ZenTraderBooks
Where to start reading about trading
There are hundreds of trading books. If you are just getting into trading, read these, in this order: first the world of trading, then what is possible in it, then how to do it, and last the hardest part, your own mind.
Reminiscences of a Stock Operator
1923
Step 1 · The world of trading
Reminiscences of a Stock Operator
Edwin Lefèvre, 1923
A great intro to the world of trading.
A lightly fictionalised account of Jesse Livermore's career, from bucket shops to fortunes made and lost. It is about speculation itself: reading the market, sitting tight in a winner, and the mistakes even great traders repeat.
Find it on Amazon.inHow I Made $2,000,000 in the Stock Market
1960
Step 2 · What is possible
How I Made $2,000,000 in the Stock Market
Nicolas Darvas, 1960
Shows you what is possible with trading.
A professional dancer teaches himself to trade while touring the world, placing orders by telegram. He ends up buying stocks that break out of price ranges on rising volume and protecting every position with a stop. He called this his "box" method.
Find it on Amazon.inTrade Like a Stock Market Wizard
2013
Think & Trade Like a Champion
2017
Step 3 · How to trade
Trade Like a Stock Market Wizard
Mark Minervini, 2013
Teaches you how to trade.
Minervini's method for finding stocks before big moves: the trend template, the stages a stock goes through, the volatility contraction pattern, and the earnings that fuel the strongest leaders, with risk management throughout.
Find it on Amazon.inRead it with: Think & Trade Like a Champion (2017)
The follow-up, about execution: position sizing, where stops go, when to sell into strength, adding to winners, and the routines that keep a trader consistent.
Find it on Amazon.inBest Loser Wins
2022
Step 4 · The mental game
Best Loser Wins
Tom Hougaard, 2022
Probably the best book I have read on the mental side of trading, even better than Trading in the Zone.
A professional trader on why ordinary instincts lose money in markets: the urge to take quick profits, to avoid a loss, to be right. Hougaard shows how he trains himself to accept losses calmly and to press his winners, which is the opposite of what feels natural.
Find it on Amazon.in
After the books
Every one of these books comes back to the same few ideas: buy strength, cut losses early, size every position from its stop, and let the few big winners pay for the many small losses. The position sizing guide and the guide to expectancy put numbers on them, and the strategy odds simulator shows why a 35% win rate can be a very good strategy.
Common questions
What is the best trading book for beginners?
Our suggested order: Reminiscences of a Stock Operator for the world of trading, How I Made $2,000,000 in the Stock Market for what is possible, Mark Minervini's Trade Like a Stock Market Wizard for how to trade, and Tom Hougaard's Best Loser Wins for the mental side.
What is the best book on trading psychology?
Our pick is Best Loser Wins by Tom Hougaard (2022), which we rate above Trading in the Zone. It explains why normal instincts, such as taking quick profits and avoiding losses, cost traders money, and how to train the opposite habits.
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