01 / Classic Textbook Recommendation
Classic Textbook Recommendation
Who this book is for
First-year students in economics, finance, business and management who will meet financial statements in their courses and want a clear conceptual overview before a technical accounting text. It also suits students in law and the social sciences, and general readers who want to understand company reports and the debates about accounting standards.
Prerequisites
No prior knowledge of accounting, finance or economics is needed.
What it covers
The book explains the purpose and history of accounting, the basic concepts of assets, liabilities, equity, revenue and expenses, and how the balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement relate to one another. It discusses measurement choices such as historical cost and fair value, the setting of national and international standards, international differences in accounting, auditing, and creative accounting and corporate scandals.
How to use it
Read it in a few sittings before or during your first accounting or financial economics module. Keep a published annual report beside you and locate the statements and terms it describes, then move to a full financial accounting textbook for double entry and worked exercises.
Edition and sources
This record describes the first and only edition, published by Oxford University Press in 2014 in paperback in the Very Short Introductions series. Bibliographic data comes from the Google Books catalog page.