Book excerpt: Leaving his Pennsylvania steel town home as a young man, author Kenneth D. Campbell scrambled to land a magazine writers job in Manhattan. He followed his new bosss instruction to Watch that rat hole, newspaper slang for a beat or coverage topic. Campbells rat hole was the real estate investment trusts or REITs, untested entities just approved by Congress. In Watch that Rat Hole, Campbell intertwines his personal journey with his unique observations as an investment newsletter editor witnessing the REIT Revolutionhis rat hole. He tells how that casual assignment became a distinguished lifework in three areas: WritingCampbell wrote an influential REIT stock market newsletter and co-authored the first hardcover REIT book; Investment bankingHe and his partner advised on more than two dozen mergers and acquisitions; Managing moneyCampbell co-founded a major realty stock money manager. In addition, he provides an insiders take on investment styles of 1980s activists including Carl Icahn, Michael Milken, Leland Speed, Sam Zell, and Warren Buffett and their nearly two dozen company purchases and takeovers. And, he presents valuable insights into a number of business and stock market issues. Offering personal recollections of the world of real-estate investment, Watch that Rat Hole gives insight into REITs, this little-understoodbut pivotalarea of business and finance.