A Book with Legs

In this episode, professor and author Amitav Acharya joins Cole Smead to discuss his book “The Once and Future World Order: Why Global Civilization Will Survive the Decline of the West.” The two discuss the history of world order, including its origins in Mesopotamia. Cole and Amitav also examine what historical insights reveal about the future of nations like the U.S. and China, as well as the world order in relation to the declin...

In this episode, Cole Smead sits down with author and former President and CFO of SoftBank Group International, Alok Sama, to discuss his book, “The Money Trap: Lost Illusions Inside the Tech Bubble.” Sama discusses his personal background and investing roots. He also details his experiences alongside SoftBank’s revolutionary founder, Masayoshi Son, and the “dark side” of the industry, discussing topics such as corporate espionage.

In this episode, Cole Smead sits down with professor and author James Romm to discuss his book, “Plato and the Tyrant: The Fall of Greece's Greatest Dynasty and the Making of a Philosophic Masterpiece.” They cover a series of letters that Romm believes to unmistakably be Plato’s writing. The two discuss Plato’s encounters with a tyrannical father and son, both named Dionysius, and the legendary philosopher’s impact on the opulent c...

In this episode, author and professor Graham Taylor sits down with Cole Smead to discuss his book, “Imperial Standard: Imperial Oil, Exxon, and the Canadian Oil Industry from 1880.” Their conversation takes an in-depth look at the history of Canada’s Imperial Oil and its complex relationship with Exxon Mobil. Additionally, Cole and Graham discuss their expectations for the future of Imperial Oil, including if they foresee a time wh...

In this episode, Cole Smead sits down with Bloomberg Editor Duncan Mavin to discuss his book, “Meltdown: Greed, Scandal, and the Collapse of Credit Suisse.” The two explore the founding of Credit Suisse and its morally questionable history, which found the bank involved in a long list of scandals, including the laundering of Nazi funds and stolen assets, banking relationships with drug dealers and dictators, and the incineration of...

In this special quarterly ‘book list’ episode of A Book with Legs, Smead Capital Management’s analyst team, including Seamus Sullivan, Nick Garcia, and Will Keenan, joins Cole Smead to discuss memorable takeaways from books they have recently read, share what they are reading now, and preview what’s next. They also offer fresh insights for investors on opportunity in homebuilders, oil prices with Israel and Iran’s 12...

In this episode, Cole Smead sits down with independent scholar and writer Jill Eicher to discuss her book, “Mellon vs. Churchill: The Untold Story of Treasury Titans at War.” Their conversation explores the never-before-told story of heated debates between Andrew Mellon and Winston Churchill over post-WWI debts. Eicher and Smead discuss how each side of the dispute crafted narratives to shape public opinion, their differences in le...

In this episode, Cole Smead speaks with author and historian Russell Shorto about his latest book, ”Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events that Created New York and Shaped America,” discussing the birth of New York City, originally a Dutch-controlled settlement called New Amsterdam on Manhattan Island, until English takeover. Their conversation explores this pivotal transfer of power, and the key figures involved, explaini...

In this episode, Cole and Bill Smead speak with journalist and author Kyle Paoletta about his book, “American Oasis: Finding the Future in the Cities of the Southwest.” Their conversation explores the unique history of the American Southwest and its most iconic cities. The discussion spans from Spanish colonialism to the impact of railroads and suburbanization. They also examine the region’s key drivers of economic growth...

In this episode, author, speaker, and radio host Eric Metaxas joins Cole Smead to discuss his book, “Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy.” Their discussion explores the remarkable life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a dedicated pastor, unwilling to waver in his convictions, even when facing the Nazi regime. Bonhoeffer’s story spans continents and finds him playing a role in a plot to kill Hitler, pr...