The Bond King

Mary Childs is a Planet Money program co-host and journalist for NPR. She formerly worked as a correspondent for Barron's, the Financial Times, and Bloomberg News. She earned a degree in business journalism from Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia.

Bill Gross was a gambler before being renowned as the Bond King among investors. In 1966, as a recent college graduate, he traveled to Las Vegas equipped with his net worth ($200) and a talent for card counting. He was hooked after $10,000 and several casino bans, so he enrolled in business school.

Among the best books on bond investing, The Bond King tells the story of how that brilliant young man convinced Americans to fund his casino. Bill Gross transformed the sleepy bond market into a destabilized game of high risk, high reward over the course of decades; founded Pimco, one of today's most powerful, secretive, and cutthroat investment firms; helped to reshape our financial system in the aftermath of the Great Recession to his own advantage; and amassed legions of admirers and enemies along the way. His ambition, like that of every American antihero, would be his undoing.

Understanding the victors and losers in today's money game, according to journalist Mary Childs, is understanding the bond market, and understanding the bond market is understanding the Bond King.

Author: Mary Childs

Link to buy: https://www.amazon.com/Bond-King-Market-Built-Empire/dp/1250120845/

Ratings: 4.3 out of 5 stars (from 261 reviews)

Best Sellers Rank: #8,844 in Books

#2 in Bonds Investing (Books)

#5 in Economic Policy

#5 in Economic Policy & Development (Books)