Warren Edward Buffett (born August 30, 1930) is an American business magnate, investor and philanthropist. He is considered by some to be one of the most successful investors in the world. Buffett is the chairman, CEO and largest shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway, and is consistently ranked among the world's wealthiest people. He was ranked as the world's wealthiest person in 2008 and as the third wealthiest in 2015. In 2012 Time named Buffett one of the world's most influential people.

Buffett is often referred to as the "Wizard of Omaha" or "Oracle of Omaha," or the "Sage of Omaha," and is noted for his adherence to value investing and for his personal frugality despite his immense wealth. Buffett is a notable philanthropist, having pledged to give away 99 percent of his fortune to philanthropic causes, primarily via the Gates Foundation. On April 11, 2012, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, for which he successfully completed treatment in September 2012. Buffett is also active in contributing to political causes, having endorsed Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton for president during the 2016 campaign season.

Review

"Larry Cunningham has done a great job collating our philosophy. First class."

--Warren Buffett

"One of the top investment books of all time."

--The Motley Fool

"Two thumbs up."

--CNN

"The book on Buffett. A superb job."

--Forbes

"Extraordinary."

--Money

"A classic on value investing and the definitive source on Buffett."

--Financial Times

One of "the smartest books we know."

--Fortune

"Of incalculable and timeless value. Cunningham's Introduction (all by itself) is worth much more than the cost of the book."

--Robert Morris, Amazon Hall of Fame Reviewer

"Recommended reading for the President of the United States and everyone else, not only corporate executives."

--Joe Nocera, The New York Times

"Warren Buffett’s shareholder letters are available on the Berkshire website, but this is a brilliant alternative to the forbidding prospect of working through all of them. In The Essays of Warren Buffett, released in a new edition about every five years, most recently in a 3rd edition in 2013, Lawrence Cunningham has created a highly readable and topically indexed volume."

--Kevin LaCroix, The D&O Diary