This little piggy went to market.....

About 7 years ago, the company we worked for went out of business. We watched the principals get very rich, the lawns go unwatered, department by department shut down. We were powerless. At the end, we were left with our 401-k and the need to start our own business. With the help of a lot of good people, we've been learning. It's like taking a college course, except that your life depends on finishing successfully. I had to learn a lot because as I found, there are so many "professionals" that do not warrant trust!
This isn't about what to buy, or who to do business with, it's about learning how things work.
So here are a few that have been helpful to me.

Stikky Stock Charts A great book that'll help you identify company trendlines, giving you more insight into stocks.
Investing For Dummies by Eric Tyson. A good all around book for learning about all types of investments.
Frontline PBS: Can You Afford To Retire? A sobering and honest look at the issues facing baby boomers as they get ready to shift gears. This site is good for days of reading and reflection.

Warren Buffett's annual reports (available online) are a good education on how corporations operate. The good, the bad, the mediocre. The language is fresh and uncomplicated. Take this for instance, from the 2005 Annual Report when it comes on his viewpoint on CEO compensation:

"Too often, executive compensation in the U.S. is ridiculously out of line with performance. That won’t change, moreover, because the deck is stacked against investors when it comes to the CEO’s pay. The upshot is that a mediocre-or-worse CEO – aided by his handpicked VP of human relations and a consultant from the ever-accommodating firm of Ratchet, Ratchet and Bingo – all too often receives gobs of money from an ill-designed compensation arrangement. "

You can find these at Berkshire Hathaway. You do not have to be a shareholder to glean Warren Buffett's knowledge.

If anyone has any other resources that have been helpful in broadening your understanding, let me know!