Many investors, including some with substantial portfolios, have only the sketchiest idea of how the stock market works. This book claims this that the basics of investing - the fundamentals of the economic system and what they have to do with the stock market - aren't taught in school. When individuals have to make important decisions about saving for college and retirement funds, this failure to provide a basic eduction in investing can have tragic consequences. For those who know what to look for, investment opportunites are everywhere. The average student is familiar with Nike, Reebok, McDonalds, the Gap, and the Body Shop; the majority of teenagers have drunk Pepsi or Coke, but only a very few own shares in either company or even understand how to buy them. The author demonstrates that the basic principles behind public companies haven't changed in more than 300 years.