Rating: 
Summary: Great for people about a year into intelligent investing
Review: Are low expense, low tax index funds are the way to go? The academic studies and charts in this book helped me decide. As soon as I read of a great mutual fund and invest in it, it goes down. Why? Bogle's academic studies prove that the best stock funds will revert to the mean (produce average returns which are generally below those of the index fund's) over time. Those great returns were for yesterday's money not today's. And no academic or stock watcher has been able to successfully pick out hot funds in advance. Their objective records are terrible Ouch! Reverting to the mean appears to be as unyielding as gravity.
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Summary: Solid investment advice for individual investors
Review: Bogle's investment advice is rock solid, but I found his repetition irritating. What I found particulary fresh was his critique of the mutual fund industry. I suspect relatively few individual investors are aware of the governance and incentive problems that Bogle highlights.
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Summary: This Guy is the Greatest....
Review: John Bogle is truly a guidance counselor of forelorn investors. We are whipsawed daily with a plethora of data which I am convinced, is only provided to confuse. His book, while seemingly too technical for my little brain, is a wonderful eye opening passage into the mutual fund arena. I have bought into the Vanguard story and indexing in the early part of this year and I am now systematically changing all my fund selections into Vanguard funds that are indexed. Low expenses, low turnover and indexing are the solutions for investors who want the best return for the least cost. I am sold. Thank you John Bogle for your insight. My heirs will also appreciate your wisdom in another 30 years for they will be the actual benefactors of the accumulation of my wealth.
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Summary: A classic!
Review: "Bogle on Mutual Funds" was my first investment Bible. This book kicks it up a notch in sophistication of his philosophy. Noone knows what will work best in the investment world next year, but Bogle clearly knows what will work best over the long run. IGNORE THIS BOOK AT YOUR PERIL! The last third of the book is an extremely brave look at the business morals of the mutual fund industry. Thank God somebody is willing to speak up.
Rating: 
Summary: Common Sense, Yes -- Plain English, No
Review: This book struck me as an academic and unnecessarily complicated version of Eric Tyson's "Mutual Funds for Dummies". Both books recommend a common sense (and increasingly common) approach to investing that stresses the importance of long-term horizons, low expenses, and minimal turnover. The difference is that Bogle cloaks his "thesis" in so much jargon and gobbledy-gook that it often takes a couple readings just to figure out what he's trying to say. He's kidding himself if he thinks Main Street USA is going to get through this book. If his intent was to shake up American complacency a la Thomas Paine, I'm afraid he's failed miserably.By the way, the book's jacket and first few pages are loaded with hyperactive rave reviews from some Big Names in the investment field. This seems awfully disingenuous when Bogle thanks almost all of them by name a couple pages later in the Acknowledgments section. Logrolling, anyone?
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Summary: Avoid the Misconception Stall about Your Investments
Review: A common problem that all of us have is that we believe ourselves to be able to produce superior results in virtually any area we try -- acting on that belief can cost you a fortune if it affects how you invest over your lifetime. By definition, half will be average or less, and half average or higher in most areas of human endeavor. When it comes to investing, however, the odds are not that good. If you choose the wrong asset class, you can make great choices and greatly lag the pack. If you choose the wrong way to invest with the right asset class, you can still do poorly. Mr. Bogle's book explains in remarkable detail (with lots of graphs and numbers to make the point) that almost everyone will lag the market averages for stocks over any multiple year period of time due to the effects of trading stocks, taxes, costs for money management, marketing expenses, and size of portfolio. Rather than despair, he points out that we can view this as an outstanding opportunity. We can simply buy indexed mutual funds (such as the ones that Vanguard, his firm, offers) and outperform 98-99 percent of everyone who invests for the long haul. Unlike other books where the author touts an activity that benefits him economically, Mr. Bogle's arguement is right. For anyone with less investment skill than Warren Buffett, S&P 500 and Wilshire 5000 index funds will be a terrific solution. New investors may find this book to have more information than they need or can easily absorb. People who think they know all the answers will find a lot of new material to cogitate about, usefully. Anyone who owns mutual funds is making a mistake if they do not read this book. Anytime you start to invest on the assumption that you can beat the market easily, PLEASE QUICKLY READ OR REREAD THIS BOOK. THEN LIE DOWN UNTIL THE FEELING GOES AWAY! He is also remarkably candid that future returns from indexing may be modest (even though you will continue to beat almost everyone else). My own reaction is that the market is really too high now to start index investing, but new cash should certainly go into index mutual funds whenever we get a decent correction down to or much closer to the more typical 14 times p/e that stocks usually sell for. Mr. Bogle also explores that point in excellent detail. A wonderful book by someone who is really looking out for the investors' best interests!
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Summary: The ultimate mutual investment book.
Review: Exposes the truth behind the mutual fund industry and the way it operates. Provides information the individual investor will seldom find in mainstream resources. The idea that costs affect returns and the indisputable strength of indexing vs. active management are highlighted. The technical parts may seem a little intimidating but are well worth learning. The book blows away the typical "Get Rich Quick" or fuzzy,warm feel-good "investing" books.
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Summary: god wrote it
Review: i know the book inside out the author knows me and will leave the information that i will need on the voice mail. you already know the number may god bless u
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent But Boring
Review: I think it is too technical for me. The message of cost and index keeps popping up after numerous lengthy and boring technical discussions. I wish the author spent more time on exact and practical strategies instead of repeating his thesis of cost/index funds over and over again. It deserves a four star even though I do not have the patience to follow the details
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Summary: The best book EVER on mutual funds
Review: Mr. Bogle's book is a must read for every investor no matter how experienced. His knowledge of the mutual fund industry and successful long term investment strategies can help anyone create a secure retirement lifestyle no matter what their current level of income. The book has changed not only my investment philosophies but my life as well. My precious time on earth will no longer be spent on trying to find the "next best investment" but on the important things in life. Thanks to Mr. Bogle for giving me some common sense. For those individuals that are tired of all the "noise" that is out there on investing, the gospel according to John can restore your soul.
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