Today’s modern woman has come a long way she no longer has to sound or act like a man to get ahead in the workplace but females still occupy only eight percent of the top-level jobs in major companies, according to Fortune magazine. Unconscious behaviors are keeping women from breaking the glass ceiling, says Lois Frankel, a corporate coach for hundreds of women and men. Her new book, Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office (Warner, $19.95, 288 pages, ISBN 0446531324), is a must-have for all women with CEO aspirations. Frankel shows women how to "quit bein’ a girl" by exposing 101 mistakes that sabotage their careers. She breaks down the behaviors into seven categories, including How You Sound, How You Look and How You Play the Game. Some of the mistakes are not revolutionary (speaking softly, needing to be liked, having the wrong hairstyle, etc.) but each one is illustrated with real-world examples and coaching tips that have worked for Frankel’s clients. Women are urged to start with a quick self-assessment test, then focus on the two areas that need the most improvement. Frankel is direct and honest yet supportive as she zeroes in on the unconscious girl behaviors that keep women from reaching the top.

Girls just starting out on their quest for success should pick up Wildly Sophisticated (Perigee, $15.95, 272 pages, ISBN 0399529470), by Nicole Williams. The hip author who created the "Drinks After Work" networking phenomenon recommends that gals pinpoint their passion, choose a great boss and learn to deal with relationships of all kinds (she even covers how to date at work). The funny "Career Confessions" from real women are a special treat in a book best enjoyed while wearing Manolos and sipping a Cosmo.

Being your own boss Entrepreneurs Caitlin Friedman and Kimberly Yorio have written the insightful book they wished they could have read when starting their own PR agency in 2000. The Girl’s Guide to Starting Your Own Business (HarperResource, $21.95, 256 pages, ISBN 0060521570) will hold your hand through every stage of starting a successful business.

The authors address the unique challenges that women face (finding female role models, balancing family and work, being a boss without being a bitch), and the "scary stuff" like insurance, incorporation and technology. Fortunately these savvy business owners don’t advise doing it all on your own, and their tips on hiring a lawyer, accountant and bookkeeper are essential.

The authors’ enthusiasm is infectious and they give a list of chick flicks (Baby Boom, Sliding Doors) and CDs (Aretha Franklin, Madonna) to provide more inspiration. The Q&As with other female entrepreneurs offer another been-there-learn-from-me perspective.

For more seasoned advice, turn to four business pros who founded Eight Wings Enterprises LLC, an angel investment company. After watching ambitious women suffer start-up pitfalls time and again, they decided to put their knowledge on paper. The result is The Old Girls’ Network (Basic, $24.95, 224 pages, ISBN 073820806X), a wise book that shows women how to create an elevator pitch and warns against the five things never to say to an investor. The real gold mine is the appendix "tool kit" which is full of detailed templates, quizzes and references.

Good Business Eschewing rambling preliminaries, Roger Lowenstein jumps right into the spellbinding story of the bubble that burst in Origins of the Crash. The author of Buffett and When Genius Failed vividly explains the rise and fall of the 1990s stock market in plain, easy to understand language (finally, someone explains why stock options are evil!). But Lowenstein delivers more than just a history recitation. He delves into the culture that helped shape these events to explain how the myriad attempts at corporate governance failed so spectacularly. Looking ahead, Lowenstein predicts more bubbles and crashes, saying that "Wall Street may be incapable of reform." This fascinating analysis may reveal more about the future than Wall Street would like to admit.

Today’s modern woman has come a long way she no longer has to sound or act like a man to get ahead in the workplace but females still occupy only eight percent of the top-level jobs in major companies, according to Fortune magazine. Unconscious behaviors are keeping women from breaking the glass ceiling, says Lois Frankel, a corporate coach for hundreds of women and men. Her new book, Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office (Warner, $19.95, 288 pages, ISBN 0446531324), is a must-have for all women with CEO aspirations. Frankel shows women how to “quit bein’ a girl” by exposing 101 mistakes that sabotage their careers. She breaks down the behaviors into seven categories, including How You Sound, How You Look and How You Play the Game. Some of the mistakes are not revolutionary (speaking softly, needing to be liked, having the wrong hairstyle, etc.) but each one is illustrated with real-world examples and coaching tips that have worked for Frankel’s clients. Women are urged to start with a quick self-assessment test, then focus on the two areas that need the most improvement. Frankel is direct and honest yet supportive as she zeroes in on the unconscious girl behaviors that keep women from reaching the top.

Girls just starting out on their quest for success should pick up Wildly Sophisticated (Perigee, $15.95, 272 pages, ISBN 0399529470), by Nicole Williams. The hip author who created the “Drinks After Work” networking phenomenon recommends that gals pinpoint their passion, choose a great boss and learn to deal with relationships of all kinds (she even covers how to date at work). The funny “Career Confessions” from real women are a special treat in a book best enjoyed while wearing Manolos and sipping a Cosmo.

Being your own boss Entrepreneurs Caitlin Friedman and Kimberly Yorio have written the insightful book they wished they could have read when starting their own PR agency in 2000. The Girl’s Guide to Starting Your Own Business (HarperResource, $21.95, 256 pages, ISBN 0060521570) will hold your hand through every stage of starting a successful business.

The authors address the unique challenges that women face (finding female role models, balancing family and work, being a boss without being a bitch), and the “scary stuff” like insurance, incorporation and technology. Fortunately these savvy business owners don’t advise doing it all on your own, and their tips on hiring a lawyer, accountant and bookkeeper are essential.

The authors’ enthusiasm is infectious and they give a list of chick flicks (Baby Boom, Sliding Doors) and CDs (Aretha Franklin, Madonna) to provide more inspiration. The Q&andAs with other female entrepreneurs offer another been-there-learn-from-me perspective.

For more seasoned advice, turn to four business pros who founded Eight Wings Enterprises LLC, an angel investment company. After watching ambitious women suffer start-up pitfalls time and again, they decided to put their knowledge on paper. The result is The Old Girls’ Network, a wise book that shows women how to create an elevator pitch and warns against the five things never to say to an investor. The real gold mine is the appendix “tool kit” which is full of detailed templates, quizzes and references.

Good Business Eschewing rambling preliminaries, Roger Lowenstein jumps right into the spellbinding story of the bubble that burst in Origins of the Crash (The Penguin Press, $24.95, 259 pages, ISBN 1594200033). The author of Buffett and When Genius Failed vividly explains the rise and fall of the 1990s stock market in plain, easy to understand language (finally, someone explains why stock options are evil!). But Lowenstein delivers more than just a history recitation. He delves into the culture that helped shape these events to explain how the myriad attempts at corporate governance failed so spectacularly. Looking ahead, Lowenstein predicts more bubbles and crashes, saying that “Wall Street may be incapable of reform.” This fascinating analysis may reveal more about the future than Wall Street would like to admit.

Today’s modern woman has come a long way she no longer has to sound or act like a man to get ahead in the workplace but females still occupy only eight percent of the top-level jobs in major companies, according to Fortune magazine. Unconscious behaviors are keeping women from breaking the glass ceiling, says Lois Frankel, a corporate coach for hundreds of women and men. Her new book, Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office, is a must-have for all women with CEO aspirations. Frankel shows women how to "quit bein’ a girl" by exposing 101 mistakes that sabotage their careers. She breaks down the behaviors into seven categories, including How You Sound, How You Look and How You Play the Game. Some of the mistakes are not revolutionary (speaking softly, needing to be liked, having the wrong hairstyle, etc.) but each one is illustrated with real-world examples and coaching tips that have worked for Frankel’s clients. Women are urged to start with a quick self-assessment test, then focus on the two areas that need the most improvement. Frankel is direct and honest yet supportive as she zeroes in on the unconscious girl behaviors that keep women from reaching the top.

Girls just starting out on their quest for success should pick up Wildly Sophisticated (Perigee, $15.95, 272 pages, ISBN 0399529470), by Nicole Williams. The hip author who created the "Drinks After Work" networking phenomenon recommends that gals pinpoint their passion, choose a great boss and learn to deal with relationships of all kinds (she even covers how to date at work). The funny "Career Confessions" from real women are a special treat in a book best enjoyed while wearing Manolos and sipping a Cosmo.

Being your own boss Entrepreneurs Caitlin Friedman and Kimberly Yorio have written the insightful book they wished they could have read when starting their own PR agency in 2000. The Girl’s Guide to Starting Your Own Business (HarperResource, $21.95, 256 pages, ISBN 0060521570) will hold your hand through every stage of starting a successful business.

The authors address the unique challenges that women face (finding female role models, balancing family and work, being a boss without being a bitch), and the "scary stuff" like insurance, incorporation and technology. Fortunately these savvy business owners don’t advise doing it all on your own, and their tips on hiring a lawyer, accountant and bookkeeper are essential.

The authors’ enthusiasm is infectious and they give a list of chick flicks (Baby Boom, Sliding Doors) and CDs (Aretha Franklin, Madonna) to provide more inspiration. The Q&andAs with other female entrepreneurs offer another been-there-learn-from-me perspective.

For more seasoned advice, turn to four business pros who founded Eight Wings Enterprises LLC, an angel investment company. After watching ambitious women suffer start-up pitfalls time and again, they decided to put their knowledge on paper. The result is The Old Girls’ Network (Basic, $24.95, 224 pages, ISBN 073820806X), a wise book that shows women how to create an elevator pitch and warns against the five things never to say to an investor. The real gold mine is the appendix "tool kit" which is full of detailed templates, quizzes and references.

Good Business Eschewing rambling preliminaries, Roger Lowenstein jumps right into the spellbinding story of the bubble that burst in Origins of the Crash (The Penguin Press, $24.95, 259 pages, ISBN 1594200033). The author of Buffett and When Genius Failed vividly explains the rise and fall of the 1990s stock market in plain, easy to understand language (finally, someone explains why stock options are evil!). But Lowenstein delivers more than just a history recitation. He delves into the culture that helped shape these events to explain how the myriad attempts at corporate governance failed so spectacularly. Looking ahead, Lowenstein predicts more bubbles and crashes, saying that "Wall Street may be incapable of reform." This fascinating analysis may reveal more about the future than Wall Street would like to admit.

If family financial disputes are ruining your romance, then pick up a copy of The Family CFO: The Couples Business Plan for Love and Money. Financial experts Mary Claire Allvine and Christine Larson have created a clear and direct process to take the emotional turmoil out of money matters. First, convene a Board of Directors to define the family’s goals, appoint a Cash Manager to handle day-to-day operations and name an Investment Manager to deal with debt and retirement planning. From there, the authors outline a five-step plan to take you through the process of financial decision-making. A lot of number crunching is required, but don’t be discouraged the book provides worksheets and tools. A rational approach to money problem-solving is worth the effort, and it just might keep you out of marriage counseling.

In The Total Money Makeover best-selling author and radio talk show host Dave Ramsey provides tough but achievable goals for the “fiscally flabby.” The first five chapters are a wade through Ramsey’s typical rants against denial (things can’t be that bad, can they?) and his biggest enemy debt. Then readers are introduced to his “baby step” program. Step one is socking away $1,000 cash for the inevitable rainy day, while step two involves a “debt snowball” that pays off the smallest debt first for a quick morale booster. Everything but the house must be paid off before putting away more emergency cash and investing for retirement. The next steps are starting an education fund and turbocharging your mortgage payments. Ramsey admits his plan is ambitious; he expects the first two steps to take at least two years. Waiting this long to start investing may not be a great idea, and his opposition to debt is sometimes unrealistic. However, dozens of followers share stories in the book of how Ramsey’s no-nonsense plan has worked for them. His tough-love approach is perfect for cutting through excuses and may be just the push you need to whip your personal balance sheet into shape.

Dr. Howard Cutler and His Holiness the Dalai Lama first teamed up in 1998 to write The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living. Millions snatched up the instruction manual for inner development. Now they’ve teamed up again to apply those principles to one of the biggest sources of stress and anxiety: work.

Cutler began his series of conversations about money, careers and coworker conflicts by asking the Dalai Lama to define his job. The answer was surprising: "Nothing. I do nothing." Pressed further, the Dalai Lama answered, "I just look after myself, just take care of myself." The exiled monk’s busy schedule would indicate otherwise, but that serene, simple attitude is at the heart of the new collaboration, The Art of Happiness at Work.

More a story than a business text, the book discusses relevant issues like dissatisfaction at work, dealing with the "human factor" and finding the right balance of challenge and boredom. Don’t be fooled; training the mind, changing your outlook on life and cultivating a wider perspective are tough human endeavors. But don’t let that stop you from treating stressed-out friends to this helpful roadmap for finding peace at work. Stephanie Swilley is studying for her M.B.A. at Vanderbilt University’s Owen School of Management.

Would being rich make you happy? Probably not, says author Jean Chatzky, the personal finance maven from Money magazine and the Today show. The surprising research cited in You Don’t Have to Be Rich shows that overall happiness levels are the same for people making $40,000 as for people making $400,000. While you may not be able to buy happiness with a fat paycheck, it turns out that money is a big contributing factor in unhappiness. Chatzky shows you how to eliminate money-related stress by controlling your fears about finance and by following the habits of Americans who have mastered their money. Getting your credit in order may not make you happier, but it will free up time and energy so you can focus on the things that do.

“You can read all the investment books you want, but there is no substitute for lessons learned in life,” writes Jack Brennan, chairman and CEO of The Vanguard Group, in the foreword to Wealth of Experience. This fascinating book gathers the advice of 600 Vanguard shareholders, 80 percent of whom are “high-net-worth investors” whose portfolios are worth $2 million on average.

Feeling out of your league? It’s interesting to note that, of that group, 18 percent never graduated from college, and 16 percent are still in the workforce earning less than $100,000 a year. The sharp, common-sense advice they impart shows you don’t have to be a genius to be a smart investor just have stick-to-it-iveness on a few basic principles.

Author Andrew Clarke distills the many investor experiences and suggestions into a simple, practical program. He covers important ground on saving (the most important key to investment success) and creating a long-term strategy, then moves into the nitty-gritty details of taxes, estate planning and diversification. In addition, he peppers the chapters with quotes from real folks, thus enlivening topics that can sometimes feel like homework. Learning how real people cope with financial ups and downs proves to be both cautionary and encouraging. Each chapter also includes action steps from Vanguard’s advisors.

Burton Malkiel’s A Random Walk Down Wall Street (1973) is truly an investing classic. The 500-page book contains all kinds of wisdom, but it’s a tough, dense read for everyday investors. Now 30 years later, Malkiel has written The Random Walk Guide to Investing , a blessedly brief only 160 pages bare-bones guide to investing. Not that Malkiel skimps on the advice; he’s comprehensive without the jargon or academic stuff. In fact, he claims it’s “truly the only investment guide you need.” Malkiel backs up that bold claim by saying that achieving above-average returns is strikingly easy. After you master the basics (fire your advisor, focus on just four investment categories, understand the risk/return relationship), you’re ready for the 10 “simple, time-tested” rules. Yes, saving is one of them, and he has some innovative strategies for socking away extra dollars. Learn how to stiff the tax collector and how to balance your portfolio with Malkiel’s favorite index funds. Invest in indexes of all kinds stocks, bonds, real estate. Put your money in a broad-based fund (he gives a list) that buys and holds almost all of the stocks in the market, he advises. Investing strategy changes with age, so check out the life-cycle investment guide and start beating the professionals.

AOL Time Warner turned into a debacle for employees and investors, so how can others avoid their mistakes? Start with Why Smart Executives Fail (Portfolio, $26.95, 318 pages, ISBN 1591840104), an insightful book that looks not only at the causes of business failure but also at the people behind the bad decisions. Sydney Finkelstein, a professor at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, moves beyond the easy answers (the executives were a stupid bunch of crooks!) to find the real causes of failure in every industry, from fashion and food (Mossimo, L.A. Gear, Coca-Cola) to phones and finance (Motorola, Bankers Trust). A surprising number of failed CEOs were willing to tell all, and Finkelstein found that a skewed sense of reality and a breakdown in communication often pull businesses under. Execs need to be on guard against the “zombie business” where cockiness (both employee and organizational) crowds out the voices of customers and competitors. The “seven habits of spectacularly unsuccessful people” are funny and insightful, and the warning signs of the next big disaster are useful for CEOs and investors.

On the flip side, you can learn from the biggest and brightest in What the Best CEOs Know. Author Jeffrey Krames examines seven of the top CEOs, including Michael Dell, Lou Gerstner and Sam Walton, and distills their success into an easy-to-understand signature strategy or tactic that anyone can imitate or borrow. Learn how Jack Welch created a learning organization at GE and how Bill Gates harnessed the power of every employee at Microsoft.

I’m planning a trip to Miami, and one of the most important packing decisions involves which books to bring. A gripping story with interesting, unique characters is a must, but I’m not filling my suitcase with fictional thrillers. Instead, I’ve found three new business books that deliver suspense and adventure with real-life stories about a cocky inventor, a fearless road-tripper and a witty mathematician. So put down the Danielle Steel this summer and get the goods without the guilt.

Reinventing the wheel Code Name Ginger (Harvard Business School Press, $27.95, 336 pages, ISBN 1578516730) delivers the exciting behind-the-scenes story of bringing a dream to the marketplace. At the heart of the book is Dean Kamen, a cocky young inventor and entrepreneur with an ego big enough to match his lofty ideas. Often compared to a modern-day Thomas Edison, Kamen had a passion for the Ginger project, which he believed would revolutionize transportation by developing a self-balancing, electronic "people mover." He bet his fortune on the top-secret project that took more than nine years to develop and cost more than $100 million in R&andD.

Author Steve Kemper was granted exclusive access to the Ginger project during the 18 months of testing and design, but when his book proposal found its way to the Internet in January 2001, it exposed the heavily guarded project. The press started a firestorm of speculation about the machine that would eventually be dubbed the Segway Human Transporter.

Unfortunately, Kemper’s access to the project was cut just before the Segway went on sale, but consumer reaction thus far has been underwhelming. Not having Kamen’s reaction to the disappointing launch is a sorely missed element of the book. But the glimpse inside the mind of a brilliant inventor, someone always testing new ideas and willing to risk "spectacular failures" to create something great, makes this bumpy journey one well worth taking.

The ultimate road trip Jim Rogers knows how to take a vacation. The man Time calls "the Indiana Jones of Finance" has a passion for exploration, and he’s once again taking readers along for the ride in Adventure Capitalist (Random House, $27.50, 368 pages, ISBN 0375509127). On January 1, 1999, Rogers and his fiancŽe began a three-year road trip around the world that took the couple through 116 countries. Ready for anything (like the raging blizzard on Day 3), Rogers chronicles their stories with wit and offers insight on the state of the global economy at the turn of the century.

A former offshore hedge fund manager, Rogers is no ordinary tourist. He has a unique understanding of international politics and economics and describes successful investing as "getting in early, when things are cheap, when everything is distressed, when everyone is demoralized." Rogers successfully mixes business with pleasure by measuring the economic climate of each country on the itinerary. For example, Turkey in 1999 looked like a great emerging market based on location and population, but a harrowing airport ordeal convinced Rogers that the country hadn’t conquered its Byzantine ways, so he decided not to invest there. Rogers’ contagious enthusiasm for off-the-beaten-path discoveries turned his previous book, Investment Biker, into a bestseller. It chronicled his record-setting 700,000-mile motorcycle journey across six continents. Both are great reading for business lovers and armchair travelers.

Falling in love with WorldCom It’s nice to know that we’re all human and that sometimes even mathematicians get a little irrational. Best-selling author and math master John Allen Paulos begins his new book, A Mathematician Plays the Stock Market, by recounting how this "hardheaded fellow" began "falling disastrously in love" with one well-known scandal-ridden company. He lost his shirt, but couldn’t quit buying the stock or force himself to sell. Motivated by his own fear and greed, Paulos learned the painful lesson that emotions and psychology play a big part in stock market volatility.

Paulos uses personal stories and funny, bizarre anecdotes rather than formulas and equations to delve into the market’s "problems, paradoxes, and puzzles." It’s a rational approach that’s both simple and entertaining.

I’m planning a trip to Miami, and one of the most important packing decisions involves which books to bring. A gripping story with interesting, unique characters is a must, but I’m not filling my suitcase with fictional thrillers. Instead, I’ve found three new business books that deliver suspense and adventure with real-life stories about a cocky inventor, a fearless road-tripper and a witty mathematician. So put down the Danielle Steel this summer and get the goods without the guilt.

Reinventing the wheel

Code Name Ginger (Harvard Business School Press, $27.95, 336 pages, ISBN 1578516730) delivers the exciting behind-the-scenes story of bringing a dream to the marketplace. At the heart of the book is Dean Kamen, a cocky young inventor and entrepreneur with an ego big enough to match his lofty ideas. Often compared to a modern-day Thomas Edison, Kamen had a passion for the Ginger project, which he believed would revolutionize transportation by developing a self-balancing, electronic "people mover." He bet his fortune on the top-secret project that took more than nine years to develop and cost more than $100 million in R & D.

Author Steve Kemper was granted exclusive access to the Ginger project during the 18 months of testing and design, but when his book proposal found its way to the Internet in January 2001, it exposed the heavily guarded project. The press started a firestorm of speculation about the machine that would eventually be dubbed the Segway Human Transporter.

Unfortunately, Kemper’s access to the project was cut just before the Segway went on sale, but consumer reaction thus far has been underwhelming. Not having Kamen’s reaction to the disappointing launch is a sorely missed element of the book. But the glimpse inside the mind of a brilliant inventor, someone always testing new ideas and willing to risk "spectacular failures" to create something great, makes this bumpy journey one well worth taking.

The ultimate road trip

Jim Rogers knows how to take a vacation. The man Time calls "the Indiana Jones of Finance" has a passion for exploration, and he’s once again taking readers along for the ride in Adventure Capitalist. On January 1, 1999, Rogers and his fiancŽe began a three-year road trip around the world that took the couple through 116 countries. Ready for anything (like the raging blizzard on Day 3), Rogers chronicles their stories with wit and offers insight on the state of the global economy at the turn of the century.

A former offshore hedge fund manager, Rogers is no ordinary tourist. He has a unique understanding of international politics and economics and describes successful investing as "getting in early, when things are cheap, when everything is distressed, when everyone is demoralized." Rogers successfully mixes business with pleasure by measuring the economic climate of each country on the itinerary. For example, Turkey in 1999 looked like a great emerging market based on location and population, but a harrowing airport ordeal convinced Rogers that the country hadn’t conquered its Byzantine ways, so he decided not to invest there. Rogers’ contagious enthusiasm for off-the-beaten-path discoveries turned his previous book, Investment Biker, into a bestseller. It chronicled his record-setting 700,000-mile motorcycle journey across six continents. Both are great reading for business lovers and armchair travelers.

Falling in love with WorldCom

It’s nice to know that we’re all human and that sometimes even mathematicians get a little irrational. Best-selling author and math master John Allen Paulos begins his new book, A Mathematician Plays the Stock Market (Basic, $25, 224 pages, ISBN 0465054803), by recounting how this "hardheaded fellow" began "falling disastrously in love" with one well-known scandal-ridden company. He lost his shirt, but couldn’t quit buying the stock or force himself to sell. Motivated by his own fear and greed, Paulos learned the painful lesson that emotions and psychology play a big part in stock market volatility.

Paulos uses personal stories and funny, bizarre anecdotes rather than formulas and equations to delve into the market’s "problems, paradoxes, and puzzles." It’s a rational approach that’s both simple and entertaining.