If you follow the our blog, you know it’s no secret that we’re fans of Josh Brown over at The Reformed Broker. He tells it like it is with a sense of humor and humility, and that same refreshing writing style has transferred over to his new book- Backstage Wall Street: An Insider’s Guide to Knowing Who to Trust, Who to Run From, and How to Maximize Your Investments

If you’re looking for a roadmap to building the perfect portfolio, look elsewhere. This isn’t a sleazy salespitch for a strategy or a dry encyclopedia entry of investment vehicles. Instead, Brown writes candidly about his life in the brokerage world, going so far as to outline the Straight Line Pitch word for word- a pitch that elicited more than handful of chuckles in how familiar it is. He’s a little more sympathetic to stock investing than we are, but we can get on board with the candid manner in which he addresses the investing process.

Brown probably made quite a few enemies out of his scathing criticisms of those who peddle investments, but to us, it smacked of truth. It’s hard not to agree with some of the observations contained within, from the impending death of the mutual fund industry to the utility of going independent as an advisor to the flaws in the system that encourage abuse of investors. Peppered with both industry and personal history for flavor, the book was entrancing, entertaining and informative. If you’re a fan of his blog, or just trying to learn about how to protect yourself from the “sharks” and “whales” of the investing sea, it’s definitely a highly recommended read.

Now, time to start moving on a book of our own…