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Damn Right!: Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger

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Praise for Damn Right!
From the author of the bestselling WARREN BUFFETT SPEAKS. . .
"Charlie Munger, whose reputation is deep and wide, based on an extraordinary record of brilliantly successful business strategies, sees things that others don't. There is a method to his mastery and, through this book, we get a chance to learn about this rare individual." -MICHAEL EISNER, Chairman and CEO, The Walt Disney Company
"Janet Lowe uncovers the iconoclastic genius and subtle charm behind Charlie Munger's curmudgeonly facade in this richly woven portrait of our era's heir to Ben Franklin. With a biographer's detachment, an historian's thoroughness, and a financial writer's common sense, Lowe produces a riveting account of the family, personal, and business life of the idiosyncratically complex and endlessly fascinating figure." -LAWRENCE CUNNINGHAM, Cardozo Law School, Author of The Essays of Warren Buffett: Lessons for Corporate America
"For years, Berkshire Hathaway shareholders and investors worldwide (me included) have struggled to learn more about Warren Buffett's cerebral sidekick. Now we can rest and enjoy reading Janet Lowe's book about this rare intellectual jewel called Charlie Munger." -ROBERT G. HAGSTROM, Author of The Warren Buffett Way
"Charlie has lived by the creed that one should live a life that doesn't need explaining. But his life should be explained. In a city where heroism is too often confused with celebrity, Charlie is a true hero and mentor. He lives the life lessons that he has studiously extracted from other true heroes and mentors, from Ben Franklin to Ben Graham. This book illuminates those life lessons." -RONALD L. OLSON, Munger, Tolles & Olson llp
"Janet Lowe's unprecedented access to Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett has resulted in a first-class book that investors, academics, and CEOs will find entertaining and highly useful."-TIMOTHY P. VICK, Money Manager and Author of How to Pick Stocks Like Warren Buffett

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

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About the author

Janet Lowe

44 books35 followers
Janet Celesta Lowe was an American journalist, newspaper editor, and writer.

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5 stars
1,147 (44%)
4 stars
867 (33%)
3 stars
424 (16%)
2 stars
107 (4%)
1 star
27 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 114 reviews
Profile Image for James.
297 reviews85 followers
May 26, 2011
Mostly gossip about his family, very little about his investing career.

Boringggggg
Profile Image for Amir.
Author 5 books24 followers
June 20, 2020

Damn Right! Is the story of Charles Munger and the Munger family, Charles Munger is the decades long partner of Warren Buffett. He is a business man, lawyer, real estate developer, and some will say a philosopher.

It is not a story of get rich fast, or a story of a young guy with a brilliant idea that changed the world in 5 years or less. It is a different kind of a story, a story of hard work, a story of tragedies and triumphs, a story of building your life dreams one day at a time, a story of a man with gumption.

Some criticize the book of not detailing the investment philosophy of Charles Munger, some say it has too many details or too few of them. I think it is not an investment book per se, but it is a mind set book. I find it to be a fascinating story of a man with values that we all know, determination that we aspire to have, and yes some luck that we wish for.

I once spoke with two business owners, they both had the same type of business, they both had partners, both were determined and hard working and they both struggled, one of them became a very successful multi branch business while the other bankrupt.

Why? I think that by reading the book you might find the answer, and if not you might get inspired.

When the situation is tough and one craves to raise the white flag, there will be the ones who will give up and ones that will keep on pushing. Charles Munger story is of a person that kept on going for decades and achieved the success he deserved.
Profile Image for Erik Potter.
60 reviews1 follower
May 23, 2017
This book needed a better editor. It reads like a series of articles from the business section interspersed by ill-fitting, irrelevant domestic scenes in an attempt to justify it being a bound volume. It seems perpetually removed from its subject, not satisfying the personal-portrait desires by biography buffs, while also spending too much time on meaningless financial trivia, disappointing interested investors looking for deeper insight into one of the most successful investing world views in history.
Profile Image for Kintan.
36 reviews9 followers
December 28, 2019
This is not an investment book, but a book focused on way of life and thinking - shared through Munger's life. The last chapter (Practical thought about practical thought) is a masterpiece.
Profile Image for Samuel Peck.
136 reviews20 followers
August 28, 2018
Sadly, a poorly written book about an interesting person. One can derive similar lessons and insights with greater ease and clarity - and with less of the random useless biographical minutiae - from The Snowball, Poor Charlie's Almanac and the Peter Bevelin books.
Profile Image for Aharon.
574 reviews21 followers
July 3, 2013
A term paper that never ends.
Profile Image for Bart Jaworski.
16 reviews3 followers
February 21, 2024
Charlie is one of the most incredible Humans to have walked on this planet, however the book itself is merely decent.
Profile Image for Milan.
292 reviews2 followers
January 25, 2013
Charlie Munger, vice-president of Berkshire Hathaway is quite well known for this 'Mungerisms' or words of wisdom. This book by Janet Lowe shows the ascent of Munger, the businessman from his humble days as a lawyer to a world known billionaire investor. He likes to be in the background and let Warren Buffet do most of the talking. Munger and Buffet completely complement each other. They almost look like siblings. They have the same values and a conservative investing style.

This book will not tell you how to pick stocks like Charlie Munger but how to live an exemplary life. If you are willing to read the tit-bits about Munger family, this book has a lot to teach. Apart from law and investing, he is very knowledgeable about science. He is greatly influenced by Benjamin Franklin. Buffet was very fortunate to have a friend and business partner like him to discuss and get new investing ideas. This partnership is a perfect example of 1+1 = 11. Their investing style looks easy to understand, but it is very hard to follow. As Munger says, you have to adapt your strategy to your own nature and your own talents.
Profile Image for Ujval Nanavati.
181 reviews7 followers
May 10, 2020
Charlie Munger's is a story that needs to be told. And told well. Unfortunately this effort is a poor one. Badly written, needlessly detailed on unimportant aspects, and badly organised.

And yet, useful in pockets.
Profile Image for Nouvel Diamant.
366 reviews7 followers
Read
August 10, 2023
Ich fand dieses Buch nicht lesenswert:

Die Autorin scheint gemäss Buchdeckel bekannt zu sein für ihre Biografien über amerikanische (wahrscheinlich meinen Sie US-...) Führungspersönlichkeiten; und dies ist nun eine weitere über Charlie Munger.

Wer daraus Erkenntnisse über Charlie Mungers Investitions-Grundsätze erhofft oder ähnliches liegt vollkommen falsch.

Das Buch enthält hauptsächlich Anekdoten zum Familien- und Ferien-Alltag von Charlie Munger mit seiner Grossfamilie & nix über Investitions-Entscheidungen.
126 reviews
December 17, 2023
Loved the book! It is a fun Biography to read, amazingly.
Learned about Monger’s brain and life and appreciate a humble genius very much!
345 reviews3,047 followers
September 23, 2018
There are multiple books and papers written about the vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, Charles T. Munger. When Damn Right! was published however there wasn’t much. And whereas a lot is written about Munger as an investor, in this biography we get to know him on a more personal level from his birth to his 70s around the year 2000. Munger and his family always wanted to remain out of the public eye, causing very little information to be available about Munger before Damn Right!. Thus, Munger’s family was not overly excited about this book from the start. Still, the author Janet Lowe told Munger that she was going to write about him with or without his consent and after a while he agreed to be cooperative. Lowe is an investment writer and author. She specializes in books about business leaders and has among others portrayed Benjamin Graham, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates.

Damn Right! describes how Munger was born in 1924 and grew up in Omaha. His family taught him the sound morals of Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin from an early age. His father was an Omaha judge and Munger followed in his father's footsteps by pursuing law. Early in his career he suffered from both distractive events as being forced into military service, as well as sad ones with a divorce and the tragic death of his son. It took him until his thirties to start accumulating his fortune which he built out of savings from his legal practice, invested into real estate projects. Having realized that debt is a vital ingredient to be successful in real estate investing together with it being a full-time job, he soon moved on to other interests. This involved starting an investment partnership and resigning from being a lawyer after having co-founded the law firm Munger, Tolles and Olsen - which is used by Berkshire to this day.

Munger ran a concentrated investment portfolio with huge success but also wild fluctuations. He frequently discussed his investment ideas with Warren Buffett who he later famously went into business with, taking the subordinate position as vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. Munger is famously known for teaching Buffett that it pays off to pay up for quality. What is not so known but explained in the book is that he himself also learnt that lesson fairly late. The company that in this regard made the strongest impression on him and Buffett was See’s Candies, a high quality, premium chocolate company located in San Francisco which has been a home run for Berkshire.

Aside from getting to know some of his and Berkshire's investments in See’s Candies, The Buffalo Evening News and Salomon Brothers the reader is introduced to Munger’s moral compass, which is strongly influenced by Franklin - his biggest hero. Munger is of the view that honesty and hard work will take a person a long way. Morals aside, a trait he is famous for which isn’t as positive though, is his manners. People who don’t know him well may think he is arrogant and rude. One thing that defines Munger is that he didn’t set out to become superrich but rather financially independent enough to pursue interests within education, medicine and philanthropy and also his hobbies of architecture, travelling and fishing.

Although the book is filled with timeless quotes from both Munger and Buffett I still feel that some quotes are a bit misplaced where one subject is discussed and then followed by a quote or writing which is not really connected with the prior text disrupting the flow of the reading. However, this is more of a minor observation than a large negative. For me, a book about Munger could never be boring. I like Poor Charlie’s Almanack more, which is a book I often go back to, but I still rate Damn Right! highly and it’s a must for all Buffett & Munger fans. The part I enjoyed the most was to get more insight into Charlie Munger the person and not only his sharp quotes and wisdom, even if the book gives the reader plenty of that too.

The only thing I would ask for now is for someone to fill in the gaps of the last 20 years of the fascinating life of Charlie Munger.

Niklas Sävås, September 23, 2018
157 reviews14 followers
January 4, 2020
The biography doesn’t enhance the character that is Charlie Munger (like other biographies may), but it does take the reader through his life thoroughly. Loved learning about his family, childhood, time as a lawyer, early (pre-Buffett) investing years, and Berkshire years. The chapters on sees candy, blue chip stamps and Salomon Brothers were particularly interesting.

I must note that Munger is my idol, so perhaps my rating of this book is colored by that fact.

I recommend to anyone interested in polymaths, investing, transactional law, and learning about a fulfilled life.

Profile Image for Shane.
45 reviews
January 19, 2019
Notably quotes from this book:

‘The surest way of building a business is by concentrating on the work already on his desk, and second, by underspending his income and amassing a pile of cash that could be invested to build future wealth.’ - Charlie Munger

'The iron prescription: every time you think some person, or some unfairness is ruining your life, it is you how are ruining your life' - Charlie Munger
12 reviews
July 12, 2020
Only if you’re interested in the details of Munger’s life spend time reading this book. Personally I don’t see the benefit of knowing details of for example somebody’s holiday house. There is little or nothing to learn if you’re looking for investment wisdom. The most relevant takeway for me is the (scattered across the 250 pages) description of his character.
Profile Image for Marius Schober.
29 reviews
July 24, 2021
Charlie Munger is an interesting character - however, I read many biographies and this wasn't a lot of fun to read.
Profile Image for Jai Preston.
29 reviews
July 14, 2017
A deep, profound and far-reaching insight into the incredible life of the Oracle of Omaha's right hand man, Charlie Munger. Before reading this book I had always been a close follower of Munger -- his investing advice, philosophy, jokes and stoic nature -- but little did I know just how much the man has done in his life; his (very significant) role in Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway's quite astonishing success over the years is something, but his contributions outside of that are equally, or perhaps even more admirable.

Because Charlie dislikes the limelight, avoids smalltalk and likes to keep himself to himself, interviews come once every blue moon. His only guaranteed appearance is at the Berkshire annual meeting, where Warren and Charlie sit down with all their shareholders and take questions -- sometimes for up to 6 hours. Whilst they address the odd personal question, give advice here and there, and share a few personal stories and anecdotes, the talking point rarely deviates from investing, the market and the economy -- and Warren does 90% of the talking; therefore rarely does the world hear about Charlie's life away from his involvement with Berkshire. Little do we know how ignorant we are.

Only when one takes the time to dive deep into his past; spends several days, doing interview after interview, holidaying, and bonding with him in his favourite activities such as hiking, boating and fishing; attends several Berkshire meetings; interviews almost 40 more people, including Otis Booth, Warren Buffet, and other friends and family members; analyses transcriptions of his speeches and lectures; and devotes more than 3 years of one's life in the process, can one start to fathom the magnitude of his contribution, and the profundity and erudition of our generations very own (and Charlie's hero) Ben Franklin. Well -- Janet Lowe did just that, and luckily for us, she documented every bit of it and made it into this darling of a book. Even more luckily for us, Janet's style is very readable -- precise, coherent, clear-cut and for those who like the details, very meticulous when called for.

There have been a few books written on Charlie, and no doubt there'll be many, many more written in the future; but in comparison to this, none come close to doing the man and his life story justice -- not in the faintest. This was published in 2000, and almost two decades later he and Warren are still both going strong; in fact, it seems they're actually getting smarter. Despite its age, this book is as relevant as it ever has been; and I suspect as the years roll on, it will become even more so. That said, since its publishing there has probably been enough happen in Charlie's life to warrant the writing of another book; and for that there can only be one author -- Janet Lowe.
Profile Image for Sagar Acharya.
113 reviews21 followers
February 14, 2019
There are only a couple of books on Charlie Munger, Poor Charlie's Almanack and this one. It's important to read these. Especially I liked this one better because it is the only one which gives the sequence of things that occured in Charlie's life.

Charlie is more realistic than Buffett and the statements he gives are much more direct than Buffett. I feel that due to this, we can learn a lot more from him than Buffett because Buffett will sugarcoat a few things.

Janet takes through life of Munger through different viewpoints of family and work and mentions how he went through his 70 years (book published in 2000). Firstly working in law, he understood cases and businesses, had some wins in real estate transactions followed by which he co-founded Munger, Tolles and Company in which he had an impressive 24.6% return over 20 years. He bought Blue Chip Stamps with Buffett, and faced a bit of downturn over a couple of years. He managed it well though and came out about even in the investment.

Some cases of Buffalo News, Blue Chip Stamps, Good Samaritan Hospital and Salomon are discussed in sufficient detail to give some insight into his actions. His interactions with family and friends is given in some cases which shows some of his principles in details.

I cannot recommend any books more than those on Charlie Munger. He's a rich man. I was talking about ideas in his brain.
Profile Image for Firsh.
300 reviews2 followers
January 10, 2023
If you want Munger wisdom, check out the Seeking Wisdom book instead. This is too random for my taste, I don't think I took home anything lasting or what I didn't hear before. Perhaps a closer look as to what went on with his eye, but then again you are digging deep into the personal/medical life of Charlie. I have nothing against him and look up to him as Buffett's right hand. But this book just didn't quite cut it, hence my neutral 3-star rating. When the author/designer feels the need to explicitly state the word BILLIONAIRE on the cover, I can't help but be reminded of BuzzFeed clickbait. The foreword was good, then it went to downhill, downright unmemorable, I'm sorry. Just read other stuff related to Berkshire or him, as you are not going be a better investor by reading this. I like to hear Charlie's story, but the book didn't do a great job, merely an okay one. Overall, I seem to realize I like it better when great people tell their stories in their own words, and not through book ABOUT them. Buffett's letters were priceless and that is still a good foundation of my business knowledge. This book didn't make me feel connected to the person in question. For example, Ashlee Vance's Musk book did a better job.
Profile Image for Michael Payne.
63 reviews75 followers
January 4, 2020
Invert, always invert. - Carl Jacobi

At 96 years old, Charlie has a world-view and perspective that is unrivalled in our rush and crush of the moment. Charlie likes to look at problems in reverse and there are few better models of reverse than the 96-year-old, witty, intelligent, vice Chairman of Berkshire to work back from.

If 96 and still firing on all cylinders is the goal, this is the roadmap inverted of how Charlie got to where he is today.

Probably the most enduring lesson and example that Charlie offers is to always be learning. His family called him a "book with legs" because, despite being blind in one eye and having to use coke-bottle glasses to read through his cataracts in the remaining eye, Charlie was indefatigable in the pursuit of knowledge. He prefers to spend most of his time with the "imminent dead" as he finds their wisdom more enduring that the less proven pop-chart pundits.

If you are going to read only one book about Charlie Munger, Janet Lowe has written the definitive book here: read this book then get to work, in reverse. You will be the better for it.
Profile Image for Kuncapybara.
72 reviews2 followers
April 19, 2024
ตั้งเเต่บท 6 ขึ้นไปเนื้อหาเริ่มเข้มข้นเเละน่าติดตามมากขึ้น ชาร์ลี มังเกอร์ผู้ที่มองเฉียบขาดเเละคมเกือบในทุกเรื่องราว ประสบการณ์เเละสิ่งที่เราคลุกคลี ทำให้เรามีความเฉียบเเหลมมากขึ้น

พอถึงบทที่ 10-19 จะเกี่ยวกับ case study ที่เคยลงทุน อ่านรู้เรื่องบ้างไม่รู้เรื่องบ้าง ค่อนข้างน่าเบื่อ

พอถึงบทที่ 20 เเก่นสาระที่สอน เริ่มกลับมาอีกครั้ง (มีเเรงอ่านให้จบอีกครั้ง)

พอถึงภาคผนวก ข สุนทรพจน์ เป็นเเก่นที่ได้ความรู้เน้นๆ เเต่กลับอ่านยากเเละเข้าใจยากมาก

หนังสือเล่มนี้เป็นหนังสือที่บอกเล่าประวัติชาร์ลี ได้ดี เเต่เนื้อหาค่อนข้างเข้าใจยากมากสำหรับเรา หากจะอ่านเพื่อนำไปต่อยอด ผมให้คะเเนน 1/5 เเต่หากอยากรู้เรื่องราวเกี่ยวกับชาร์ลี ผมให้ 4/5

ส่วนความยากของหนังสือเล่มนี้ ผมให้ 4/5 กระโหลก เเละความเข้มข้นของเนื้อหา ให้ 5/5 เเทบไม่มีที่ไม่ว่างเหลือในกระดาษเลย ได้เเต่อุทานว่า เมื่อไรมันจะจบวะ เเม่งอ่านยากจริงๆ
Profile Image for Tharit Tangkijwanichakul.
75 reviews3 followers
January 1, 2021
The writing style of this book is different from a typical biography. It fills with the recounted stories and direct quotations from friends and family of Charlie Munger. It is not like the library is talking to you (which happens when someone writes about the eminent dead). The good thing is the book feels more candid. But certainly, it will not be able to explicitly go that deep into the personalities and motivations.

I don't mean that the book is superficial in any way. There are certain gems hidden which can be found by careful reading and interpret the sayings. I really feel like I know him more outside the investment sphere and it makes me admire him even more.
Profile Image for Alexander Ruchti.
61 reviews4 followers
January 7, 2024
"Damn Right: Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger" is a book that I had high hopes for, expecting to delve deep into the wisdom and thought processes of the renowned late Charlie Munger. Unfortunately, it fell short of these expectations.

Instead of insightful explorations into Munger's business acumen and philosophies, the book devotes an excessive amount of space to trivial anecdotes. There are endless, seemingly unimportant passages about Munger's fishing trips and whom he went with, which add little value for readers seeking to understand the mind of this financial giant.
Profile Image for Aidan Heron.
14 reviews3 followers
December 6, 2018
Charlie has aimed to ‘remain just outside the Fortune rich list’ so that he can keep out of the public light.

I respect this and what he has achieved with Buffet at Berkshire. However, if you assume he had an easy life and things came naturally to him (like Buffet) you would be mistaken.

This should give solace to those of you struggling to make progress. Being young and in a hurry is not a bad thing and getting knocked back is certainly more of a statistical norm.

A fascinating look into an interesting life.

Recommended.
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