So You Want To Be A Hedge Fund Manager

A hedge fund manager does not invest in shrubs. Not even fancy ones.

So what do they do all day? This funny, honest, and surprisingly heartwarming career guide for kids answers the question many grown-ups in finance have been fumbling at family dinners for years.

So You Want To Be A Hedge Fund Manager introduces young readers ages 10 to 14 to the fascinating world of investing, money, markets, and risk. It’s written so curious readers 8 and up can follow along, and so parents and teachers can enjoy it too. Hedge fund managers turn out to be detectives. They count cars in parking lots, study shipping records, and even measure the shadows inside oil tanks using satellite photos from space. Most of the money they invest belongs to other people, often the retirement savings of teachers, firefighters, factory workers, and millions of others. Every decision is a promise to people they will probably never meet.

Kids will learn how stocks, bonds, interest, diversification, derivatives, and short selling work, explained with examples they’ll actually remember. A lemonade stand shows why you shouldn’t put all your allowance in one place. A borrowed toy robot explains short selling, and why your cousin may have opinions about it. A day in the life follows a manager from the early-morning news to a blind taste test of frozen pizzas “for research,” a nerve-racking afternoon trade, and a compliance officer who leaves with the last slice.

Along the way, readers meet famous hedge fund managers from around the world and discover jaw-dropping true stories. A college student traded stocks using a satellite dish on his dorm roof. A video game store cost one fund billions. A famous fraud hid behind a one-person accounting office. And a cat named Orlando beat professional investors in a stock-picking contest.

This book is honest about the hard parts, too. It covers fees, failures, fraud, insider trading, and the industry’s efforts to open its doors to more kinds of people. A Myths and Truths page takes on the greedy-villain stereotype directly and shows how some managers have given away billions to help children and families.

Extras include fun facts, a guide to real Wall Street slang (find out what a “falling knife” is), a kid-friendly glossary, hand-picked books and websites, and simple ways to start thinking like an investor today. Readers can also hunt for the small potted hedge hidden in nearly every illustration.

Part of the award-winning So You Want To Be A… career exploration series, this book is perfect for kids who love puzzles, numbers, money, and big questions. It makes a thoughtful gift and a great choice for classrooms, homeschool STEM and financial literacy lessons, and school libraries. And for the grown-up in finance who has never quite managed to explain their job, it might finally do it for you.