How to Trade In Stocks,   ISBN:9780071469791

Customer Rating: 

It is written in a very simple language, so it is easy to follow, may be you be able to finish the book in a few days. I am still a newbie in trading, but the concepts about Top downtrading that the book teaches can be invaluable.

Worth your money. Get it.

Customer Rating: 

My first question is to McGraw Hill: do you folks have editors? Do they read books before you publish them? Whoever edited this one really needs to find a different line of work.

Insightful and informative but ultimately incomplete, this book presents the investing methodology of Jesse Livermore by first presenting his actual book, then requoting much of that book with added interview material from the author. I read many passages, word for word, in two or more different places in the book. In the worst example of redundancy, he shows us in chapter 11, word for word and chart for chart what we already saw in chapter 8. It's like they photocopied a good portion of one chapter and - literally - added those pages to another. Such feats of poor organization and editing really give this work a shoddy feel back-alley feel.

Although reading this book was interesting, I can't help but feel ripped off in that the author was trying to create more book than is really here. The redundancy is annoying and inefficient - it would have been much better to simply present each concept - once and once only - in a logical sequence of chapters including Jesse's original text and whatever additional information (which isn't much) that the author wanted to present.

One nugget is the very last chapter where Jesse walks us through the actual process of applying his strategy to real stocks (back in 1940). Oddly, however, the author introduces this chapter by saying he does not understand it (and that we probably won't either). Seems to me one primary responsibility of an author is to explain what he's presenting.

If you want to know more about Jesse, this is a pretty good book. If you want to know more about stock trading, well, it really comes up short and is just a rehash of trend following, which is explained far better in other works. The one unique feature of Jesse's approach are Pivotal Points, which are talked about a lot, but never really explained. The methodology of Pivotal Points is presented in the final chapter, but you really have to work for it. Too bad the author didn't.

And, oh yeah, I really hate it when somebody sells me a book for good money and uses it to advertise their web site that will give me information that should be in the book (Jesse's actual algorithms) I already paid money for. And it only costs me $50 bucks a month. Gee, thanks. In my opinion, this is highly unethical.

Yep, you skinned this sheep. But you only get to do it once.

Customer Rating: 

Well written book with much useable information from the master of stock trading. I have purchased many books on the market and this ranks near the top of the list.

Customer Rating: 

Livermore lived during the Great Depression and was known as "The Boy Plunger" for taking on large positions. He had been trading stocks since he was 15 and was regarded as one of the best speculators of his time. He made and lost millions, and this was back when a million was a lot of money. If Livermore was alive today he would be one of the most sophisticated traders around.

I've read this book eight times and every time I read it, I pick up something new. It's so easy to read it feels as if the author is talking to you one on one. In the book he reveals his personal rules of trading, his money management procedures, his entry and exit strategies, and his rules for emotional discipline.

A lot of what he says is common sense. At least it seems that way when he explains it but it goes against what the Wall Street machine tells us. For example, Livermore stresses that you should "never average down. Why add to a trade you are already losing money on?" He also describes the foibles of buy and hold. Many people of his time bought the blue chips of the day - the railroads, steamship companies, buggy whip companies, and others who are no longer around. "Life is change" he reasons, "your clothes change, your kids change, you change lovers. So why cannot the reason you buy a stock change?"

Some of his rules include:

Always trade with the trend, along the line of least resistance.
Make sure all the factors are in your favor before you make a trade. (The factors are detailed in the book)
Stay with the leading stocks of the day
Group action is a key to timing - Stocks do not move alone.
Don't buy your entire position at once.
Always have a stop before you get in a trade. (Livermore used 10%)
Never takes tips from anyone
Never argue with the tape.
You should not be in the market all the time.

One of the things that helped me was that after a large successful trade, the author recommends taking half the profit out of the market. Put it away somewhere safe.

Even though the author says he never used charts, it seems that he was a technical, trend follower by today's definitions. He got in on what he called Pivotal and Continuation Points which he describes in Chapter 5.

Even though most of the book is put together by Smitten, it is still an enjoyable read for someone looking to put together a trading strategy and system. Someone who is new to the stock market will find a plethora of beneficial information. And the infomercial other reviewers have mentioned is only a short 6 pages at the back of the book. I've also read Reminiscences of a Stock Operator (Wiley Investment Classics) which is the story of a trader based on Livermore's life and Smitten's Jesse Livermore: World's Greatest Stock Trader and learned a lot from each of those as well. Both highly recommended.

I hope this review helps you in your decision to buy this book or not. I find that it is a mandatory read for all investors and traders. It has definitely helped me to improve my stock trading. If you want to read more of my reviews of stock trading and investment books, you can get them at TheTradingTipster.com

Customer Rating: 

A good book for the new trader.
Follow the hints provided by Mr. Livermore, but, be careful; don't let greed to guide your trading decisions.