Are you underwhelmed with the way your traditional 60/40 portfolio has been performing lately and wondering why? Do you suspect there might be better ways to invest your money, but aren't sure what they are? What about all those "alternative" investments you keep hearing so much about in the media, such as commodities, real estate, emerging market funds, and, of course, that darling of pirates, Medieval monarchs, and radio talk-show hosts everywhere: gold? And how about the legion of new financial products Wall Street keeps spawning like kudzu-exotic creatures with strange-sounding names like "replicants," "100/30s," and "buy/write" funds? How do they work, and do any of them make sense for you?

The Little Book of Alternative Investments gives you complete, detailed answers to all those questions-and a whole lot more. Like a pair of trusty native guides, bestselling investment authors Ben Stein and Phil DeMuth clear a path through the alternative investments jungle. They identify the f