Books about business giants offer insight

America loves a success story. We love to read about the great American hero pulling himself up by his own bootstraps and making it big. When it's the life story of a successful scion, we love the chance to peek behind the gates of the family estate and into the lifestyle of the fabulously wealthy.

American businesspeople also love to read these stories, more for the inspiration and business advice than prurient interest.

From these books we can learn how to conduct business graciously from Est?e Lauder, marketing techniques from Isaac Merritt Singer, how to have fun in business without even trying from Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, boardroom battle tactics from Henry Ford II and arbitrage from T. Boone Pickens.

And if you happen to find the fact that Singer was married only twice, but acknowledged the children of five wives in his will more interesting than educational É well, I won't tell.

Est?e Lauder, named by Harper's Bazaar as one of the "100 American Women of Accomplishment," reveals how her family business became a cosmetic empire in her autobiography "Est?e: A Success Story," 338.7 L. It follows her from her first break at a major New York store to the formation of companies that include Est?e Lauder, Clinique, Aramis and Prescriptives, with products sold on five continents.

Legendary clashes with competitors show not only her business acumen, but also her style, grace and determination. She is renowned for a life of drama, color and elegance, but the perceptive reader will also note an underlying, consistent relish for hard work.

Isaac Merritt Singer had a genius for invention, a fondness for extravagant living and an unblushing penchant for notoriety. Born in 1811, the scarcely literate son of a German immigrant, the sewing machine he perfected revolutionized manufacturing.

"Capitalist Romance: Singer and the Sewing Machine" by Ruth Brandon, 338.768 B, tells how the marketing techniques pioneered by his company transformed commerce. Worth $13 million when he died in 1875, he introduced mass production techniques, installment purchases and loss leaders. His dominance of the sewing machine industry was based in large part on his overseas sales[[In-content Ad]]