Reviews
"The ?fairy tales? of the title are the companies? financial reporting, which is described in what reads like a series of horror stories. The Grimm-style moral is obvious, but author Cecil W. Jackson goes further, equipping the reader with the skills to spot the 20 most common forms of corporate impropriety, and hopefully avoid this kind of nightmare in the future." Accounting Today, Oct. 2, 2006, This unique collection of autopsies of recent major financial reporting frauds provides fascinating insights for spotting 'fairy tales' as presented in financial statements. Through the author's telling the stories of these charades and by identifying the tell-tale signs of fraudulent financial statements, he gives the reader a road map for detecting future financial reporting frauds before they are taken to the morgue., Business Fairy Tales is a "nifty new book'."Jackson walks the reader through the various ways unsuspecting investors can be led down the garden path through accounting tricks." "Jackson has a knack for bringing complicated financial concepts like goodwill down to earth, and for demonstrating how they can be used to inflate earnings.", "The 'fairy tales' of the title are the companies' financial reporting, which is described in what reads like a series of horror stories. The Grimm-style moral is obvious, but author Cecil W. Jackson goes further, equipping the reader with the skills to spot the 20 most common forms of corporate impropriety, and hopefully avoid this kind of nightmare in the future." Accounting Today, Oct. 2, 2006, "There are many more lessons in this book. They are based on real cases, and the author does an excellent job in providing ways to detect possible mischief. And, as a book that can help me avoid trouble with my investment picks, it's certainly a bargain." Tom Taulli, The Motley Fool, Oct. 31, 2006, "Jackson walks the reader through the various ways unsuspecting investors can be led down the garden path through accounting tricks...Jackson has a knack for bringing complicated financial concepts like goodwill down to earth, and for demonstrating how they can be used to inflate earnings." Barrons Magazine, Sept. 25, 2006, .,."there are some important lessons for today's investors." "What can investors focus on? Jackson says that you need to be wary if goodwill is increasing much faster than earnings. This may be a sign that the company's fundamentals are deteriorating and that there are accounting games with the financial statements.", "The ’fairy tales’ of the title are the companies’ financial reporting, which is described in what reads like a series of horror stories. The Grimm-style moral is obvious, but author Cecil W. Jackson goes further, equipping the reader with the skills to spot the 20 most common forms of corporate impropriety, and hopefully avoid this kind of nightmare in the future." Accounting Today, Oct. 2, 2006, The author, a consummate story teller, in this aptly titled book describes fairy tales that have turned into nightmares. I found the background information on the fraud perpetrators, their companies, and the culture very interesting. This book is a must read for accounting students, auditors, regulators, and investors, for its clear presentation on how we all can make sure these fairy tales don't happen again., "The fairy tales of the title are the companies financial reporting, which is described in what reads like a series of horror stories. The Grimm-style moral is obvious, but author Cecil W. Jackson goes further, equipping the reader with the skills to spot the 20 most common forms of corporate impropriety, and hopefully avoid this kind of nightmare in the future." Accounting Today, Oct. 2, 2006, "Business Fairy Tales is a "nifty new book..." Jackson walks the reader through the various ways unsuspecting investors can be led down the garden path through accounting tricks." "Jackson has a knack for bringing complicated financial concepts like goodwill down to earth, and for demonstrating how they can be used to inflate earnings.", ..."there are some important lessons for today's investors." "What can investors focus on? Jackson says that you need to be wary if goodwill is increasing much faster than earnings. This may be a sign that the company's fundamentals are deteriorating and that there are accounting games with the financial statements.", Jackson's ?Top Twenty Methods of Fictitious Financial Reporting? and his graphic yet entertaining illustration of each scheme is invaluable reading for audit committees, investors and employees wanting to avoid similar calamities. One of the key messages ? trust but verify through careful analysis. Jackson reveals signals contained in financial statements and elsewhere that should prompt such deeper scrutiny., "There are many more lessons in this book. They are based on real cases, and the author does an excellent job in providing ways to detect possible mischief. And, as a book that can help me avoid trouble with my investment picks, its certainly a bargain." Tom Taulli, The Motley Fool, Oct. 31, 2006, Jackson's 'Top Twenty Methods of Fictitious Financial Reporting' and his graphic yet entertaining illustration of each scheme is invaluable reading for audit committees, investors and employees wanting to avoid similar calamities. One of the key messages--trust but verify through careful analysis. Jackson reveals signals contained in financial statements and elsewhere that should prompt such deeper scrutiny., "Jackson walks the reader through the various ways unsuspecting investors can be led down the garden path through accounting tricks...Jackson has a knack for bringing complicated financial concepts like goodwill down to earth, and for demonstrating how they can be used to inflate earnings." Barron's Magazine, Sept. 25, 2006, ., ."there are some important lessons for today's investors." "What can investors focus on? Jackson says that you need to be wary if goodwill is increasing much faster than earnings. This may be a sign that the company's fundamentals are deteriorating and that there are accounting games with the financial statements.", "...there are some important lessons for today's investors." "What can investors focus on? Jackson says that you need to be wary if goodwill is increasing much faster than earnings. This may be a sign that the company's fundamentals are deteriorating and that there are accounting games with the financial statements."
