3 Economic Novels

Introductory Learning Recs

In the past year, I have read 3 relatively simple finance books while flying. They would make great gifts for teens or anyone interested in learning about some basic economic and business concepts. What all three have in common is they are narratives. They teach explicitly but in a fiction wrapper. And while it’s not Shakespeare, this style is underrepresented since I could see it being more resonant than textbook or essay style instruction because the lessons are weaved into the character’s stories. Here’s a link to my notes on:

• The Rebel Allocator: This book’s device is a junior private equity analyst learning the lessons of capital allocation by a Buffet/Munger composite
• Invisible Heart: An economic romance novel by leading economist and podcast host Russ Roberts.
• The Accounting Game: This book has taught scores of people accounting for good reason. By following a boy’s lemonade stand for a summer you will learn how financial statements work to the pros and cons to various accounting strategies and regimes. It’s structured as a workbook so you get to practice constantly. It’s also just fun. Seriously.

For Investors or Inspiring Investors

Adam at Movement Capital is a reader whose business and blog I discovered this year. He’s always putting out content that is pound for pound some of the most educational, useful and concise reading. You can start with his most recent post Investment Switch Calculator. With funds slashing their fees, you may want to compute how long it will take you to break even on a transaction from a higher cost fund to a lower cost fund. This is not as straightforward as it initially appears and requires a tool like his. By walking through the model you are bound to learn something if this is not your expertise. His site is one of the first I’d send someone to if they were trying to learn the basics of portfolio construction and math. His approach is true to Einstein’s advice: “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.”