What Should You Read As The Summer Holidays Approach

In a topsy-turvy world marked by high drama political events such as the recent French election, the turmoil in American politics and the promise of the new government in the UK, not to mention the spectacle of the Olympics, only one event really matters – the onset of the holiday season.

My next-door neighbour, as she packed her bags, asked for a few book recommendations, which I had started to provide by text, but as that got overly lengthy, have written them down here instead (with apologies for the focus on finance and economics).

Regular readers will know that in last week’s note I tackled American politics, and specifically JD Vance, and would recommend his book ‘Hillbily Elegy’ as a text that will help us better help us understand him, and America.

As mentioned, if I were to recommend two books to him – as he ambitiously thinks of the vice presidency, I would highlight Chris Whipple’s ‘The GateKeepers‘ which explains how seventeen chiefs of staff to American presidents have marshalled their leaders, as well as Robert Reich’s ‘Locked in the Cabinet’ which is a wonderful, humorous study of how power really works in Washington. Two other books on American politics have been recommended to me, and as I trust the judgment of the friends who have highlighted them I want to pass on ‘When the Clock Broke’ by John Ganz, and ‘An American Dreamer’ by David Finkel.

Sticking with politics, there are a few ‘tomes’ worth noting for the really serious afficionados’ Robert Caro’s books on Lyndon Johnson could take a long time to read, and Ron Chernow’s ‘Hamilton’, which I would class as a must-read. Crossing the Atlantic, in a more gossipy sense, I often recommend Chip Channon’s ‘Diaries’, and Alan Clark’s ‘Diaries’ is a more tawdry follow up. In a more modern setting, Rory Stewart’s ‘Politics on the Edge’ is decent.

In my experience, the world of finance has been badly neglected by writers – fiction and non-fiction, and it might be that very few people with a literary bent are tempted by finance, and of course, fewer bankers can write well. There are a few exceptions – William Cohan (I enjoyed his book on Lazard, ‘The Last Tycoons’)), Michael Lewis (e.g. Liar’s Poker), Amor Towles – who spent most of his career in investment management but emerged sane enough to produce the exquisite ‘Gentleman in Moscow’, ‘Rules of Civility’ and his latest book, ‘Table for Two’; which I have bought and squirrelled away for later in August.

Another writer in this rarefied group is Irish writer Aifric Campbell, who worked in a very senior role in the City, and has produced a number of books – of which ‘The Lovemakers’ is a must read for anyone with an interest in understanding how AI driven robots will interact with humans.

Some of the more interesting books on finance relate to deal making in corporate finance and private equity – ‘Barbarians at the Gate’ was perhaps the first blockbuster here, and my private equity friends have also flagged ‘King of Capital’ (David Carey and John Morris) which sketches the rise of Blackstone and the private equity industry.

Another asset class that is captivating is art, and here Don Thompson’s – The $12 Million Stuffed Shark – The Curious Economics of Contemporary Art’ is fun.

There is a useful set of books that link the economy to changes in society, and vice versa and notable recent books here are ‘Finance and the Good Society’ by Robert Shiller, and ‘Ultra-Processed People’ by Chris van Tulleken. In this field, James Scott, a high accomplished social scientist, died last week and of the books of his I have read ‘Seeing Like a State’ is a very good illustration of the collision of state institutions with social complexity. A not unrelated and more entertaining take on this is William Newman’s ‘Things are so bad they can’t get worse’, the story of the institutional collapse of Venzuela.

Finally, I am stashing a few books away for the holidays, Yoko Tawada’s ‘Memoirs of a Polar Bear’, ‘Le Barman du Ritz’ by Philippe Colin, I have pre-ordered Marietje Schaake’s ‘The Tech Coup’ and for old times sake a few Agatha Christie novels. In addition, my wife tells me that Francois Mauriac recommends the biography of Leon Trotsky, which the Marxist society have helpfully put online here.

Have a great week ahead,

Mike