Last week I attended a master class at one of the MBA programs I’m looking at. The Professor was interesting he spent some time talking about all of the standard hot topic issues and we went through a case study. I left the class with one take away – I want to read more finance books. I made note of a few titles that I came across but also decided to set out on my kindle to see what I could find. 10 minutes worth of searching and I came up with the next three books I’ll be reading. Check out my list so far and help me with any suggestions.

Good day monks,

I’m approaching a wondrous anniversary with WSO: My 25th Monkey’s Review!

Two years ago around this time, I had just finished a book called “Barbarians at the Gate.” The creative writer in me demanded a response of some kind, so I crafted a review in longhand and decided that sharing it with a nascent community I had heard about called WallStreetOasis would be a good idea.

I looked for Patrick’s distinctive monkey mug on the site, hit “PM,” and said something along the lines of, “I wrote this as a way to give back to the site; please do whatever you want with it.”

The Chief Monkey wrote back saying something along the lines of, “This is pretty good. Want to write some more?”

What does being a gentleman mean to you?

Does it mean knowing which fork to use at a properly-set table? Does it mean being so impeccably dressed as to make Patrick Bateman and 007 envious? Does it mean knowing when to tip, how to tie a bowtie, or how to properly greet a lady?

It can be all of those things, but at its core being a gentleman is more than just being the nice guy or being the best dresser. It’s about getting out of your head for a change and soberly considering how you come off to other people. It can be summed up in one of the first gentlemanly criteria laid out in this book:

”A gentleman never gets so big that he can feel free to say or do things that make other people feel small.”

We spend a lot of time on WSO talking about business school, wondering whether it is right for us. And it seems that for most folks, we don’t really know whether a business school like Harvard is a smart choice because we are unsure of what we ultimately want out of our careers.

Author Philip Broughton (“P.D. Bizzle” to his b-school friends) was the Paris bureau chief of The Daily Telegraph before he decided to make the jump into this legendary New England institution, and by his own admission he definitely wasn’t exactly sure why he was there to begin with. But luckily for us fortunate readers, he had the time to write down his experiences and viewpoints after two years at this most hallowed of elite institutions, so we can see and decide for ourselves.

“Living well is not the best revenge. Succeeding in your career and humiliating your critics is.” - Bill O’Reilly

Since The New York Times won’t review Bill O’Reilly’s books no matter how many copies they sell, I shall assume responsibility for this one!

I reread this set of personal memoirs a while back looking for career inspiration (believe it or not), and the above quote definitely re-energized me a bit. It should also resonate with anyone who sets out on a career path with something to prove, knowing that you are smart and qualified, and that you WILL get it together, critics be damned. In fact, the title of the book comes from a nun’s response to a very young Bill in middle school after a wise-crack remark by him: “William, you are a bold, fresh piece of humanity.”

Moderator Note (Andy): This is a guest post by Patrick Del Rosario, a business and financial blogger (full bio below)

Here's my recommendation for 8 great books that aren't classified specifically as "business books" and offer up much better advice than some the standard fare you will find in the genre.

Would love to hear your opinions on these, and any other books you might not necessarily find in the business section but offer sound advice for business, finance, entrepreneurship, career guidance, etc

1. The Art of War by Sun Tzu.
The granddaddy of all non-business business books, Sun Tzu’s explanation of how to engage in warfare in ancient China has had its principles applied to modern business again and again.

“The New Tycoons” is an expansive overview of the current state of the private equity industry, hallowed career promised land for some (i.e., a majority of the people on WSO), destructive wreckers of companies for others. Bloomberg reporter Jason Kelly offers a guided tour of the world of private equity, from the broad-based strategy talks with the titans at the top of the pyramid to drilling down into the trenches below ground.

In general, overachievers are individuals who perform better or achieve superior results due to excessive efforts in an academic or professional environment. I would not presume for a moment that I belong to this group unless I would not really identify myself with the issues overachiever’s have to deal with.

I got a very decent GPA during my undergrad degree and received a master degree with distinction which cost me quite some nerves and hair on the back of my head. Since I am from a non-target school I always tried to ace all finance related classes in order to compete with students that have more “favorable” backgrounds. I saw that as an obligation and became some sort of role model (or tutor) to of my fellow non-target students.

Reading history is a rewarding experience because it can help shake you out of your myopia and make you realize that you’re a part of something much bigger: the tide of history and the millions who came before and after you.

When I started reading John Steele Gordon’s “An Empire Of Wealth,” it felt quite different from the typical dry histories we were forced to read in school for a number of reasons.

For one, it’s actually well-written and interesting—for an economic history of the largest powerhouse on the planet, that’s no small feat. The pacing and flow are both to be commended, as Mr. Gordon traces “The Epic History of American Economic Power” from the first tobacco cash crop in Virginia through the New Economy and the first days of the war on terror.

“The Money Culture” is a collection of Michael Lewis’ (of Liar’s Poker fame) writings and articles from 1986-1991, during which he had his falling out with Salomon Brothers. The general theme is to provide a snapshot of the financial industry during this time period, courtesy of Mr. Lewis’ cynical wit and personal observations. He splits “The Money Culture” into 3 geographical regions: the United States, Europe, and Japan.

“The four most expensive words in the English language are: ‘It’s different this time.’” – Sir John Templeton, investing legend

Forbes columnist Ken Fisher’s new book is a very timely read for all investors, whether bullish or bearish. If you are convinced (as many of us seem to be), that we are in a ‘new normal,’ that we are in a ‘secular bear market,’ that we will soon have a ‘double dip recession,’ or in general that nothing good will ever happen in the stock market ever again, “Markets Never Forget” will dunk your head into a bucket of ice water and make you reconsider.

If you're like me, you probably only read fiction at a 3:1 or 4:1 ratio with non-fiction, with a heavy bias towards financial non-fiction. I haven't read much fiction over the past year with the exception of the Game of Thrones series.

I have four magazine subscriptions. I'm talking about actual print magazines that arrive monthly in the mailbox for consumption on the shitter (quaint, I know). I get BusinessWeek, Inc, Men's Journal, and Urban Farm (don't ask). So last night I was flipping through the latest issue of Men's Journal and I found a piece about Don Winslow. I'm kinda surprised to say that I'd never heard of him because he's written 16 novels, a number of which were best sellers. He writes the sort of hip, gritty crime novels which Elmore Leonard is famous for, and Oliver Stone just made a movie of his novel Savages.

MJ usually doesn't steer me wrong, so I bought the Kindle version of The Kings of Cool last night. I picked that one because it's a prequel to Savages, and moreso because it was the cheapest of all his Kindle books (hey, I said I wasn't familiar with the guy, right?). Well, let me tell you. I was up until almost 2 this morning reading it. As in, couldn't put it down. Don Winslow is legit.