Rating: 
Summary: not for experts
Review:
If you work on Wall Street, you already know everything in this book. If you don't and watch CNBC only accidentally, then buy this book. Vintage Cramer, acerbically enlightening.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but could have been better
Review: Almost everything in this well-written book is good stuff. Jim explains first how the Enron & Worldcon fiasco's occurred. Then other disadvantages that plague individual investors are discussed. While I enjoyed much of this book, the title may imply a more detailed instruction on how to fix your own finances. For instance, Jim points out the importance of reading a company's balance sheet. However, I dont think a handfull of paragraphs and two sample sheets is much of a tutorial. More insight from Jim on stock evaluation would be intriging. All in all, this is a good book and one that I will enjoy reading again. The ...retail price might be a bit steep though, since its fairly short and doesnt go into alot of detail when it comes to "un-screwing" yourself.
Rating: 
Summary: Complete waste of your money and time
Review: I have always been intrigued by Mr.Cramer, when I found this smallish book I decided to read what he had to say about the market crash. I hoped to find some deep insights from a man who is a Wall Street insider. I am very disappointed with the book, you probably will learn more about what caused the bubble to burst by reading newspapers and magazines then you would from this book. The material in the book is very superficial and the only thing that stuck was that he was shamelessly using it as a means to advertise his web site and alert service. If you have loads of money that you want to waste, please mail it to Mr. Cramer at least then you will save a tree.
Rating: 
Summary: Sweet and Short
Review: I have undergone usual love-hate type feelings towards Cramer multiple times. It is really diffficult to understand him, especially when he was writing his trading diary on realmoney. Now that the greatest bear market is (probably) over, and I lost my share of money in it, I understand what Cramer was saying back then. I mean in 2000. In March. In 2001. This book is small, and I had missed a lot of games that wcom and enron played with unsuspecting people. I was already out of markets as I could not survive earlier waves of selling. I went back and read Cramer's writings in March, 2000. Most people think he is just a pumper - I was surprised that he repeatedly urged people to get out of markets - "cash is king" was his mantra during the bearish cycle. And he nailed it both, the great bull ride and the bear ride, with almost correct timing. You can hate him, he did what he had to do at his hedge fund, a lot of what may be immoral - he had to, it his job. But his writing has been on the mark - you can't deny that.
As for the plug, he mentions thestreet.com few times which is a FREE news site. I do not recall him mentioning realmoney.com ever in this book, which is paid content. At the end, he just "mentions" his own investment product "alerts", but that is only if you want to do it with him. His first choice is always a seasoned investment adviser whom you can trust. I am not his employee, just a general trader. I would now trust Cramer more than any other Wall St analyst or a journalist who doesn't know a thing about the markets.
Rating:
Summary: Sweet and Short
Review: I have undergone usual love-hate type feelings towards Cramer multiple times. It is really diffficult to understand him, especially when he was writing his trading diary on realmoney. Now that the greatest bear market is (probably) over, and I lost my share of money in it, I understand what Cramer was saying back then. I mean in 2000. In March. In 2001. This book is small, and I had missed a lot of games that wcom and enron played with unsuspecting people. I was already out of markets as I could not survive earlier waves of selling. I went back and read Cramer's writings in March, 2000. Most people think he is just a pumper - I was surprised that he repeatedly urged people to get out of markets - "cash is king" was his mantra during the bearish cycle. And he nailed it both, the great bull ride and the bear ride, with almost correct timing. You can hate him, he did what he had to do at his hedge fund, a lot of what may be immoral - he had to, it his job. But his writing has been on the mark - you can't deny that.
As for the plug, he mentions thestreet.com few times which is a FREE news site. I do not recall him mentioning realmoney.com ever in this book, which is paid content. At the end, he just "mentions" his own investment product "alerts", but that is only if you want to do it with him. His first choice is always a seasoned investment adviser whom you can trust. I am not his employee, just a general trader. I would now trust Cramer more than any other Wall St analyst or a journalist who doesn't know a thing about the markets.
Rating:
Summary: For the dabbler, not the expert
Review: There are quite a few terrible reviews for this book, mainly along the lines of "Gee, we already know this, duh!" But for those of us not watching the MSNBC ticker and dont bet our life savings on whether a share rises or falls, its quite informative. He details not only the fall of Enron, but how and why the telecoms rose so high and burned out so brightly. He exposes the inner machinations of mutual funds and how the analysts really make their money. He even offers a bit of good advice on not falling into bad companies and avoiding risky investments. I admit I wish there was more, and, yes, he did reference thestreet.com (his website) a bit more than is prudent but it was all in the spirit of getting the information out. All in all, the promises he made with the title and back cover of the book, he delivered upon. If you are expecting anything more than to know why your portfolio fell apart and a little advice on sewing it back together, check out another book. Otherwise, its worth the read.
Rating:
Summary: Could be a Five or a One
Review: This is a short book describing some of the reasons why the tech bubble burst, the stock market tanked and how many companies lied, cheated and stole. It is a totally worthless book for any that are already seasoned in the business, however, for the neophyte or unlearned investor that has money on the line already, this book could prove priceless. Some time back I reviewed a book called "Net Zero", also a book describing how the bubble burst. I wrote in my review that the problem with the book was that it was much to technical for the beginner, i.e. the guy that really needs to read it. So the simple fact that this book is short, basic and too the point, shouldn't be considered a negative unless you already know the information. If you're considering putting money into the market for the first time, and you don't already understand why the market tanked and how certain parts of the industry are stinking thieves, then you'd be foolish to pass on reading it. It could save you a fortune.
Rating:
Summary: Candid, but too little too late.
Review: This very short book is pure Cramer. Enjoyable reading. He tells it like it is and places blame for the market collapse of the past three years. This book is really an opportunity for Cramer to complain about the past and to warn investors not to be duped again. For me the highlight is that he posts a list of his personal investments on a web site, and encourages readers to consider copying him to achievce a balanced and safer portfolio. If Cramer had added the suggestion to write covered calls (see THE SHORT BOOK ON OPTIONS) to enable investors to have even safer stock portfolios, this book would have been more valuable
Rating:
Summary: Getting Streetwise
Review: This work by Jim Cramer is a short depiction of the recent tragedies of Wall Street and many of the events which collaborated to help them bring down the Stock Market. This overview will help any reader understand what happened and why. Jim takes each case and explains what went wrong and how individual investors can better recognize bad companies and nasty business practice. The final section is a short recommendation of trading strategies through diversification, balance sheets and other tools to help one understand the benefits and pitfalls of investing and make wiser decisions through their use. This book is a fast read but should be reread several times and it's lessons never forgotten.
Rating: 
Summary: A Thinly-Veiled Advertisement for James J. Cramer
Review: To learn what Cramer knows about recent swindles (now, after the fact) or what financial products Cramer "sells", read this book. Cramer does a great job of beating you down, then offering to be your personal savior.
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So this is what I had to say about Cramer a year ago, and now I'm a total Cramer junkie. His radio show (...) is the best source of timely, unbiased, practical information I have found in 20 years of investment AND IT'S FREE. Jim is right most of the time, but he also is the first to admit when he has made a mistake.
Thank you, Jim, for giving me the courage to fire my broker, improve my investment performance, and save $25,000/year in fees.
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