Monkey Business
Monkey Business is considered a must read book for anyone considering an investment banking career. The book is the true story of two graduates from Harvard and Wharton business school.
Dreaming of magnificent wealth, elite social status, and power, the two graduates decide to become investment banking associates at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ), a prestigious New York investment bank. The associates think they will be making important deals, traveling to exotic locations by private jet, and living an extravagant lifestyle paid for by the company.
However, these dreams are quickly destroyed …

Irrational Exuberance, by Yale economist Robert J. Shiller, details historical indicators of stock market bubbles. The following is a list of these indicators.
1. High consumer confidence. (from sources such as the Consumer Confidence Index and the Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index) For example, both indexes peak during the 2000 bubble.
2. High PE ratios.

When the market reaches PE ratio extremes on the high or low end there is a reversion to the mean. The pattern of market bubbles to be linked with high PE ratios is illustrated by the first graph above. …