Women and retiring baby boomers are two of the audiences targeted by business book publishers this spring. The increase in the number—and quality—of titles aimed at women comes after last year’s success of Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In, while baby boomers are beginning to retire in record numbers yet many face the prospect of an uncertain future.
Given the success of Lean In, it’s not surprising that a number of publishers refer to the bestseller in promoting their own books. That is the case with The Confidence Code: The Art and Science of Self-Assurance—and What Women Need to Know whose authors, Katty Kay and Claire Shipman, are said by their publisher “to go beyond Lean In” to discuss the importance of confidence at every stage of a career. It’s easy to lose confidence after making a mistake in business, but how women can overcome missteps is the subject of Mistakes I Made at Work: 25 Influential Women Reflect on What They Got Out of Getting It Wrong.
A hard look at how retirement is changing as traditional paid-in pension plans are replaced by 401(k)s is addressed in Social Insecurity: 401(k)s and the Retirement Crisis. How to cope with the new retirement realities is taken up in Baby Boomers Survival Guide.
The changes in retirement are only one part of a reshaped economy that is still dealing with the aftershocks of the Great Recession. One of the most-debated current topics is the growing gap between the very wealthy and the rest of Americans, and that subject is examined in Hard Times: The Divisive Toll of the Economic Slump. Banks “too big to fail” were one of the main causes of the most recent economic crisis, and The Seven Sins of Wall Street: Big Banks, their Washington Lackeys, and the Next Financial Crisis asserts that not enough has been done to prevent another financial calamity. A deep dive into one of the most important and least understood parts of the American economy, commodities trading, is brought to life in The Secret Club That Runs the World: Inside the Fraternity of Commodities Traders.
One of the most positive economic developments in recent years—at least in terms of generating revenue—has been fracking. But while fracking has been a boon to many, its environmental impact is not yet fully understood, and the pros and cons of that energy practice are examined in The Boom: How Fracking Ignited the American Energy Revolution and Changed the World.
Fracking mixes economics and politics, and a family that has had a huge impact on politics by funding conservative causes is the Kochs, and their family history comes under examination in Sons of Wichita: How the Koch Brothers Became America’s Most Powerful and Private Dynasty. A new hot-button issue that touches both politics and business is privacy, and the erosion of privacy is examined in Dragnet Nation: A Quest for Privacy, Security, and Freedom in a World of Relentless Surveillance.
PW’s Top 10: Business & Economics
The Confidence Code: The Art and Science of Self-Assurance—and What Women Need to Know. Katty Kay and Claire Shipman. HarperCollins, Apr. 15.
Mistakes I Made at Work: 25 Influential Women Reflect on What They Got Out of Getting It Wrong. Jessica Bacal. Plume, Apr. 29.
Social Insecurity: 401(k)s and the Retirement Crisis. James W. Russell. Beacon, Apr. 29.
Baby Boomers Survival Guide. Barbara Rockefeller. Humanix, Mar. 25.
Hard Times: The Divisive Toll of the Economic Slump. Tom Clark and Anthony Heath. Yale, June 24.
The Seven Sins of Wall Street: Big Banks, Their Washington Lackeys, and the Next Financial Crisis. Bob Ivry. PublicAffairs, Mar. 25.
The Secret Club That Runs the World: Inside the Fraternity of Commodities Traders. Kate Kelly. Portfolio, Apr. 15.
The Boom: How Fracking Ignited the American Energy Revolution and Changed the World. Russell Gold. Simon & Schuster, Apr. 8.
Sons of Wichita: How the Koch Brothers Became America’s Most Powerful and Private Dynasty. Daniel Schulman. Grand Central, May 6.
Dragnet Nation: A Quest for Privacy, Security, and Freedom in a World of Relentless Surveillance. Julia Angwin. Times Books, Feb. 25.
Business & Economics Listings
Agate B2.
(dist. By PGW)
The World’s Richest Man: Carlos Slim In His Own Words by Tanni Haas (May 13, paper, $10.95, ISBN 978-1932841848). The Richest Man in the World is a collection of thought-provoking direct quotes from the Mexican magnate who topped Forbes’s list from 2010 to 2013; topics include business, investing, leadership, management, philanthropy, and life.
Amacom
(dist. by Ingram)
Own Your Future: How to Think Like an Entrepreneur and Thrive in an Unpredictable Economy by Paul B. Brown (June 1, hardcover, $22, ISBN 978-0814434093). It used to be that if you studied and worked hard, you could be assured of an extremely satisfying career. But in a world of constant layoffs and dying industries, it has become increasingly difficult to “plan” your way to success. Own Your Future shows how to apply the same approach successful entrepreneurs use to your own career.
Amazon Publishing/New Harvest
(dist. by HMH)
Location Is (Still) Everything: The Surprising Influence of the Real World on How We Search, Shop, and Sell in the Virtual One by David R. Bell (July 15, hardcover, $26, ISBN 978-0544262270). How the physical world around us influences what we buy and consume online is the subject of this work by Wharton professor and consumer shopping behavior expert Bell.
Beacon Press
(dist. by Random House)
Social Insecurity 401(k)s and the Retirement Crisis by James W. Russell (Apr. 29, hardcover, $26.95, ISBN 978-0807012567). How 401(k)s have gutted retirement security, from charging exorbitant hidden fees to failing to replace the income of traditional pensions.
Benbella Books
(dist. by Perseus)
The Path Redefined: Getting to the Top on Your Own Terms by Lauren Maillian Bias (May 20, hardcover, $24.95, ISBN 978-1939529763). Serial entrepreneur and woman’s advocate Bias dispenses her wisdom about what it takes to get to the top on your own terms. Announced first printing: 20,000.
Bloomsbury USA
The Monopolists: Obsession, Fury, and the Scandal Behind the World’s Favorite Board Game by Mary Pilon (June 3, hardcover, $27, ISBN 978-1608199631). The inside story of the world’s most famous board game, a buried piece of American history with an epic controversy that continues today.
Money Mania: Booms, Panics, and Busts from Ancient Rome to the Great Meltdown by Bob Swarup (Feb. 25, hardcover, $27, ISBN 978-1608198412). Twenty-five centuries of financial bubbles, investment manias, and human folly are explained in this book.
Chelsea Green Publishing
Extracted: How the Quest for Mineral Wealth Is Plundering the Planet by Ugo Bardi (May 12, paper, $24.95, ISBN 978-1603585415). As we dig, drill, and excavate to unearth the planet’s mineral bounty, the resources we exploit are gradually becoming exhausted. Will there come a time when we run out of minerals? In Extracted, Bardi offers a compelling glimpse into that new world ahead.
Cornell University Press/ILR Press
The Next Crash: How Short-Term Profit Seeking Trumps Airline Safety by Amy L. Fraher (May 27, hardcover, $27.95, ISBN 978-0801452857). Fraher offers a shocking perspective on the aviation industry and uncovers the story airline executives and government regulators would rather not tell.
Grand Central Publishing
Sons of Wichita: How the Koch Brothers Became America’s Most Powerful and Private Dynasty by Daniel Schulman (May 6, hardcover, $30, ISBN 978-1455518739). Like the Rockefellers and the Ford Family, the Koch Brothers are one of America’s wealthiest and politically active families. Influenced by their father’s radical libertarianism, Charles and David have built the family’s oil and cattle empire. Announced first printing: 75,000.
Young Money: Inside the Hidden World of Wall Street’s Post-Crash Recruits by Kevin Roose (Feb. 18, hardcover, $27, ISBN 978-0446583251). Roose, a New York magazine columnist and author of the critically acclaimed The Unlikely Disciple, explores the secret lives of young, post-crash bankers on Wall Street. Announced first printing: 40,000.
Hachette Book Group/Business Plus
Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office: Unconscious Mistakes Women Make That Sabotage Their Careers by Lois P. Frankel (Feb. 18, paper, $18, ISBN 978-1455546046). The New York Times bestseller, which has become a must-have for women in business, is now revised and updated in celebration of its 10th anniversary. Announced first printing: 50,000.
HarperCollins
The Confidence Code: The Art and Science of Self-Assurance—and What Women Need to Know by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman (Apr. 15, hardcover, $27.99, ISBN 978-0062230621). Going beyond Lean In and Why Women Should Rule the World, the authors of the bestselling Womenomics provide an informative and practical guide to understanding the importance of confidence—and learning how to achieve it—for women of all ages and at all stages of their career. Announced first printing: 75,000.
The Glass Closet by John Browne (June 17, hardcover, $27.99, ISBN 978-0062316974). Part memoir and part social criticism, The Glass Closet addresses the issue of homophobia that still pervades corporations around the world and underscores the immense challenges faced by LGBT employees. Announced first printing: 25,000.
Haunted Empire: Apple After Steve Jobs by Yukari Iwatani Kane (Mar. 18, hardcover, $27.99, ISBN 978-0062128256). Former Wall Street Journal technology reporter Kane delves deep inside Apple in the two years since Steve Jobs’s death, revealing the tensions and challenges CEO Tim Cook and his team face as they try to sustain Jobs’s vision and keep the company moving forward. Announced first printing: 50,000.
Executive Presence: The Missing Link Between Merit and Success by Sylvia Ann Hewlett (June 3, hardcover, $26.99, ISBN 978-0062246899). Are you “leadership material?” More importantly, do others perceive you to be? Hewlett, a noted expert on workplace power and influence, shows you how to identify and embody the Executive Presence (EP) that you need to succeed. Announced first printing: 35,000.
Pitch Perfect: How to Say It Right the First Time, Every Time by Bill McGowan (Apr. 1, hardcover, $27.99, ISBN 978-0062273222). Media guru and Emmy Award–winning correspondent McGowan—coach to some of the biggest names in business and entertainment—teaches you how to get your message across and get what you want. Announced first printing: 50,000.
HarperCollins/It Books
Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation by Blake J. Harris (May 13, hardcover, $26.99, ISBN 978-0062276698). Console Wars is a behind-the-scenes business thriller that chronicles how Sega, a small, scrappy gaming company led by an unlikely visionary and a team of rebels, took on the juggernaut Nintendo and revolutionized the video game industry.
Harvard Business Review Press
Power Cues: The Subtle Science of Leading Groups, Persuading Others, and Maximizing Your Personal Impact by Nick Morgan (May 13, hardcover, $25, ISBN 978-1422193501). Morgan is a well-known leadership speaking coach and communication consultant. In Power Cues, new learnings from brain and behavioral science offer a new way to command influence over others and Morgan shows you how to master the techniques. Announced first printing: 20,000.
Big Data at Work: Dispelling the Myths, Uncovering the Opportunities by Thomas H. Davenport (Feb. 25, hardcover, $30, ISBN 978-1422168165). From the author of the bestselling Competing on Analytics, this follow-up gives managers a concise, nontechnical overview of big data and explains how to exploit the new opportunities it creates. Announced first printing: 25,000.
The Big Pivot: Radically Practical Strategies for a Hotter, Scarcer, and More Open World by Andrew S. Winston (Apr. 15, hardcover, $25, ISBN 978-1422167816). Winston presents climate change as an opportunity that companies can leverage, and how they should think about strategy in a post-hurricane Sandy world of rapid climate change. Announced first printing: 20,000.
Henry Holt/Times Books
Dragnet Nation: A Quest for Privacy, Security, and Freedom in a World of Relentless Surveillance by Julia Angwin (Feb. 25, hardcover, $28, ISBN 978-0805098075). An inside look at who is watching you, what they know and why it matters.
Hodder & Stoughton
(dist. by Ipg)
Successful Job Hunting in a Week by Patricia Scudamore and Hilton Catt (May 1, paper, $12.95, ISBN 978-1444159318). Job-hunting experts teach readers how to find the right job at the right time.
Humanix Books
(dist. by Ingram)
Baby Boomers Survival Guide by Barbara Rockefeller and Nick Tate (Mar. 25, paper, $19.95, ISBN 978-1630060008). As boomers prepare to retire in an economic climate that has many rethinking their plans, it is crucial that they take every facet of their golden years into consideration. A roadmap to retirement with the postwar generation in mind. Announced first printing: 65,000.
Kogan Page
(dist. by Ingram Publisher Services)
Advertising Transformed: The New Rules for the Digital Age by Fons Van Dyck (Feb. 28, paper, $29.95, ISBN 978-0749471484). Strategic answers to improve the effectiveness of advertising in the digital age.
From Big Data to Smart Data: The Strategic Route to Deeper Customer Insight by Colin Strong and Stuart Crawford-Browne (June 28, paper, $39.95, ISBN 978-0749472115). How to use big data strategically to redefine customer relationships.
Digital Wars: Apple, Google, Microsoft and the Battle for the Internet by Charles Arthur (May 28, paper, $19.95, ISBN 978-0749472030). A technology expert forecasts the next five years in mobile Internet.
McGraw-Hill
The Power of Visual Storytelling: How to Use Visuals, Videos, and Social Media to Market Your Brand by Ekaterina Walter and Jessica Gioglio (Mar. 7, paper, $29, ISBN 978-0071823937). Visual marketing is the breakout trend of 2013 thanks to the rise of social media platforms like Pinterest and Instagram. Social media experts Walter of Intel and Gioglio of Dunkin’ Donuts offer a unique perspective from in the trenches.
I CARE—DO YOU?: The Essentials of Delivering Legendary Service by Ken Blanchard, Victoria Halsey, and Kathy Cuff (Apr. 18, hardcover, $23, ISBN 978-0071819046). Written as an entertaining customer service parable, this book offers a model based on the importance of caring for customers.
Clash of the Financial Pundits: How the Media Influences Your Investment Decisions for Better or Worse by Joshua M. Brown and Jeff Macke (May 23, hardcover, $25, ISBN 978-0071817929). Even the most savvy investors are overwhelmed by the financial news cycle that bombards us from virtually every media platform. Popular blogger Brown and Yahoo Finance’s Macke, explain how news is processed and packaged.
Money: How the Destruction of the Dollar Threatens the Global Economy; and What We Can Do About It by Steve Forbes and Elizabeth Ames (June 6, hardcover, $28, ISBN 978-0071823708). The chairman of Forbes Media and Republican presidential candidate in ’96 and 2000 argues that since global currencies came off the gold standard, money has gotten weaker and wealth has eroded.
You Can Retire Sooner Than You Think by Wes Moss (May 23, paper, $18, ISBN 978-0071839020). What were the things today’s most successful retirees did in order to retire so early—and so happily? The host of the popular radio show Money Matters reveals the surprising results of his national survey.
MIT Press
What Have We Learned? Macroeconomic Policy after the Crisis, edited by George A. Akerlof, Olivier J. Blanchard, David Romer, and Joseph E. Stiglitz (Apr. 25, hardcover, $27.95, ISBN 978-0262027342). Since 2008, economic policymakers and researchers have occupied a brave new economic world. Previous consensuses have been upended, former assumptions have been cast into doubt, and new approaches have yet to stand the test of time. In this work, a case is made for what we can do next.
Nation Books
(dist. by Perseus)
Killing the Host: Financial Parasites and Wall Street’s War on Capitalism by Michael Hudson (July 8, hardcover, $28.99, ISBN 978-1568587370). Hudson, a maverick economist and authority on the history of debt, chronicles the financial sector’s rise to dominance, and how in its triumph, the financial sector has become a parasite that has taken over the brain of the U.S. economy.
Nolo
(dist. by Ingram Publisher Services)
Chapter 13 Bankruptcy: Keep Your Property & Repay Debts Over Time by Stephen Elias and Kathleen Michon (May 30, paper, $39.99, ISBN 978-1413320268). Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is for the millions of Americans struggling under burdensome debt who want to keep a home or other valuable property.
Oxford Univ. Press
Seventeen Contradictions and the End of Capitalism by David Harvey (Apr. 5, hardcover, $24.95, ISBN 978-0199360260). One of the world’s leading social theorists examines the foundational contradictions of capital, and reveals the fatal contradictions that are now inexorably leading to its end.
Penguin/Portfolio
Finish Big: How Great Entrepreneurs Exit Their Companies on Top by Bo Burlingham (July 10, hardcover, $27.95, ISBN 978-1591844976). The bestselling author of Small Giants returns to show how business owners can exit their companies successfully and smoothly.
#Girlboss by Sophia Amoruso (May 6, hardcover, $26.95, ISBN 978-0399169274). Moving from hitchhiker and petty thief at 17 to founder, CEO, and creative director of Nasty Gal, a $100+ million e-tailer at 29, Amoruso offers straight talk to young, aspiring woman and explains how to channel passion and hard work, while keeping insecurities from getting in the way.
The Secret Club That Runs the World: Inside the Fraternity of Commodities Traders by Kate Kelly (Apr. 15, hardcover, $27.95, ISBN 978-1591845461). From the New York Times bestselling author of Street Fighters, a gripping narrative about the loose-knit band of traders whose collective moves can spur monumental shifts in the price of commodities.
Driving Honda: Inside the World’s Most Innovative Car Company by Jeffrey Rothfeder (July 10, hardcover, $27.95, ISBN 978-1591844730). A journalist’s inside look at what makes Honda the most consistently innovative automaker.
Penguin/Viking Adult
Thanks for the Feedback: The Science and Art of Receiving Feedback Well by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen (Mar. 4, hardcover, $27.95, ISBN 978-0670014668). The bestselling authors of Difficult Conversations teach us how to turn evaluations, advice, criticisms, and coaching into productive listening and learning.
Penguin/Plume
Mistakes I Made at Work: 25 Influential Women Reflect on What They Got Out of Getting It Wrong by Jessica Bacal (Apr. 29, paper, $16, ISBN 978-0142180570). High-achieving women share their worst mistakes at work—and how learning from them paved the way to success. Jessica Bacal interviews 25 successful women about their toughest on-the-job moments.
Planning Shop
(dist. by Ingram Publisher Services)
Successful Business Plan by Rhonda Abrams (June 1, paper, $44.95, ISBN 978-1933895468). The newest edition of the popular planning guide includes the latest trends—crowdfunding, lean startups, cloud services.
Princeton University Press
Fragile by Design: The Political Origins of Banking Crises and Scarce Credit by Charles W. Calomiris and Stephen H. Haber (Feb. 23, hardcover, $35, ISBN 978-0691155241). Why are banking systems unstable in so many countries—but not in others? Combining political history and economics, Fragile by Design is a revealing exploration of the ways that politics inevitably intrudes into bank regulation.
A Social Strategy: How We Profit from Social Media by Mikolaj Jan Piskorski (May 25, hardcover, $29.95, ISBN 978-0691153391) provides not only a broad, data-driven explanation for the explosion of social media but also a valuable, concrete road map for any company that wants to tap the marketing potential of this remarkable phenomenon.
PublicAffairs
(dist. by Perseus)
The Seven Sins of Wall Street Big Banks, Their Washington Lackeys, and the Next Financial Crisis by Bob Ivry (Mar. 25, hardcover, $25.99, ISBN 978-1610393652). An award-winning investigative financial reporter gives us a highly entertaining, provocative, and ultimately damning inside look into the failed attempts to reform big banks since the crash of 2008, showing that there is nothing preventing another financial calamity. Announced first printing: 30,000.
The Chief Financial Officer: What CFOs Do, the Influence they Have, and Why It Matters by Jason Karaian (Apr. 1, hardcover, $25.99, ISBN 978-1610393850). This essential read for aspiring CFOs—and for the CEOs who they report to—examines what a Chief Financial Officer does, and how to develop the skills that will get you to the top of the corporate ladder. Announced first printing: 20,000.
Rowman & Littlefield
(dist. by NBN)
Everyday Bias: Identifying and Overcoming Unconscious Prejudice in Our Daily Lives by Howard J Ross (June 16, hardcover, $29.95, ISBN 978-1442230835). If you are human, you are biased. From this fundamental truth diversity expert Ross explores the unconscious biases we each carry within us—in the workplace, in the classroom, at the ballot box, and in our relationships.
The College to Career Transition: Building a Life You Love by Betsy A Hays (Mar. 30, hardcover, $34, ISBN 978-1442225978). This work aims to help recent grads successfully adjust to life beyond college. Focusing on more than just success in the workplace, the authors offer practical advice for all points of life, from time management at home and at work to making friends in a new city to budgeting.
Simon & Schuster
The Road to Global Prosperity by Michael Mandelbaum (Mar. 25, hardcover, $28, ISBN 978-1476750019). Expanding the argument he makes with Thomas Friedman in their bestselling That Used to Be Us, Mandelbaum describes the forces driving the next stage of globalization, one of expanding wealth and vast opportunity.
The Boom: How Fracking Ignited the American Energy Revolution and Changed the World by Russell Gold (Apr. 8, hardcover, $26, ISBN 978-1451692280). An award-winning journalist and Pulitzer Prize finalist offers an insightful, no-holds-barred exploration of today’s most controversial yet promising new energy technology: fracking.
The Antidote: Inside the World of New Pharma by Barry Werth (Feb. 4, hardcover, $30, ISBN 978-1451655667). This is the story of one drug company’s quest to transform the pharmaceutical industry and a deeply revealing look into a world where breakneck capitalism meets life-saving medicine.
St. Martin’s Press/Thomas Dunne Books
Thirty Tomorrows: The Next Three Decades of Globalization, Demographics, and How We Will Live by Milton Ezrati (Apr. 8, hardcover, $30, ISBN 978-1250042552). A seasoned economist and investment strategist reveals how the aging populations in the developed world will threaten our way of life— and how we can thrive in the face of such change.
Thomas Nelson
Smart Money Smart Kids: Raising the Next Generation to Win with Money by Dave Ramsey and Rachel Cruze (Apr. 22, hardcover, $24.99, ISBN 978-1937077631). Finance guru Ramsey is joined by his daughter, Rachel Cruze, to teach parents how to raise money-smart kids in a debt-filled world. It’s a no-nonsense, common-sense approach to changing your family tree.
Yale University Press
Hard Times: The Divisive Toll of the Economic Slump by Tom Clark and Anthony Heath (June 24, hardcover, $30, ISBN 978-0300203776). An analysis of the enduring social costs of the post-2008 economic crisis.
