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

To me, the most interesting part of the book came in Appendix D where two of Mr. Munger's speeches describe the need for a generalist perspective for applying modern scientific ideas to making good decisions. One talks about the scientific principles that explain Coca-Cola's long-term success. Obviously, this has a nice connection to investing since Berkshire Hathaway is a large investor in Coca-Cola. Presumably, this describes some of the thinking that went into the decision to purchase that stock. But that is never made explicit.

I immediately wanted to know more. How had Mr. Munger analyzed each of the major investments that Mr. Buffett and he had made together? What were the things that turned out to be right about these analyses and what wrong? What are the lessons? You get a great deal about the relationship between Mr. Munger and Mr. Buffett, including how they met, but very little on these kinds of important questions. I had to grade the book down for this because I found this like writing a biography of Michelangelo without discussing his art or creative process.

In these same speeches, Mr. Munger is eloquent about what is right and what is wrong about education and how people apply it. Apparently, he considers himself mostly self-educated despite having a law degree from Harvard. All of us who believe in self-education would have benefited from knowing more about what he believes should be read and how to apply it. I graded the book down a second star for that. This is like writing a biography of Gandhi without considering his ideas on nonviolence.

The book also leaves some loose ends. Mr. Munger is described as a very fine decision maker throughout. Yet in many personal situations, he seems impulsive rather than a good decision maker. The book recounts how he ended up losing his vision in one eye as a result of complications he would not have experienced if his surgeon had used the most modern laser procedure to remove a cataract. Most people would spend quite a bit of time getting the information ahead of time, and opt for the safer surgery. Apparently, Mr. Munger did not take the time to investigate. The book also recounts family tales of Mr. Munger (who doesn't see well, of course) running his boat into the plants and getting stuck, even after being warned that he is about to do so. On another occasion, he swamped a boat by turning backward rapidly in a boat he was unfamiliar with that was not designed for that maneuver. These apparent contradictions are there in the material, but are not developed. Is he someone who is trigger happy and shoots 19 times to hit 3 targets, is he just oblivious to anything except making money, or is he a cautious, careful thinker in all areas? I cannot tell.

The book describes him as Mr. Buffett's "Mr. No" so it may be that Mr. Buffett does not rely on him for ideas, but for checking out Mr. Buffett's ideas. But that doesn't seem right either, because most of Berkshire Hathaway's successful early investments are ones that came from California and related to interests of Mr. Munger's. So it seems likely that he was the source of those ideas. Perhaps Mr. Buffett turns down a lot of Mr. Munger's ideas. You cannot really tell. You can see my frustration with trying to get a whole picture. It's like reading about George Burns without explaining much about Gracie Allen.

Clearly, one lesson of this book is that a team of complementary investors should do better than a lone eagle investor. Consider all of the people you know. Who would be the most complementary to you in finding opportunities, assessing potential investments, and solving problems that arise in the course of the investments? I encourage you to discuss combining your ideas and talents with that person or those persons. When you read this book, watch carefully for how Mr. Munger did that.

May you enjoy the investment and personal results you would like to have!

For people who have read a considerable amount about Warren Buffett and Berkshire, a lot of what is included in this book would already be known.

I found that there was too much space devoted to Munger's family at the expense of Munger himself. The book is sub-titled: "Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger" not: "Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger's Family", which is what it risked turning into (especially in the first half or so of the book). Munger might have a wonderful family but no-one is buying the book to read about them.

Munger is obviously known primarily as an extraordinarily successful investor and as such it is a little disappointing that Lowe did not probe deeper into the underlying thought behind some of the major investment decisions that Munger has been involved with during his career, especially given that Munger made himself accessible to the author for the purposes of this book. I was not looking for a Robert Hagstrom type analysis, but some more detailed textual information would have been appropriate. If you want an example of what I'm talking about read Roger Lowenstein's excellent biography Buffett (The Making of an American Capitalist).

I also found it disappointing that Lowe re-published in one of the appendices a talk that Munger gave in 1996 which Andy Kilpatrick had already included in his 1998 edition of Of Permanent Value, perhaps Lowe could have found something previously unpublished for this book.

For the record Page 254 states that See's Candy was purchased for $2m (it should read $25 million), page 255 states that the Buffalo Evening News was purchased for $2.5 million (it should read $32.5 million).

Overall the book is worth having a look at but if you're a seasoned Buffett/Berkshire follower do not expect to learn a lot in addition to what you already know.

From a purely biographical standpoint, you'll want to read this book. Gives much insight into Charlie's personal character as well as some insight into Buffett's character.

What I think the book misses on is investment technique. Granted, that's not how the book is advertised...it is a biography. But, I was hoping to get some better insight into the Munger/Buffett investment style. I was hoping the author would--at least--tease me a bit. No such luck.

It's an enjoyable read.