Top Five Trading Books

In this article I will share my favorite 5 Trading Books. Please remember, these are only my favorites and not everyone may agree with my selection.

I have found them the most helpful and insightful, but of course I have read many books on the subject and have gained a lot from other books as well. But these are my top 5. Even though I tried to place them in order, it was very difficult to pick the order. Nevertheless, whichever order they come in, these 5 are brilliant. They are placed in the order from 5 to 1.

They are not recommendations or endorsements in any way or form, and this is definitely not a book review. It is just myself sharing my ideas and opinions about the books I have read and loved. Enjoy!

Number 5

Stan Weinstein's Secrets for Profiting in Bull and Bear Markets

Author: Stan Weinstein

A must read for anyone interested in trading, especially those who favor technical analysis. The saying 'The trend is your friend', and this book really drives this point home. It covers all the basics of trend lines, the four stages of a major cycle, moving averages, buy and stop orders, it has it all. The chapter on 'When to Sell' is priceless. Maybe the actual method described in the book may not be appealing to everyone, especially in today's high tech trading environment with so many different bells and whistles, but Stan's principles and wisdom are timeless. About 340 pages, it doesn't feel like a lot once you start reading it. Stan's lively style and commentary keeps it humming along. It was written in 1988. A well written book.

Number 4

Trade Like a Stock Market Wizard

Author: Mark Minervini

This book is more recent (2013) written by Mark Minervini, a US Investing Champion. The subtitle is How to Achieve Superperformance in Stocks in Any Market. It will appeal both to the fundamentalist and technical analyst as it covers both subjects very well. Chapter 10 is my favorite chapter. It is titled 'A picture is worth a million dollars', and comes with lots of diagrams and charts. There are many other great chapters, such as 'Trading with the Trend' 'Fundamentals to focus on' and the book finishes with two great chapters on Risk Management. I am definitely glad it's in my library.

Number 3

Reminiscences of a Stock Operator

Author: Edwin Lefevre

This book was originally published in 1923, and it's the fact that it is still published today and so popular is testimony to it's timeless wisdom and appeaI. In the foreword to the book by Roger Lowenstein, he states that Reminiscences, although Lefevre wrote it in the first person, it is based on Lefevre's several weeks of interviews with a trader he calls Larry Livingstone, who does not exist, but is a nom de guerre for Jesse Livermore, one of the greatest stock traders of all time. Easy to read, with great nuggets of street smart wisdom.

Number 2

How I made $2,000,000 in the Stock Market

Author: Nicolas Darvas

Written by Nicolas Darvas, a Hungarian by birth who fled the country and later ended up partner in a dancing team touring Europe and the United States. What I love about this book is that this guy made his fortune well before the modern technological advances and the internet. He made his fortune whilst travelling from country to country performing with his dance company. He used telegrams to send instructions to his brokers to buy and sell stocks, sometimes from far flung places without the modern whiz bang conveniences we are used to today. He used Barron's as his main source of stock research and selection. He is candid about his failures and attempts to learn from his mistakes. My book is full of underlined and highlighted nuggets of wisdom that he learned through many losses, big and small over many years. He is well known for his Box Theory of trading. This is a great book, and well worth reading more than once.

Number 1

Trading in the Zone

Author: Mark Douglas

Now, we come to the number one. Ever since I read this book a few years ago, it has remained pre-eminent in my mind and heart. Have you ever wondered why with so many books out there on success, motivation, method, strategy, this, that and the other, there are not more successful people in this world.

Why, with all the books, courses and seminars and whatever else that is available these days, you would think, especially in the developed world where these resources are readily available, that every Tom, Dick. Harry and Jane would be walking around oozing with moola and other entrapments of success. At least nearly everybody in contact with these resources would be very satisfied and productive in their respective jobs and careers, not to mention anything else their minds and hearts can envision. I would guesstimate that this is nowhere near the case, either with the majority of these people or myself.

I know I have read hundreds of books and other resources on motivation, inspiration, methodology, strategy, goals, vision etc for career, trading or just success in general. I am in the same boat as the majority of my fellow humans. Mostly empty boats, except water, with lots of holes and always bucket in hand. There are the exceptions, and why I think it works for some and not for others would be a book in itself. But do these books and other resources on success, motivation, methodologies and strategies work? I believe they definitely do, and they all have their place.

I haven't written much so far what is in the book. It is one of those books that is the glue that holds and binds all the other knowledge together. It deals with the psychological part of trading. Without it, I know I would be left glueless when it comes to trading and everything else I do would be a waste of time and money, no matter how good my other knowledge, skill or competencies may be.

This is a book which is definitely worth reading as many times as possible, preferably underlined and highlighted. A book to come back to over and over. The exercise at the end of the book is priceless. Deceptively simple, it brings together and allows the reader to put into practice that which the author has been trying to get across in the book. This book is the reason I have not given up on trading and it is the reason the passion that only true traders know is still burning. Happy reading and best of wishes.

For Information Purposes Only. No advice, financial, medical or otherwise is given or intended in this article