Fleet (Demystifying Wall Street
) offers familiar advice awkwardly wedged into parable. The author has a good handle on decent if ubiquitous bare-bones financial wisdom—the importance of long-term planning, ethical business dealings, altruism, living below your means and business savvy, but he splices his advice, somewhat perplexingly, with stories of King Solomon and his young protégé, Abidan. Fleet’s admiration of Solomon—who he claims was the richest and wisest man of all time (even after adjusting for inflation and IQ reporting) comes through loud and clear, but the connection between the biblical stories and the financial lessons feels contrived at best. By attempting to juxtapose two very different objectives, Fleet has created a book that’s neither fish nor fowl—with no obvious message—tied together by a gimmick with limited appeal. (Sept.)
