Author: Karen Blumenthal
Publisher: Piatkus Books
Price: £12.99

Despite being a seasoned financial reporter, Blumenthal admits that the stock market mystifies her. Her quest over the course of 2005 was to follow one stock in order to gain insights on how the market works and ultimately transform herself into a better investor. The chosen stock was Starbucks and Blumenthal watched closely as this household name rode the financial rollercoaster. This book takes you along on her journey, demonstrating how all the players – big and small investors, company management, the media, and more – determine its performance. Blumenthal takes us behind the scenes at the company’s annual stockholders meeting, into the inner sanctum of Starbucks’ corporate headquarters, and introduces us to an array of colourful characters: the head of an investment club, a paranoid short-seller, the manager of a huge investment portfolio, and more. What emerges is not only a demystification of the complex world of high finance, but a compelling biography of one of the world’s most recognised brands. If you want to know how to improve your stock portfolio, this is the book for you.