great books by austrian economist/investors How an Economy Grows and Why It Crashes by Peter Schiff http://www.amazon.com/How-Economy-Grows-Why-Crashes/dp/047052670X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1297557753&sr=8-1 A Gift to My Children: A Father's Lessons for Life and Investing by Jim Rogers http://www.amazon.com/Gift-My-Children-Fathers-Investing/dp/1400067545/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1297557824&sr=1-1