The "What the hell should I read?!" Thread. Books, Blogs, and News

[benedictc]

sticky this please =)

[ArturiusX]

Start recommending books to be added, I'll be doing the next wave with a full and comprehensive list in the next couple of days.

[LozColbert]

I think you have to have Cialdini's Influence on this list.

[scottmci]

Fortune's Formula by WIlliam Pundstone
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
Mistakes were Made (but just not by me) by Carol Travis
My Life as A Quant by Emanuel Derman
When Genius Failed by Roger Lowenstein
The Misbehavior of Markets by Benoit Mandelbrot
Black Swan by Nassim Taleb

[SMB]

Great post

I also like http://zerohedge.blogspot.com/

[jws43yale]

Great blog list, you have my favorite four that I try to read everyday on there:

The Big Picture
Bronte Capital
Infectious Greed
Calculated Risk

If you can only read one of these, I would do the Big Picture. Personally Bronte Cap is my favorite as it has much longer very thought provoking posts.

[dibsy]

Originally Posted by SMB

Great post

I also like http://zerohedge.blogspot.com/

Yeah great post - should definitely be stickied. and yes - the zero hedge blog is one of my favorites.. breaking stories originate on this site all the time..

[darthtrader3.5]

The problem with this thread though is that I've tried to read every trading/investement book there is...I don't regret a single one I've read but some are far more valueable than others...Eventually, this thread will just be naming every investment book ever penned...
It would be more helpfull to those who are not as well read if those who are would put up a "course"/outline of the order of what you would read if you started over...
For me, it would go with a bent towards trading and not investing:
start with Practical Speculation by Victor Niederhoffer
then Fooled by Randomness and Enhancing Trader Performance
At the same time start learning a programming language and get a good tick data feed and good software.
then look up simple technical patterns on the web like flags and triangles along with reading both of James Dalton's books.
Then brush up on statistics/probability and read Evidence Based Technical Analysis...
If a light bulb doesn't go off at this point then your probly wasting your time.
If it does, read every other book you can get your hands on for fun.

[darthtrader3.5]

Originally Posted by ArturiusX

Options, Futures, and Other Derivatives (7th Edition) by John C Hull

The bible on options and futures pricing. A fantastic primer in the world of paper that represents an right to do something later, which is actually a really complicated concept and requires smart people to be paid lots of money to get it right. I heard all new options traders at both ibanks and prop firms have this book and the volatility pricing one (linked later) as the only required reading, that's how thorough this book is.

ArturiusX, while I obviously agree highly with your recommendations I take serious issue mentioning this book to newbs...I've also "heard" all new options traders are required to read this...This book though is just Black Scholes voodoo and its so ubiquitous at the institutional level that every bit of it is already priced in. IMO its completely useless considering the time involved to understand it.
To me the optimal options course goes:
Natenburg
Option Market Making - by Baird
then Cottle's Options:Perception and Deception, Coulda Woulda Shoulda or the realistic way of buying both used with Options Trading Hidden Reality...
Thats just enough knowledge for a newb to understand why options are a fools game.

[ArturiusX]

All of the newbie books are completely useless if you're trying to find an edge, the idea is to understand some of the basic theories behind the price movements and slowly expose them to more advanced concepts as they become for adept. Saying that a book doesn't have an edge isn't a reason for it not to be in the beginner section.

[skindog]

Originally Posted by ArturiusX

All of the newbie books are completely useless if you're trying to find an edge, the idea is to understand some of the basic theories behind the price movements and slowly expose them to more advanced concepts as they become for adept. Saying that a book doesn't have an edge isn't a reason for it not to be in the beginner section.

Are you going to post book recs along these lines too? I've gone through all the beginner books and it'd be great to see what kinds of advanced books you study.

[ArturiusX]

My picks should be fairly advanced in what they are. No one writes the best trading ideas though.

[darthtrader3.5]

Since it hasnt been mentioned, Seth Klarman and Toby Crabel's books are totally worth the amazon used price...assuming you can easily find the pdf version like any real value investor would...

[G-Diddy20]

Thank you very much for your time to put this together.

[SELFMADE]

Thank you!