyone, but in the aggregate the author reaches beyond the needs (and possibly the comprehension) of readers not engaged in the investment business. 70,000 first printing; first serial to Money; Fortune Book Club main selecton.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Bogle, chairman and CEO of the $110 billion Vanguard Group of mutual funds, thoroughly discusses the risks and rewards of investing in mutual funds. He explains how to select among the four basic categories of funds: common stock, bond, money market, and balanced. He argues convincingly that a passively managed "index fund" costs less and is more reliable than a fund managed by someone making weighted bets on individual securities, sectors, and the economy. This message is similar to that found in Burton Malkiel's classic The Random Walk Down Wall Street ( LJ 6/1/90). Bogle, long the mutual fund industry's loudest critic, denounces its misleading advertising, mediocre performance, and selfishness. Sprinkled throughout the text are "caveat emptor" boxes that warn readers of the hidden pitfalls of mutual fund investing. Strongly recommended for public library collections.
- Robert Kruthoffer, Lane P.L., Hamilton, Ohio
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"Bogle  is rattling the status quo among the mutual fund  titans." -- Fortune -- Review

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Customer Reviews

A Wealth of Information
For almost a decade now, this has been my bible on mutual funds. Using a straightforward and candid approach, Vanguard founder John Bogle explains every aspect of mutual funds and the industry behind them. Never does Bogle exaggerate information or mislead the reader as many other financial "guru's" do to sell their books. He is a true consumer advocate and his goal is clearly to educate.

Covered is everything from stocks, bonds, money market funds, indexing, asset allocation, expense ratio's and the risks inherent not only in investing but in not investing (e.g. the erosion of the dollar vs. inflation in "safe" investments). Bogle utilizes numerous graphs and statistical data throughout the book to help make his point and to allow the reader increased comprehension.

It is important to note that this book was published in the early 1990's. Since then capital gains tax laws have changed and the Roth IRA was yet to be created. For more up-to-date information I would recommend reading Bogle's newer book, Common Sense on Mutual Funds. Nevertheless, Bogle On Mutal Funds is a great place to start educating yourself to become more financially savvy. This book has been invaluable to me and I believe it is key to my investing success. I find myself often referring to it, expecially now in these turbulent market times just to hear Mr. Bogle remind me to, "stay the course" and I will be rewarded. No wonder so many admirers refer to the beloved Mr. Bogle as, "Saint Jack."

Basic Training in Essential Mutual Fund Investing Techniques
Despite the fact that tens of millions own mutual funds, few know how to go about it for the best results. This book was the first and still is the best overview of the whole subject. The book is well designed for both beginning and more advanced investors. Over the course of a lifetime, this book should help you gain many additional thousands of dollars.

The first three chapters are the basics for new investors. The first chapter explains the benefits of compound interest, and how high returns for a long time earn you much more. The second chapter looks at inflation, income, and principal risk. The implication is to choose between the risks and rewards of equities and bonds. The former gives you more potential for gains, but can be more volatile. If you are going to be a very long-term holder, equities will be better than bonds. The third chapter looks at the basics of mutual funds and how they work.

The fourth through the seventh chapters look at how to select various types of mutual funds (equities, bonds, money markets, and balanced). In the eighth chapter, you can find out how to get information about specific mutual funds. Most comes from prospectuses and Morningstar.

Many of the key insights come in chapters nine through eleven. In the ninth chapter, you will learn the advantages of index funds (you will beat almost all other funds of the same type). In the tenth chapter, the importance of finding funds with low costs is explained. In the eleventh, you will find out about the tax costs associated with a high turnover of portfolios.

The twelfth chapter looks carefully at the rules of asset allocation. The thirteenth chapter provides model portfolios for how to implement various types of strategies for asset allocation.

Chapter fourteen encourages you to be an active, knowledgeable mutual fund investor.

The Epilogue is a good overview of the book in 12 steps.

Each chapter has a nice summary of its contents at the end.

The main drawback of the book is that the charts and data are quite old, usually ending in 1992. This book could badly use an updating in a second edition.

The advice is outstanding and timeless, however. You can follow these rules and do well.

You should be aware that John Bogle wrote a more recent book, Common Sense on Mutual Funds, that makes the arguments in chapters nine through eleven in this book in much more detail. That book also has some wonderful analyses using historical data that are much more up-to-date.

I recommend that you start with this book and then go on to read Common Sense on Mutual Funds.

As you learn more about mutual funds, consider how important it is to find out what you don't know before you take on something important. Then develop a new habit of doing your homework on other important subjects like health, relationships, and your career. There's no reason to learn everything by making mistakes!

Enjoy your increased wealth and sleep better with this excellent book!!

"The" Resource for Mutual Funds
Rare does one book cover so much territory and explore so many avenues of information as this tightly and thoroughly written discourse on everything "mutual fund." If there is a book that does it better, I've not seen it. This key text is supplemented with numerous boxes for caveats, and punctuated with plenteous graphs to explicate the material presented. Sometimes, the technical information gets short-shrift, and many of the statements already belie the book's age. Even so, no investor should proceed with confidence until this book is thoroughly read, digested, and implemented.