Rating: 
Summary: Truth Wins Every Time
Review: "Bulls Eye Investing" is an extremely important book. It is macro-factual analysis that joins the zenith of economic scholarship. Mr. Mauldin does financial meta-analysis at a level that breaks ground from a philosophy of markets perspective. The graphs, tables, data, research, and yes, the thinking are as clear as any business bottom line-- direct and unmistakably to the point. The writing is easy to understand and the reader stands in awe of how John Mauldin makes clear the endless, tortuous mumbo-jumbo of the market and the oceans of unfathomable data one has to confront when trying to make any sense out of investing at all. More important is what the reader may infer about his own stock market prospects (going forward!) armed thanks to Mauldin, with a withering tour de force of the facts. All in all, this work and its writing is brilliant, and revolutionary. I am extremely grateful to its author and will go so far as to extol its virtue to the gods. By reading this book, middle class boomers like me will be able to save thousands of hours of agony, useless study, pain AND MONEY. My heart valves thank the author--from the bottom up. Before listening to another word from a broker or believing in any of Wall Street's Smoke and Mirror malarkey, READ THIS BOOK. Otherwise caveat emptor might take on even more ruinous meaning for you in the future than it may already have done when the tech bubble blew up in 2000. This is a MUST READ and STUDY for anybody in the market. Especially for the buy and hold believer. It will rock you to the core.
Rating: 
Summary: Good book, in theory.
Review: Good book, in theory.
Remember Mr. Mauldin is a business man and he is in hedge fund business.
He needs to promote his business.
He needs to cry bear.
Who cares about secular bear?
If I listened to his advice and wrote covered calls in 2003 I would have lost my shirt instead of making 50% on my money.
Cheers.
Rating:
Summary: Lots of wisdom, theories and ooh and aah(s) in this read
Review: Having little knowledge of truly what Bulls Eye Investing was about, i trusted the recommendation from IBD and gave it a good read. The author did a great job of providing as much knowledge into this book that he possibly could; based on that, i completely recommend this book. The only downside to this book for me was that it was just booooooring... i didnt care about hedge funds either. But what basically boiled down to when it came to stock searching was this:
Stop-Loss
Dont Fall in love with stocks
Pick Value
Patience
Not only does he mention these towards the end of the book, they are just so bland/broad. The title is misleading and was used mainly as an eye catcher because it covers more about history, data and a bunch of unnecessary hog wash. Some chapters stood out more than others, but a feeling of repetiveness kicked in after the fourth or so. Hedge Funds, i skipped altogether. However this book covers the history of the market and everything you could possibly dream of knowing regarding the overall market direction. I still give "BULLS EYE INVESTING" a thumbs up for the amount of educational information on its behalf.
Rating: 
Summary: Great information, but you may not agree with him
Review: I enjoyed reading this book. It reminds me of A Random Walk Down Wall Street. Mauldin advocates that the stock market is overpriced and that you should consider other investment options. He does a good job of laying out his argument. However, if you listened to him and pulled out of the stock market in 2004, you would have missed out on some large gains. He did get me thinking of investing in individual value stocks instead of index funds.
In the last part of the book he tries to sell you on hedge funds, but his case is far less convincing. I get the feeling that that section is a bit of self-promotion.
I agree with the other reviewers that the book could have been written better and that some sections are repetitive.
I appreciate Mauldin's insights. I am glad I have his perspective, even though I don't exactly agree with it. Maudlin is sticking his neck out with the prediction that the stock market will be in for a big decline coinciding with a recession either in 2005 or 2006. If he turns out to be correct, then he deserves another start in the rating. We shall see.
Rating:
Summary: a true gem!
Review: I have been a reader of John's weekley email for about the past year. I only wish iI had been reading them sooner, as he is one smart cookie. He sure would have saved me some money! In his book, John postulates the direction of the market in the future (sideways or down), and tells you why. He also suggests strategies to take to avoid loss & possibly gain more in the future. Is there anything REALLY new in here? Nah. But has anyone taken the time to thoroughly analyze, dissect, and explain the market in the same way John has, WITHOUT the fluff? Nope. Does he back up every postulation and idea with fact? ABSOLUTELY! And unlike some of the go-go "investment advisors" out there, he sticks pretty much to the facts. Unless you are a one really smart investor, there is a lot of information in here, and this is a tome on the market that is well worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: A Quick Easy Read - and You Might learn Something Too!
Review: I have been a stock broker for over 44 years and have read a myriad of economic books during this period.
There is so much common sense in this book that if you are a serious investor,or a stock broker, it is a must read.
Most books of this type, the author "pats himself" on the back ." See how good I am!" Not here.
Now the clincher. It is an easy read. The chapters are normal length, but the sub chapters are anywhere from two paragraphs to just a page and a half. If I had a book like this in college I would have gotten "A's". Cheerio!!!
Rating:
Summary: Must read
Review: I have read well over a hundred investment books. This is clearly one of the very best and is an absolute must read. It should be a must read for every politician holding public office.
Rating:
Summary: A BOOK THAT MAY REWARD INVESTORS
Review: I make it a point to read almost every book on personal finance and making money in real estate and the stock market. This is must reading if you want to learn from the experience from others. Another book that may be of interest if you like this book is: GUARANTEED PROFITS FROM SMALL STOCKS: THE ONLY STOCK MARKET SYSTEM THAT COMES WITH A $5,000 GUARANTEE by R. Max Bowser. Bowser makes a $5,000 cash guarantee that his system works. That makes Bowser's book a bit different than most investment books.
Rating:
Summary: Made Me Rethink My Whole Investing Approach
Review: I'm in the process of getting serious about investing as returns from existing investments are now a sizable part of my annual income. This book's main argument, that the stock market is going to be flat, at best, over the next decade seems pretty persuasive. The most persuasive reasons for this are:
- The market, when starting from a high P/E and low interest rates, historically is flat at best.
- The market historically overreacts to a bubble (like the Internet bubble) and we have not yet completed that overreaction. Mauldin recommends:
- Small-cap value oriented stock picking. This is the direction I was already intending to pursue. I think I'm going to need some help with this find the right kind of stock screening data.
- Hedge funds. This is counter to my strategy (and the whole value approach to investing) of really, deeply understanding your investments.
- Betting on a falling dollar. Mauldin provides no specific ways of doing this. I'm interesting in joining a club of serious investors who want to pool what they are learning in the areas of small-cap and value investing. Please email ddillon@direcway.com if you know of such a club, online or local. Here's a few more notes on the book:
o The style is very readable, but repetitive. The book would be considerably better if it had been polished and edited down to about half its length.
o Topics on other trends, such as demographics, pensions, the dollar being overvalued are also very valuable.
Rating:
Summary: Bull's Eye Advice
Review: If you're a reader of the author's weekly commentary, you already know one of his strengths is the ability to offer good commentary -- sometimes opinionated and sometimes factual -- without the hype. Most books and commentaries are written more to market the author than inform the reader, and that leads to inflammatory posturing that simply incites (but doesn't inform) the readers. Mauldin consistently presents a reasonable case for his views, and doesn't mind offering opposing perspectives as potentially valid. His book follows the same format of being more interested in teaching his readers than marketing himself. Beyond that, you'll find his understanding of market mechanisms -- and his advice -- is superb. Don't worry if you don't understand the entire book. If you're an investor, read it at your current level of understanding and you'll find it worth the time and money. Then re-read it as you become more financially astute. If you're just interested in garnering a better understanding of what motivates investors and drives the financial markets, you'll also find this book quite illuminating.
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