10 Best Stock Market Books for Beginners

#1 – The Intelligent Investor

The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel

by Benjamin Graham and Jason Zweig

The Intelligent Investor Rev Ed.: The Definitive Book on Value Investing

Who can deny advice from the greatest investor of the twentieth century, and if it is Benjamin Graham, no one can ignore the timeless wisdom that he is going to impart. Graham believed in the philosophy of loss minimization and not profits maximization-a theory, which at the instance sounds weird, but it is the strategy that true investors should follow. This philosophy works for long term investors who use their research, analysis, analytical power and years of discipline and experience to make sound investments. The book puts forward a realistic picture of Wall Street without any form of contortion. Grab this book immediately to attain your financial goals, as this book is the Bible of investment for everyone associated with the stock market.

However, a word of caution for beginners who pick this book, please do your homework on the primary lessons of investing before you graduate on to Graham. There is a possibility that the book might put you off to sleep if you are a layman with no knowledge.

#2 – How to Make Money in Stocks

by William O’Neil

How to Make Money in Stocks: A Winning System in Good Times and Bad, Fourth Edition

There is nothing much to be written about this book because its sale and its performance speak all about it. A national bestseller, How to Make Money in Stocks is a seven-step guiding reference for minimizing risk and maximizing gains to build a generation of wealth for investors. The book is enlisted with strategies that allow for finding winning stocks before making big price gains. It also provides tips for better investment of money in stocks, mutual funds, and ETFs to maximize gains. But the best deal is that the book helps you decode the twenty-one mistakes that every investor makes.

The book is a magnum opus and has comprehensive details covered about the stock market. Neil’s CANSLIM strategy that allowed him to turn into a multi-millionaire is a time-proven strategy that demonstrates how the equity (stock) market(s) really works – for the passive, minority, outside investor. The 80/20 approach invented by Neil talks about the investor achieving 80% success with 20% effort is based on the idea of proprietary metrics and tools. The book is a classic, and its trading advice is still relevant in today’s time. This pocket pinch is a must for investors who want to enjoy a great deal of wealth.

#3 – When to Sell:

Inside Strategies for Stock-Market Profits

by Justin Mamis (Author)

When To Sell: Inside Strategies for Stock Market Profits

The name of the book itself suggests there is ample of things to learn from it. So, buying it is mandatory if you are looking for the answer to the question when is the right time to sell my stocks. Mamis spent several years as an “upstairs” Member-Trader for Phelan, Silver, an NYSE specialist firm, and therefore he is the perfect mentor for investors looking to invest without the working knowledge of the stock exchange

. Mamis, in a very layered fashion, discusses the market indicators

to understand the correct time for buying and selling, and also explains the trade secrets of the trading floor

and how the professionals — the “they” many investors refer to grudgingly — benefit from herd psychology.

This book reveals the psychology of the average investor who prefers to lose but is most likely to win in the race. Mamis takes the minutest details into account and explains meticulously the details of how to sell your stocks to earn a bigger profit and when to sell it short of ensuring you prevent yourself from digging a hole in your pocket. Interestingly, he highlights the idea of the stock market as an ideal place to run through a variety of human emotions. From the thrill of earning money to the guilt of losing it all, Mamis very truly identifies the human weaknesses and weaves them into this informative piece. His writing has ease, which reflects his experience and knowledge accumulated over the years. Keep this book handy to use if you are interested in stock picking.

#4 – Irrational Exuberance

3rd edition Revised and Expanded Third Edition

by Robert J. Shiller (Author)

Irrational Exuberance 3rd edition

Irrational Exuberance is to remain relevant forever, for it expounds on the idea of stock and bond prices and the cost of housing in the post-subprime boom. The book fundamentally shows how recent asset markets capture and inherently reflect psychologically driven volatility. Written by the Nobel Prize-winning Yale economist, the book is a consideration into the gamut of human emotions that are at play into the stock market and lives of the investors after the 2008-09 financial crisis

. The book is a careful study, drawing widely from the research and historical evidence to come to the conclusion that the enormous stock market boom that started around 1982 and picked up incredible speed after 1995 was a speculative bubble, not grounded in sensible economic fundamentals. Shiller points out that the real estate bubble is similar to the stock market bubble

that preceded it, and warns that “Significant (further) rises in these markets could lead, eventually, to even more significant declines.” Shiller has proven he is correct, and we are very well aware of this fact.

The book is interesting and is a great combination of Psychology and Finance and provides analysis and concepts learned in traditional finance theory. The book allows the student to ruminate over the idea of bubbles as a myth or reality, but with due intelligence, this secret code can be cracked by the serious students of economics and finance.

#5 – Stock Investing For Dummies

by Paul Mladjenovic (Author)

Stock Investing For Dummies (For Dummies (Business & Personal Finance))

A newbie is sure to be lost in the ever-changing, fast-paced finance. It is, therefore, imperative that the newcomer is helped with the very basic to form a great base that could be the foundation to the next Warren Buffet. Thus, there is no better book for teaching the basics than Stock Investing for Dummies. The book begins with the basic information on ETFs, a safer way to be more diversified in the stock market, new rules, exchanges, and investment vehicles; and much more. The book explores the idea of how technological changes bring in new products, services, and ways of doing business and how to eventually protect yourself in such a volatile world of finance. The book is filled with real-life examples that allow you to grow your stock with a definite investment plan.

The book considers the reader to be dumb and navigates him through the basic stock math and eventually to the finer points of finding a stockbroker to picking ETFs or mutual funds. The author has meticulously provided the details of published resources and websites to gather enough data and make an informed decision of investing in a company.

A free tip for beginners, invest in this book rather than spending your time in tutorials.

#6 – A Random Walk Down Wall Street

The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing

by Burton G. Malkiel

A Random Walk down Wall Street: The Time-tested Strategy for Successful Investing

A book by Princeton economist is sure to make heads turn, and if it is the celebrated Burton Malkiel, students cannot resist the inclination to grab a copy of his book. Written in 1973, this book is an established guide for all fresher, novice, or entrepreneur. Written in a simple and engaging style, this book packs the idea of indexing in a risk-taking and unpredictable world of the stock market. The book advises in a lucid way and does a great job of combining the theoretical and the practical of the stock market funds. Malkiel takes the history of Wall Street and casts a speculative eye, in turn, making each and every bubble very insightful. The author’s approach to the adherence of the efficient market hypothesis and indexing is extremely correct. He argues each and every point with statistics and grudgingly acknowledges the outliers in the stock market. Malkiel’s approach is a mediocre one where he does not bombard the readers with complicated terms to take the reader off guard but is lucid and just about technology to help the seasoned as well as the newbie.

The eleventh edition of the book adds fresh material on exchange-traded funds and investment opportunities in emerging markets; a brand-new chapter on “smart beta” funds, the newest marketing gimmick of the investment management industry; and a new supplement that tackles the increasingly complex world of derivatives

. This book is a great source of fundamentals and is recommended for anybody who is looking for advice on managing his money

.

#7 – Market Wizards, Updated

Interviews with Top Traders Paperback

by Jack D. Schwager

Market Wizards: Interviews with Top Traders

Trade secrets our always beneficial, and if they are from the market wizards, there should not be anything to stop you from making it big in the stock market. And to achieve that, you need to grab a copy of the national bestseller Market Wizards. Schwager, in a unique format, reveals the essential formula which helped the top traders to amass this ton of wealth. Interestingly, Schwager does not interfere with the words of wisdom of these top traders and allows the reader to hear them directly as advice that should shape their own bright future. The likes of Bruce Kovner, Richard Dennis, Paul Tudor Jones, Michel Steinhardt, Ed Seykota, Marty Schwartz, and Tom Baldwin have been interviewed by Schwager to come out with the story of their sensational trading coups. Despite the differences in each trader’s market area and approach, the themes remain consistent. The book is noteworthy of keeping it in your library, not because of the trading patterns revealed or the techniques that are sure to work out but because it throughout tries to instill in the reader the idea that each and every trader will have to develop their own success path, realize their own follies and move ahead to achieve success in trading.

#8 – Stocks for the Long Run 5/E

The Definitive Guide to Financial Market Returns & Long-Term Investment Strategies

by Jeremy J. Siegel (Author)

Stocks for the Long Run 5/E: The Definitive Guide to Financial Market Returns & Long-Term Investment Strategies

The investment world will turn upside down if investors were assured of safe investment and guaranteed returns. However, when Jeremy Siegel presents this idea in the book, readers are convinced and do not bat an eyelid in surprise. Stocks for the Long Run present the facts of the history to prepare you for the safer investment pattern, i.e., to invest in the long-term stocks. Siegel, in a plaintiff manner, explains, “The principle of this book is that through time the after-inflation returns on a well-diversified portfolio of common stocks have not only exceeded that of fixed-income assets but have actually done so with less risk. Which stocks you own is secondary to whether you own stocks, especially if you maintain a balanced portfolio.”

The market is today’s time is so robust that the investor is required to maintain a great deal of patience to maintain a long term portfolio. However, Siegel categorically contradicts point and argues that stocks are safer and more productive, in the long run than most other forms of investment. He explains how to calculate stock returns and examines some of the more technical aspects of analyzing stocks. Siegel is not addressing the general public and provides detailed information on sophisticated ways of investing, which works well for a novice rather than a beginner. Siegel’s knowledge is, however, handy when anyone of you is looking for a great long term investment

plan for the future.

#9 – Common Sense on Mutual Fund

by John C. Bogle (Author),

Common Sense on Mutual Funds: Fully Updated 10th Anniversary Edition

John C Bogle needs no formal introduction. Respected in the mutual fund industry, this book is nothing short of the timeless commentary that Bogle can dedicate to the industry to which he has given many years. The book, in a very straightforward manner, talks about the ongoing storm and its after-effects in the stock market, giving sound advice on investment only after evaluating the fundamentals of the mutual funds and its long term implications. Bogle also reflects on the structural and regulatory changes in the mutual fund industry.

Bogle is credited with the institution of the first index mutual fund, which became the largest mutual fund in the world and has also founded the only mutual fund owned by its shareholders (Vanguard). Thus he timelessly puts in a great deal of effort to present a platform for intelligent investing as he analyzes costs, exposes tax inefficiencies, and warns of the mutual fund industry’s conflicting interests. He offers sensible solutions to the fund selection process and reveals what it will take to make it in today’s chaotic market. Common Sense on Mutual Fund is sure to make you a better investor, helping you to gain a footing in the finance industry through good sound decisions.

#10 – One Up On Wall Street

How to Use What You Already Know To Make Money in The Market

by Peter Lynch (Author), John Rothchild (Contributor)

One Up On Wall Street: How To Use What You Already Know To Make Money In The Market

This is a classic for investors who do not aim to turn into the Warren Buffets of the industry. The average investor has plenty of advice to achieve financial success in a smart way. It talks about finding the “tenbaggers” -the stocks that appreciate tenfold from the initial investment, and eventually, a few tenbaggers will turn an average stock portfolio into a star performer. Peter calls out to each investor and puts faith in each individual’s inane ability and knowledge to show the power of common knowledge (take advantage of what you already know) to predict the stock market to make money in stocks and keep an open mind to new ideas to uncover great investment opportunities.

The book is filled with witty remarks and is written in an extremely easy go hunky manner. It’s entertaining and informative, and you’ll be compelled to finish the book as soon as possible. The book though written in an easy manner, cannot be considered as a shortcut to easy success. There are no magic formulae to attain riches, and homework is always necessary.