Merry Christmas and a prosperous 2016 (As well as some last minute gift ideas!)

Here at Monevator Towers we’ve hung the Out to Christmas *hiccup* Lunch shingle on the door, and we won’t be back until 2016.

Are you stuck for a last-minute Christmas present – or maybe something to help with those long days incarcerated enjoying quality time with the family?

Here are a few of 2015’s best new money-related reads to get you and your family and friends more Monevated:

The Devil’s Financial Dictionary – Jason Zweig spells out everything that’s wrong with how we think about money and investing. Funny.

Superforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction – All the cool kids are reading it. If you’re skeptical about people’s prospects of making accurate forecasts, then this is the book for you. (And if your uncle is skeptical, then this is the book for him.)

Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioural Economics – Brainy effort from the grandfather of behavioural economics. (Before you click through, have a think about which bias you’re about to exhibit…)

The Rise of the Robots – 2015 was the year that the puny apes who call themselves Earthlings finally began to consider their upcoming doom at the hands of their AI superiors [oops – did I print that out loud? reboot! reboot!]. Martin Ford’s account won FT/McKinsey Book of the Year for outlining the human dimension.

Other People’s Money – Veteran UK economist and author John Kay has had enough of the financial sector siphoning away our wealth. Persuasive.

Charlie Munger: The Complete Investor – Trent Griffin (himself no lowly player in the lifetime achievement stakes) has been studying Warren Buffett’s brilliant sidekick for a few years now. This book brings together all the wit and wisdom of every armchair investor’s favourite nonagenarian.

The Art of Execution – Blame the rise of passive investing or the miserable performance of the UK stock market in recent years, but it hasn’t been a vintage period for hands-on investing books. This one stood out for its unusual spin; it considers how the most successful investors manage to put up great returns despite picking duffers. The reviews are strong; I haven’t actually read it myself yet. (It’s on my Kindle, ready for the Queen’s Speech.)

A Wealth of Common Sense – Ben Carlson’s collected writings are the nearest thing I can offer to die-hard passive investors from the 2015 crop of new investing books – not because Carlson’s a purist, but because his engaging and thoughtful writing will lead pretty much everyone to the conclusion that indexing and rebalancing and otherwise ignoring the market is best for their wealth. Great blogger, too.

Thanks for reading in 2015 – and see you next year!