The shocking stories in Confessions of an Economic Hit Man were just the tip of the iceberg. The hidden web of multinational corruption is more pervasive — and far more sinister — than Confessions revealed.

It's almost impossible to turn on the business channel or read the financial pages these days and not find a story about the next commodity that's breaking an all-time price record.

Ken Fisher questions authority. He challenges the conventional wisdom of investing, overturns glib theories with hard facts, and blows up complacent beliefs about money and markets. But the authority he challenges most of all is his own - because challenging yourself, Fisher says, is the key to successful investing.

Why do so many deals that look good on paper end up in tatters? Deal makers often treat the handshake or signed contract - getting to "yes" - as the final destination in their bargaining journey rather than the start of a cooperative venture.

Charles Koch may well be the most successful businessman people have never heard of. Under his leadership, Koch Industries has become a dynamic and diverse enterprise that Forbes has called "the world's largest private company".

These stories exude suffering at its worst - from the desperate cannibalism of the Donner Party...

It's Sunday morning. Where are all the men? Golfing? Playing softball? Watching the tube? Mowing the lawn? Sleeping? One place you won't find them is in church.