Bogle on Mutual Funds: New Perspectives for the Intelligent Investor

In this awesome overview of investment company products and services, Bogle, founder and CEO of the $110-billion Vanguard group of funds, demonstrates that ``the abundance of information available about mutual funds is . . . overwhelming.'' Among the minute details included, Bogle tells not only how to improve your backhand, as it were, but how to get the best grass or clay for the tennis court. Fund categories past and present--index, international, income, growth, industry-specialized (electronic, health), long- and short-term bond (U.S., corporate, ``junk''), along with sales charges pro and con (Vanguard has none), high-low expense ratios, management track records and tax considerations--all are dissected to the ultimate percentile in relation to investor objectives and an inconstant economic climate. There is certainly something here for everyone, but in the aggregate the author reaches beyond the needs (and possibly the comprehension) of readers not engaged in the investment business. 70,000 first printing; first serial to Money; Fortune Book Club main selecton. (Oct.)