Product Description

"A delightful instruction to the wonderful world of bonds for the non-professional investor, written in terms that you could explain to your mother-in-law; or that she could explain to you!"
–Paul McCulley
Managing Director and Fund Manager
PIMCO, one of the world’s leading fixed-income managers

"Michael Brandes has written a thorough, useful, and highly readable treatise on bonds. Investors seeking a balanced, diversified portfolio are advised to read it."
–Tom Gardner
Co-founder, The Motley Fool

"This book cuts through the jargon and gets right to the point. A bond market primer that not only teaches the basics, but also is enjoyable to read."
–Gregory Peters
Head of Credit Strategy, Morgan Stanley

"The title says it all. The book is to the point and easy to understand. I wish I had Michael’s so easy-to-understand reference to bonds years ago."
–Alan R. Shaw
Managing Director, U.S. Equity Research
Smith Barney (a division of Citigroup)

"Fixed income can be an enormously complex and confusing asset class–even for seasoned investment professionals–with a dizzying array of instruments and strategies. Fortunately, Brandes has done a marvelous job of pulling back the proverbial curtain, to unveil and demystify the bond market by breaking a complicated topic down into simple, manageable, and understandable building blocks."
–Philip J. Orlando, CFA
Senior Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager, Federated Investors

"Everything here about bonds is bite size and easy to digest. Pleasantly so. This book marks a clear path for individual investors to follow, and will fill you with many new insights. An extremely handy guide for anyone who wants to invest in bonds for safety and income."
–John Tracy
author of the bestselling book How to Read a Financial Report

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #114001 in Books
• Published on: 2003-09-19
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 240 pages

From the Inside Flap
Professional investors have long understood the importance of bonds in a successful portfolio strategy. Now you can too.

That’s because Wall Street bond expert Michael Brandes takes a unique approach to this complex subject–he makes it simple. In Naked Guide to Bonds: What You Need to Know–Stripped Down to the Bare Essentials, technical jargon and complicated subject matter are translated into a straightforward, easy-to-read style with plenty of examples. What’s more, rather than writing an all-inclusive book on the bond market, Brandes uses his expertise to eliminate the information that is not relevant to individual investors. The result is a practical and succinct guide that empowers you to make informed investment decisions.

Naked Guide to Bonds is written so that each chapter builds upon the information that precedes it–that way you’ll never be thrown for a loop. It begins with basic questions such as: Who issues bonds, and why? And how are bonds bought and sold? Then you’ll learn about the structure of these securities and the characteristics that distinguish them from stocks.

Once you’re armed with the fundamentals, you’ll discover how inflation, interest rates, and changes in the economy impact bond prices. Naked Guide to Bonds also provides insights into different types of bonds, including those issued by the U.S. government and its agencies, municipalities, corporations, and international issuers. Most importantly, you’ll understand how to identify the bonds that are appropriate for you.

In the final sections, you’ll determine how to:

• Assess your risk profile and set goals
• Construct a portfolio that meets your objectives
• Implement a customized strategy
• Evaluate individual bonds and mutual funds
• Monitor and maintain your portfolio
• Avoid the most common mistakes

Filled with helpful charts and informative "Bare Essential" summary points at the beginning of each chapter, Naked Guide to Bonds provides an effective way to become a smart and successful bond investor. Take a look for yourself and see how enjoyable and rewarding learning about bonds can be.

From the Back Cover
"A delightful instruction to the wonderful world of bonds for the non-professional investor, written in terms that you could explain to your mother-in-law; or that she could explain to you!"
–Paul McCulley
Managing Director and Fund Manager
PIMCO, one of the world’s leading fixed-income managers

"Michael Brandes has written a thorough, useful, and highly readable treatise on bonds. Investors seeking a balanced, diversified portfolio are advised to read it."
–Tom Gardner
Co-founder, The Motley Fool

"This book cuts through the jargon and gets right to the point. A bond market primer that not only teaches the basics, but also is enjoyable to read."
–Gregory Peters
Head of Credit Strategy, Morgan Stanley

"The title says it all. The book is to the point and easy to understand. I wish I had Michael’s so easy-to-understand reference to bonds years ago."
–Alan R. Shaw
Managing Director, U.S. Equity Research
Smith Barney (a division of Citigroup)

"Fixed income can be an enormously complex and confusing asset class–even for seasoned investment professionals–with a dizzying array of instruments and strategies. Fortunately, Brandes has done a marvelous job of pulling back the proverbial curtain, to unveil and demystify the bond market by breaking a complicated topic down into simple, manageable, and understandable building blocks."
–Philip J. Orlando, CFA
Senior Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager, Federated Investors

"Everything here about bonds is bite size and easy to digest. Pleasantly so. This book marks a clear path for individual investors to follow, and will fill you with many new insights. An extremely handy guide for anyone who wants to invest in bonds for safety and income."
–John Tracy
author of the bestselling book How to Read a Financial Report

About the Author
Michael V. Brandes is Director and Fixed-Income Strategist in the Investment Strategy Group at Smith Barney, a division of Citigroup. He is founding author of Bond Market Monthly, the firm's flagship research publication for individual fixed-income investors. He also writes Citigroup's widely popular A Stock Buyer's Guide to Bond Investing and various research articles about fixed-income strategy. Michael earned a BA in English Literature from the University at Albany (NY) and an MBA from Columbia University Business School in New York.

Customer Reviews

A Great Book on Bonds
I read the Motley Fool Investment Guide and really liked it, so when I saw this at the bookstore with Tom Gardner's endorsement on it, I thought I'd give it a shot. Just like the Fools, this book is written for regular people and is pretty humorous (for an investment book!). The chapters are well organized so that you learn about bonds "step-by-step". It includes discussions about every type of bond and advice on how to put them into your
portfolio. It's definitely not written like a textbook -- even the complicated concepts come across clearly. In short, this is a great book. I found it easy to understand and, most importantly, full of extremely useful information.

Insightful!
In this very good beginner's guide to the bond market, author Michael V. Brandes addresses all of the fundamental questions clearly and concisely. Bond math can be daunting, but while the author includes a few equations for illustrative purposes, he clearly addresses his book to the general run of individual investors. The book, which has moments of surprising good humor, says right off the bat that bond investing can be dull in comparison to stock investing, not because the stakes are lower, but because the elements of personality and surprise are considerably more muted in the debt market than in the equity markets. We highly recommend this book, even though it is pedantic at times - a risk you take when you venture into the complex realm of bond investing.

Lightweight guide to bonds
Full of useless info (the days of the week on which Treasury auctions take place, for example) larded with annoying attempts at humor. Fidelity and Pimco have the essentials about bonds on their websites, the latter for free, so why buy this?

If you're really interested in the fixed-income market, I suggest Patrick Brown's "An Introduction to the Bond Markets". Even if you ignore the math, you'll learn far more, and have a book worth more than a single read.