Right, it's good for a weekend read. I wouldn't say it's completely devoid of educational value. It's interesting to see how Johnson manages his board relations

Right, it's good for a weekend read. I wouldn't say it's completely devoid of educational value. It's interesting to see how Johnson manages his board relationships, as well as the details of the bidding process and how difficult it can be to form partnerships. The late 80s were definitely a different time, though - the amount of money needed for the RJR LBO is much more easily accessible to people in similar positions in 2016. As of June 30th, KKR's AUM is $131B, while Blackstone is at $356B. Another good read on PE is King of Capital (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0307886026 https://www.amazon.com/dp/0307886026). If you're interested in learning the technical details of corporate finance, you're probably best off starting with something like the Coursera class Introduction to Corporate Finance (https://www.coursera.org/learn/wharton-finance https://www.coursera.org/learn/wharton-finance), and then reading the textbooks referenced by the course for a more in-depth understanding.