Rating: 
Summary: Light reading. Doesn't ask/answer the real questions.
Review: Although I am not interested in investing, I found the book useful and interesting. The book can be broken down to three sections.
First section is an introductory tutorial to how stock exchanges operate and how to understand the corporate financial statements. This section was easy to read and enjoyable. For example, the author compared NYSE to an auction house, while Nasdaq is like a "flea market." I never knew the fundamental major differences between the two.The second section is about the personal experiences of Mr. Levitt who was the Chairman of the SEC. During the stock market boom he describes the various attempts made by SEC to rein various aggressive accounting practices and conflicts of interest. As expected, politicians on the payroll of big audit and brokerage firms and various businesses do their best to block all SEC's attempts to change things.
The third section is on how to be a better small investor. However, I should warn the readers. This book can do more harm than good to the small investor. The book seems to be delivering two conflicting messages. The first message tells you all that is/was wrong with the stock market system. The second message is that by reading this book and knowing about some of the scams you can now invest with some confidence. The first picture drawn is dismal, with politicians on the payroll of special interest groups, buddy system, CEOs getting paid huge benefits, people in the know how taking advantage of outsiders. It is true that some of the most outrageous events of the past might not be repeated due to new legislation. However, can an average investor ever compete with the various people and groups who will always be in a position of advantage, people knowing the inside details of how the system works, the real health of some of the companies, etc.? You might argue that by doing some work the investor can tell the total fraud from real players. But, if this is so, then most other people could have also figured this out before you and me and the stock value would have already reached a value to reflect the true potential of the real company. The book never asks the real questions because the public doesn't want to hear them. We all want to believe sayings like "You have worked hard for your money, now let it work hard for you." After inflation and taxes, and potential of total loss, etc. can savings really grow in real terms on the average? When people quote the average increase in stock values of the S&P500 do they include all the companies that went bankrupt that are no longer in the exchange? How about the ones that never made it to the S&P500? I guess asking these questions wouldn't sell too many books. (Or newspapers, or TV advertisements.)
We love to dream about "Buying low and selling high". But as they say in poker " If you don't see a stooge when you sit at the table, then you are it." Ozdal
Rating: 
Summary: Levittation
Review: Arthur Levitt's "Take on the Street" is a worthwhile read for both those familiar and unfamiliar with the inner workings of investment banks, "numbers games" played by public companies to smooth earnings, and the role of regulators. All three are imperfect. Levitt exposes many of the abuses that have been known to most public market insiders. He has done much, helped by the market meltdown in 2000-02, to rectify some of these abuses.
He provides extensive background, from his point of view, on the difficulty of making the markets more transparent and consumer (retail) friendly. He details his butting heads with Wall Street chieftains, corporate CEOs, the high tech industry, and the very agencies and oversight boards charged with insuring fair markets.
There are many gems that are instructive. For instance, I was surprised to learn about the matching of buyers and sellers within a single organization, like Schwab, that increased profits...but to the detriment of customers. Now that there are new rules on this, I understand why Schwab and others are struggling with profitability and must redefine themselves. Schwab's success initially was derived from a rules change Charles Schwab supported, and now its difficulties are derived from a rules change the firm fought.
Levitt also shows regulatory zeal in areas requiring much more discussion and debate to insure the public good. Single-minded regulators, while they can do good, can also inflict great harm. While stock options may need a change in accounting treatment, we must make sure that we understand the "how" to insure that we do not drive a stake into development stage companies that have led the world in innovation, job creation, and value creation. Levitt's single-mindedness on this issue is scary.
He showed ignorance about development stage companies and the role of stock options. He frequently used companies like Cisco, Microsoft, and Intel as examples in his discussion. These are growth companies but they are no longer development stage companies. Stock options are a critical tool for the growth and survival of a true development stage company. Most, if not all, development stage firms only offer healthcare benefits, non-matching 401k plans, and an opportunity to fail (80% fail). Stock options provide an off-set to the personal and career risk one takes to join a start-up.
Development stage companies have proven crucial to the health of the US economy with jobs, and global leadership in areas like health and high-tech. We are the envy of the world. We as country must make sure that we do not throw the baby out with the bath water.
Those who are interested in these subjects and controversies will enjoy getting a behind the scenes view, courtesy of Arthur Levitt. A good book to complement "Take on Wall Street" is Andy Kessler's "Wall Street Meat" - a first hand account of a Wall Street analyst on the abuses Levitt moved to correct. These two books could serve as bookends!
Rating: 
Summary: Great book for new investors!
Review: As a new investor in her mid-20s, I found this book to be very insightful. Levitt does a good job of explaining behind the scenes details of how the stock market works. I learned a ton from this book. It's easy to read and understand. I would highly recommend getting this book from the libary. He tells about traps to be weary about and you finish the book with a better understanding of what you are facing when investing. For the newcomer to investing, I definitely would recommend reading this book.
Rating:
Summary: Pitt makes me really miss Levitt
Review: Chances are anyone who rates this book as a 1 is a broker, member of AICPA, or serves on the Senate Banking committee. I am an investor who is very concerned about the greedily protected lack of transparency in the way public companies report their earnings or lack thereof, so I am giving this excellent book a 5. The book is useful because it describes how securities markets really work. It also functions as practical investment advice which details what is happening with your money after it leaves your hands. It should be required reading in MBA programs. Finally, voters will be much more informed about how Congress, through its protection of accountants, investment bankers, and brokers, is interfering with the efficient allocation of capital in the US economy.
Rating:
Summary: Experience, Knowledge, and Integrity
Review: I am one of those small investors who got smack badly by the last bubble burst, and still didn't know what hit me until I read "Take on the Street" by Mr. Levitt. I salute him for his integrity for standing up for the public's interest. I wish there're more people like him, our society will fare much, much better as a whole.
Rating: 
Summary: Self-Serving
Review: I don't know if the feeling I got back from reading this book was put by Mr. Levitt intentionally or not, I just think that all what this book is about are, in a nutshell:
1 - apologies (i.e. author apologizes because he was not able, as an SEC President, to stop the madness of the speculative bubble that left many small investors bruised);
2 - explanations (why he was not able to stop..., you know what);
3 - remedies (how to avoid making again the same mistakes); and
4 - thanksgiving to all those supporters that let him do a tremendous work during those very difficult years.
How actually difficult were those bubble years? Let's see just an example, in the author's own words:
"When (...) tried to stop abusive practices in the way that many companies accounted for mergers, two of Silicon Valley's VIPs, Cisco Systems Inc. CEO John Chambers and venture capitalist John Doerr, tried to persuade me to rein in the standard-setters. When I refused, they threatened to get "friends" in the White House and on Capitol Hill to make me bend." One entire chapter is devoted to "Regulation Fair Disclosure", certainly the best success achieved by Mr. Levitt:
"In the summer of 2000, the time had come to give final approval to a controversial new rule, Regulation Fair Disclosure, or Reg FD."
"I think it's important that investors know how the rule came about, and why the securities industry bitterly opposed it. Even today, Wall Street firms would like nothing better than to turn back the clock and either erase Reg FD or water it down."
He tells us of how the Security Industry Association put on a lobbying blitz to urge him to back down; there's and interesting - if worrying - account of how big businesses influence politicians to act against the interest of the people. This book is five-stars one, it is a must if you are a novice investor in the stockmarket: "By learning about conflicts, motivations, and political favoritism, investors can become more discerning in how they use the power of their money and the power of their shareholder vote. I hope this book makes you a more informed, skeptical, diligent and successful investor."
While I rate it as a three-stars one, if you are an experienced investor (you should already know a lot about what's written here) - so this is why my overall rating is just four stars. Levitt about brokers:
"How serious are the conflicts between broker and investor? Serious enough that a former top official of a major brokerage firm confessed to me privately that he would not send his mother to a full-service broker." The stockmarket is no shortcut to riches: investors have responsibilities and have to do their homework:
"In the end, investors must change their behavior, too. You should not follow the herd and grab for shares just because the headline on a press release trumpets an increase in pro forma earnings per share. Conversely, investors should not abandon ship just because a company fails to meet analysts' expectations. It's your responsibility to dig deeper to see what the company's true prospects are. It's a lot safer to own shares in a company that believes in transparency and whose earnings have not been gilded than to own shares in a company that smooths out earnings by manipulating reserves. (...) If you demand more transparency and an end to the numbers game - and you back up those demands with your investment dollars - companies will have little choice but to change their behavior, too." I have three last questions for the investor-taxpayer-consumer: How much money makes the SEC President? How much money makes the average CEO? How much shareholders' money CEOs put in politicians' pockets?
Rating:
Summary: Good information interesting,somewhat intermediate concepts
Review: I found the book informative in some areas, but somewhat disappointed in it's rehashed discussions of areas which have been previously covered by more knowledgable individuals. An entire section of potential for accounting irregularities is something that can be found in Mumford's book "The accounting numbers game". This is a book by an expert in accounting, which Levitt is not. I found the discussion of lobbyists and the accounting and technology industry interesting. There are obviously great stories which can be ventured into, but i don't think Levitt went into too much depth. He is passionate in his protection of the investors, but seems hesitant to take a stand against the special interests. They are lining there pockets at the expense of the individual investors. It is a collabarated efforts on the part of politicians, the brokerage industries, accounting industries, and ceo's and numberous others. Unfortunately they hold all the power in the U.S. & this will continue to increase the discrepancy between the wealthy & poor / working class. I guess what I'm saying is Let's call a spade a spade not tapdance around the issue. He explanation of hidden commissions is good for people who are unfamiliar with this area. There is a book called "License to steal" who spells it out in plain english what this is really about. This is a story written by a broker / salesman. Overall, I thought it was a good read, & somewhat informative. Well worth the few days or so it took to read.
Rating:
Summary: Fire your Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley brokers!
Review: I worked on the street for 20 years. I think Levin was more than fair. It is a rigged game. We need more guys like him watching out for the little guy. Not only does he identify the problems and worked to fix them, he gives the reader a fantastic weapon he can use to protect himself. Knowledge, names, addresses, phone numbers, of people you can call to help you help yourself.
Rating:
Summary: Our educational establishments have short-changed us!
Review: Mr. Levitt's brilliant and direct assessment of what's wrong with Wall Street should be high on everyone's list with a dollar in a 401(k) plan or with a brokerage. For all the money spent on educating market professionals our country has apparently not been well served. In fairness that's an overstatement, but it does illustrate that for all the CPA's, MBA's, and CFA's carrying a brief-case around America, technical knowledge means very little if people cannot tell the difference between ethical and unethical, a lie and a truth, or good and bad behavior. In reality we should all perhaps strive to take several pages from Warren Buffett as well: get a hobby, buy value, mistrust Wall Street, don't gamble, choose your friends wisely, when you're on the mainline to Chicago from NY there are no side-trips in Altoona, etc... Above all else read Benjamin Graham's 'Security Analysis'. If you have any trouble understanding what it is you are buying, you should not be laying down your money. PERIOD! Every best wish to Mr. Levitt on the success of this book!
Rating:
Summary: Unique and Important Perspective
Review: The perspective of the former SEC chairman can be very useful for ordinary investors. I learned, for example, how and why some important accounting standards were changed in recent times. This helps me to read financial reports with a better focus. The politics of the investment community was also very interesting. The letters from politicians to the SEC, questioning SEC's proposal to limit the amount of consulting work that accounting firms could do for their audit clients, were particularly enlightening. The expose of how a small group of people can influence policies of public interest is already worthy of the price. I was not completely naive before, but reading such letters from people who gained power by claiming to be protectors of public interest swings the argument for more safeguards for small investors. Self-regulation of professional bodies simply does not work, at least as far as the accounting profession is concerned.
I would have been even happier if the book were to go deeper, and gave more examples, on the issue of number games, in place of the last chapter, on 401K. But the existing chapters on accounting tricks already contained more beef than those in the other book, 'Financial Shenangans' by Schilit, which were very repetitive and not much depth.
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