Understanding the Corporate Annual Report by Aileen Ormiston, Lyn M. Fraser (2002, Paperback, Illustrated)

I have read many accounting and finance textbooks, and I found that this is a highly readable book for anyone, especially those who are intimated by numbers. It is probably half the thickness of most textbooks, and concentrate on how you can decipher the main financial statements you can find in an annual report. If you need a crash course before you invest in some companies, this will be the book you want to go for.