● How Not To Invest: The ideas, numbers, and behaviors that destroy wealth – and how to avoid them
Barry Ritholtz
Interview with author via Prof G podcast
Barry Ritholtz, the co-founder, chairman, and chief investment officer of Ritholtz Wealth Management and the host of the Masters in Business podcast, joins Scott to discuss his new book, How Not to Invest: The Ideas, Numbers, and Behaviors that Destroy Wealth and How to Avoid Them. They unpack why diversification is both boring and sexy, whether the U.S. market is overvalued, and if the alternative investment industry is one of the biggest grifts in economic history.

● Digital Assets: Pricing, Allocation and Regulation
Edited by Reena Aggarwal and Paolo Tasca
Summary via publisher (Cambridge U. Press)
The ecosystem of digital assets continues to change exponentially. In post-COVID times, digital assets may be seen as a cheaper, more liquid, and transparent safe haven compared to that offered by more traditional asset types. Inclusion of new digital assets, especially cryptocurrencies, in portfolios of standard financial assets has been the subject of some academic study, but the theoretical and practical implications of this new trend are not yet fully understood. Digital Assets is the first book to present a comprehensive review of studies on the valuation and pricing of cryptocurrencies and digital assets. Outlining a new research agenda aimed at understanding the fundamental drivers of the value of cryptocurrencies, it brings together an impressive line-up of academics and practitioners to provide a timely perspective on government responses and regulatory approaches towards digital assets, including the setting of new legal frameworks.

● Priced Out!: Building Homes at Fair Prices, Future Generations Included
Troy Deckert and Lydia Deckert
Summary via Amazon
For an average household, how about a home price or rent payment based on what you can pay? Like at 30% of your current monthly income? For singles or for large families? In time, how about a paid-for home? If you rent, what if the rent stayed low with a lifetime lease? These deals are ongoing. Now. As you read this. They’re in some U.S. locations and are widely available in Austria in Europe. It is possible, anywhere. This can be in your area. It should be in your area. Don’t believe it? That’s understandable. Because it’s not widespread yet, most people haven’t heard that this is even possible for average households.

● Covid Wars: America’s Struggle Over Public Health and Personal Freedom
Ronald Gruner
Review via Kirkus Reviews
Writing with future historians in mind, Gruner systematically examines the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on the United States in 10 chapters that incorporate over 80 charts, tables, and graphs. Red and blue states’ differing strategies regarding lockdowns and reopenings serve as case studies, offering hard data that tracks deaths both caused by and related to the virus as well as its economic and educational impact. To call the book thorough would be an understatement; over 100 pages of appendices and citations include state and country demographics, term definitions, acronyms, and a robust index to supplement an already well-structured and succinct resource. The author’s approach is dispassionate, allowing the massive death toll and preventable mistakes to speak for themselves. Responsibility is placed on political leaders, media, entertainment figures, and individual citizens without Gruner ever taking an accusatory tone; the stark and undeniable numbers do the job.

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