Book Description

John Bollinger is a giant in today’s trading community. His Bollinger Bands sharpen the sensitivity of fixed indicators, allowing them to more precisely reflect a market’s volatility. By more accurately indicating the existing market environment, they are seen by many as today’s standard—and most reliable—tool for plotting expected price action.

Now, in Bollinger on Bollinger Bands, Bollinger himself explains how to use this extraordinary technique to compare price and indicator action and make sound, sensible, and profitable trading decisions.

Concise, straightforward, and filled with instructive charts and graphs, this remarkable book will be essential reading for all serious traders, regardless of market. Bollinger includes his simple system for implementation, and techniques for combining bands and indicators.

Reviews (22)

Excellent...on an Absolute and a Relative Basis
I've been trading for a living for more than 5 years, and am now a frequent commentator on a major financial website. As a student of the market, I became familiar with Bollinger Bands very early in my career. I thought I knew how to use them, and ALWAYS looked at them as a reference before entering any trades. However, after reading this book, I realized that I was just barely skimming the surface of this important indicator. I've read it 3 times, and all the margins are now marked up with notes.
The most striking revelation to me was the difference between "absolute" and "relative" readings -- in other words, how a stock could make a new high on an absolute level, but actually be a failure in reference to the upper Bollinger Band. This simple, yet elegant, idea has had a profound effect on how I view price action, and I find that my other technical indicators are much more revealing when viewed in this context. The book is infinitely readable for both novice and seasoned investors, and there is also enough math and statistical data to satisfy most geeks. Mr. Bollinger also discusses various other indicators that can (and should) be used in conjunction with Bollinger Bands.
Remarkably, Mr. Bollinger also supports the content of his book with a free website .... You can use all the indicators he highlights inhis book, and customize them according to your own parameters. It's basicallyan "on-going continuing education" program. Nice to finally see somebody primarily concerned with teaching rather than self-promotion and profit.
The bottom line is this: If you want to learn how to increase your performance in both trending and non-trending markets, this book is a "must-read." It is NOT a trading system; rather, it is an excellent and insightful dissertation on the proper usage of Bollinger Bands. In the current sideways market environment, Bollinger Bands are more useful than ever. No serious trader/investor should be without this book.

What The Doctor Ordered
A quiet, well paced, unassuming power house of history, insight, and trading experience all rolled into an easy flowing, unpretentious read. Bollinger manages to teach us about his indicator, and about the market itself without shameless self promotion or hype. Bollinger on Bollinger bands is what this market needed, a clear, concise and useful tool for investors to use to provide balance in a chaotic time. As a financial writer, and money manager, who uses Bollinger Bands on every trade, I found that the book gave me new ways to not just trade, but analyze the market and decide when not to trade, which is where the difference between success and failure is often deciced. The book is written in a fluid, easy to digest manner, which gives the reader room to sit back and ponder between chapters. There are clear, one sentence summary statements after each section, which pull the material together quite well and reinforce the main points. Other useful aids include a pull out reference card with statistical formulas and reference charts. The best thing is that Bollinger, a bona fide market guru, doesn't take himself too seriously. He humbly admits that trading has a great deal of uncertainty, and does not tout his own fortunes as a result of his indicator. The book can also be read as a nice historical piece, which begins with the nostalgic foreword by CNBC's Ron Insana about the old FNN news room, including a classic anecdote about the late Ed Hart, who for all of us who knew FNN could only bring a smile. Thanks John.

Who Better to Explain Bollinger Bands...
Of all the main stream technical indicators, it is safe to say that Bollinger Bands are perhaps the least understood. But they can become part of an arsenal of highly useful technical tools for those who have learned how to properly apply them and one good way to get a running start is to read his latest book, Bollinger on Bollinger Bands. Not only does the book provide some very useful background information on how they came to be, it is an opportunity to hear from the master himself how he uses the bands to best effect. According to Bollinger, one pattern that he calls the Squeeze (a topic on which he spends a whole chapter) draws more questions than any other aspect of Bollinger Bands. As he describes it, his bands "are driven by volatility, and The Squeeze is a pure reflection of that volatility." (Excerpt from Investopedia.com with permission.)

After reading the book, I developed a scan to find stocks that are getting the Squeeze and it works pretty well. Sure enough, a stock that has shown a period of declining volatility, generally breaks out with a bang shortly after reaching a low extreme. The trick is then trying to determine which way. Bollinger includes a number of tips and indicators in the book to help the trader figure that out too.

This book is for anyone who has ever looked at Bollinger bands and tried to understand how to use them as well as those who do use them now but want to get some more great ideas. It is not a difficult read and is actually very well written (I am always surprised by traders who have been steeped in mathematics and technicals like John B. who can also write well.) He is obviously an excellent communicator and this fact comes through loud and clear in his book.

Bollinger on Bollinger Bands is well worth the money. It is also a chance to hear the master who we see on CNBC and in the Wall Street Journal express his ideas and views on markets and how to profit from them. That alone, makes this book worth reading.

Matt Blackman - Technical Writer/Reviewer Email: matt@tradesystemguru.com
---------------------------------------------------------------
Contributor to Stocks & Commodities Magazine, Working Money, Traders.com Advantage, Active Trader, Traders Mag (Europe) and SFO Magazine

Best book ever on technical analysis...it really works
I've been using this book's theory to trade options online and I am averaging 67% per month. A key component of his book is to use fractal market analysis ...different time frames.
Bollinger Bands work better than any other indicator around.

First Rate
An excellent book on both trading in general and the construction, logic, and use of Bollinger Bands. ... Read more

Book Description

How did a secretary, a firefighter, a retired naval officer, a housewife, a construction worker, a schoolteacher, and a pharmacist become wealthy?  Bestselling author Ric Edelman has studied the wealth-making habits of these 5,000 other ordinary Americans and reveals his findings in this extraordinary book that outlines in eight easy, practical steps to secrets to achieving and maintaining wealth.

Here you'll find a lifetime of wealth-building experience from people just like you -- people who have figured out how to arrange their finances and make wise investment decisions so that they can reach their goals and achieve financial security.  Plus, you'll find tips on

• How to turn your mortgage into a wealth-enhancing tool
• Why small investments work better than big ones
• How to max out on your employer-sponsored retirement plan
• When to hold investments and when to fold them
• When to pay attention to financial news and when to turn it off

Let your neighbors lend you a hand. And let Ric Edelman guide you through their lessons in this  eye-opening journey with thousands of ordinary folks who found their way to extraordinary wealth.

Reviews (68)

Don't waste your money
First off I'd like to say that the information in this book,8 so called secrets,is valuable. Mr. Edelman explains it in an easy to understand way. The reason I say not to waste your money is this. Each secret has a chapter with an average length of 11.5 pages. So basically the good information is in about 90 some pages. The rest of the book is filled with the authors' clients telling you how they do the things that the book says. In my opinion this should be a 100 page book at the most. It took me 2 hours to get all the valuable information out of this book(it is good information). I think the author expanded most of his energy trying to sell you his other books by the numerous footnotes telling you to by his other books. He was trying to be humorous most of the time with the footnotes but it became annoying.

My recommendation is..The library

A great addition to The Millionaire Next Door
I've noticed that several people are comparing this book to The Millionaire Next Door and making it as a either/or deal.I ve read The Millionare Next Door as well as this book and I believe they compliment each other, even though they also contradict each other. Who says that anyone has a corner on truth or that there is only one way to become financially successful? The Millionaire Next Door beats the frugality concept to death and shows how ordinary people can become successful via frugal living.Ordinary People/Extraordinary Wealth also shows how ordinary people achieve extraordinary wealth only with a slightly different method.Edelman, and his successful clients, recommend not paying off your mortgage early (I did but took out a home equity line of credit later) I didn't initially agee with Edelaman on this, but I do now.A paid off mortgage may make you feel good but it ds you no good. It's like money in a shoebox generating nothing.Some people also compared Edelmans book with the poular Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, another great book. Kiyosaki emphasizes that a house is not an asset and that money is better used to invest in real assets as opposed to paying off a non asset---mortgage. In this regard, Edelman and Kiyosaki are very similiar.To me it makes more sense to invest in assets like rental properties and equities than to pay off your mortgage to be debt free (you are also cash flow free). Although I wouldn't have said that 10 years ago--live and learn!All three books: The Millionaire Next Door, Rich Dad Poor Dad and Ordinary People Exxtraordinary income make great, highly instructional and profitable reading.These books deliver only if you follow through on the advice given.If you are new to Edelman, I highly recommend that you read The Truth About Money first, then move on to Ordinary People Extraordinary Wealth.

No Epiphanies or Elixirs Here
The reason I give this book two stars is that it emphasizes the potential rewards of risk without emphasizing a responsible, balanced approach. Other publications, such as the bestseller, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, and excerpts from The Millionaire Next Door communicated more clearly that what separates the financially independent individuals from those who are trapped in the paycheck-to-paycheck rat race world is that the former are made up of compulsive savers and investors while the latter are made up of compulsive spenders who entrap themselves by spending increases that correlate with pay raises.

Author Robert Kiyosaki at least hit the nail on the head when he said that the road to financial success is to increase your ability to build interest income, a goal well highlighted in Dominguez and Robin's Your Money or Your Life, by building assets and reducing liabilities. In fact, his terms made investing in the stock market appear a whole lot more attractive an option than what this book, with its bits and pieces of anecdotal evidence, could ever begin to express.

Sorry, still 2 stars. The way that the chapters were laid out did not strike me as being overtures of a road to victory for every person. Why? Because, unlike other reliable sources, such as Kiyosaki's works, it does not go deeply enough into the process of thinking about what defines financial intelligence and what the financially intelligent thing to do would be for a given situation.

With the quick jump to placing a seemingly blind faith in investing the stock market and with the few stories of how several became "successful" with his strategies (and they may be financially sound), this book resonated the pitches of a snake oil salesman.

Ric Edelman is, perhaps, an intelligent man, but don't confuse this "Yadda, Yadda, Yadda" with "Yabba Dabba Doo"!

Recommended for any young investor
This book provides a good survey of where to start thinking about your investment possibilities, and offers some good advice on what to do and what not to do. The most valuable part of the book is the personal experiences shared by the financially successful individuals at the end of each chapter. I agree with another reviewer that this booked was basically a sales brochure, however, it offers some good advice. Recommended if you have no clue what you're doing but know you have to do something ASAP.

8 secrets on how 5,000 people achieved financial success/
The fact is that the 8 secrets revealed in this book have already worked for over 5,000 people. That is a pretty impressive record.

Some of the tips you will learn include:

How to turn your mortgage into a wealth-enhancing tool

Why small investments work better than big ones

How to max oout your employer sponsored retirement plan

Your investments: when to hold them and when to fold them

Financial news: when to pay attention and when to turn it off

And a whole lot more.

This book was written prior to the Clinton Stock Market Crash that occurred in 2000 but as a reader of Ric Edelman, I am happy to say that after following Edelmans's advice, I was a victor not a victim. I listen to Ric, not self serving brokers or out of touch magazine authors who think they are qualified to write on personal finance. ... Read more

Book Description

"Managing a Consumer Lending Business" summarizes the lore and the knowledge of the business as the new century begins. It covers many subjects a good manager should know: the importance of how to attract enough good accounts to offset the inevitable bad accounts that every lender will get, controlling line sizes, encouraging use by good customers/discouraging or controlling the bad customers, managing profitability with predictability, if he or she is to effectively run a high-volume consumer business. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Best in its Class
Managing a Consumer Lending Business is an excellent primer covering both fundamental practices and principles for safe and sound lending. This book covers the basics well and should be required reading for management trainees and those new to consumer lending. This 2002-published book is superior to older, now-obsolete books on consumer lending, and is spiced with anecdotes, quotes and references to mistakes that made headlines. The chapter on recessions is germaine and usually neglected by other books. The only criticisms are minor: a few too many references to the authors' consulting practice, and it would be improved by a chapter or two on securitization and the gain-on-sale practices.

A Comprehensive Guide
This book is very well written. It is about managing a healthy consumer lending business by using systematic ways to plan, acquire, and maintain a portfolio and by emphasizing quantitative tools to measure its performance and manage risks. I like this book also because it provides careful accounts about the history of this industry.
This book is an excellent reference for serious practitioners. Portfolio managers and financial analysts can acquire important concepts for managing their businesses. You might even be able to start your own consumer lending business by following the steps introduced in the book. Meanwhile, this is an attractive book for consumers to equip with extensive knowledge to deal with credit card issuers, collection companies and to take care of their mortgages and automobile loans, etc. ... Read more

Book Description

Swing trading is gaining popularity as a powerful method to increase returns—and potentially lower risks—by profiting from short-term price moves. The Master Swing Trader explains how traders can use technical analysis, charting, and market sentiment to make trades that hold through price fluctuations and noise with wider stops. This complete, practical guide to making profitable short-term trades—based on the author’s popular “Mastering the Trade” online course—uses dozens of charts and graphs to illustrate proven swing trading concepts and strategies. Experienced day, position, and online traders will benefit immediately from: - The 7 Bells – unique tools to uncoverpromising short-term prospects - Techniques to profit from low-risk short sales- The 4 repeating cycles for perfectlytimed trades ... Read more

Reviews (212)

A good book beyond the apprehension of the mass
Seldom on Amazon a popular book (with 187 reviews utd) carries so extreme comment as this. I fully understand so because I did have negative feeling of it, which only improved gradually from page to page. In the beginning, the book really seems so complicated, full of jargons, candlestick charts elaborating on chart patterns with little reference to oscillator indicators like MACD, Stochastics, which I personally believe the alignment of several of them to be a prerequisite for any profitable trade. In the end, I realized that if I didnt put so much emphasis on the words "Swing Trading" and its virtual difference with "Momentum Trading" which the author criticized much, this book is not so bad when considered to be a general trading book with above average practical advice.

Amongst others, I found the following so called 7 Bells, tools to locate outstanding opportunities most interesting.

1. Dip Trip - Price that moves against a strong trend will rebound sharply
2. Coiled Spring - Constricted price gives way to directional movement
3. Finger Finder - Candles flag reversals in the next smaller time frame.
4. Hole in the wall - Gap downs after strong rallies signal a trend change
5. Power Spike - High volume events print the future diretion of price (Big volume kills a trend)
6. Bear Hug - Weak markets drop quickly after rallying into resistance
7. 3rd Watch - Breakouts through triple tops signal major uptrends

In a word, this book is quite a helpful tool of reference amidst the competitive life of trading which regular glance of its graphs do help much to refresh one's mind. Complex, time consuming but well worths the price.

Read it and Loved it
I would like to strongly recommend this book to everyone. I have been trading stocks for about 4 years and read almost every book written on trading. This book covers so many important elements of short-term trading, including patterns, indicators, psychology, cycles and execution. It doesn't only touch upon these issues but explains them thoroughly with excellent illustrations, I counted over 180 of them. If you're anything like me, you will appreciate all of the charts as visual aids for the teachings in the book.

I also found it to be very well organized. The early chapters required a lot of attention. But everything really starts to click as each new chapter builds on previous information. By the time I got to the excellent "7-Bells" sections, I could almost anticipate how the author was going to treat his detailed examples.

I learned a tremendous amount reading this book. My overall rating is 5 stars. It is well worth its price tag and you will get what you pay for.

No substance, Very wordy
VERY difficult to understand, the charts in this book look like tangled spaghetti, the wording is long and makes little sense. I returned the book 5 days after i bought it. The techniques in this book are useless if you can understand them. I am not new to trading books and have read my share but this has to be one of the worst. Don`t waste your time or money on the book.

Great ideas, disabled by poor expression
Some pluses for this book:

- I would have to say this book contains great ideas - both of logic and experience. Excellent in this regard.
- Not only are some of the ideas great, this is comprehensive stuff. It's almost everything you'd learn if you traded for a couple of years yourself (minus the actual experience of course)

However, there are some really terrible negatives in this book:

- the English is POOR. I'm not going to argue with what is good or bad English, but the simple fact that it is DIFFICULT to read make it poor. There are some very obscure expressions used to describe say, certain price movements. These are DIFFICULT to understand if not ambiguous. I do not know why the author decides to use such esoteric terms - why not use simple english?
- The diagrams are labelled somewhat poorly. Text should refer more to the diagrams!! Argh!!
- [update] forgot to mention that his elliott wave counts are basically wrong. I think he has very limited understanding of EW (even less so than me, which is quite appalling). Beginners need to be aware of this!

Although the book contains some excellent ideas, I suspect most people will have difficulty extracting this information. It's such a waste it's not funny. Needless to say, the text is quite verbose and accordingly is heavily demanding on the reader's time.

Trader
Mr. Farley is obviously an experienced and probably successful trader. He is one of the more knowledgable writers I have read on trading. His book is through and detailed.

I have only one criticism. Mr. Farley has a talent for taking a fairly simple function and making it sound complicated.

This book would make an excellent college text. ... Read more

Book Description

The treatment in Analysis of Equity Investments: Valuation is intended to communicate a practical equity valuation process for the investment generalist. Unlike many alternative works, the book integrates accounting and finance concepts, providing the evenness of subject matter treatment, consistency of notation, and continuity of topic coverage so critical to the learning process.

The book does not simply deliver a collection of valuation models, but challenges the reader to determine which models are most appropriate for specific companies and situations. This book contains many real-life worked examples and problems with complete solutions. In addition, the examples and problems reflect the global investment community.

Chapter 1 describes how an analyst approaches the equity valuation process.

Chapter 2 begins with the basic John Burr Williams dividend discount model (DDM) and discusses the derivation of the required rate of return within the context of Markowitz and Sharpe’s modern portfolio theory (the capital asset pricing model).

Chapter 3 shows how the DDM approach can be modified to a free cash flow (FCF) approach. Considerable attention is devoted to forecasting FCF and its relationship both to the firm (FCFF) and to equity (FCFE).

Chapter 4 takes a somewhat different approach to equity valuation by using Graham and Dodd–type concepts of earning power and associated "Market Multiples." The most familiar of these is probably the price-to-earnings ratio, but there is also merit to using price to book value, price to sales, price to cash flow, enterprise value to EBITDA, and price to dividends.

In Chapter 5, the authors present residual income models. The authors demonstrate how to calculate residual income and discuss the accounting adjustments necessary to estimate single-stage and multistage residual income valuation. ... Read more

Book Description

Hedge funds have long been viewed as mysterious, high-risk investments, unsuitable for most investors. All About Hedge Funds debunks these myths and explains how any investor can take advantage of the high-potential returns of hedge funds while incorporating safeguards to limit their volatility and risk. This clear-headed, commonsense guide tells investors:

• What hedge funds are--and what they are not
• Four key hedge fund strategies
• How to incorporate hedge funds into an existing portfolio
• Types of risk involved in hedge fund investing

Reviews (6)

Excellent
Not just for people looking for a hedge fund! This book is a great introduction to modern portfolio theory and gives excellent descriptions of most key concepts. If there's a 2nd edition, I hope he will include more clarity and discussion of key terms like Sharpe Ratio (there are 2 definitions in customary usage, it's an important and misunderstood number, and there is no occurrence of "sharpe ratio" in the index), Alpha, Beta, R-squared, etc. Nonetheless, this book is extremely helpful and highly recommended.

Great, Great, Great
This book is great!

I'm a Wall Street professional, but wanted to understand more about the hedge fund business. My initial concern was that this book was going to be too basic, but it was not. It provided excellent insights into the function of hedge funds in today's financial world, various types of investment strategies, the tools available to hedge funds and even went into regulatory and tax issues. It answered all the questions I had about hedge funds (and was afraid to ask). Yet while it was not too simplistic for someone already in the financial services world, it was also not too complicated for a layperson. This book will remain a valuable resource for me in the future.

Fantastic overview of the industry
This book presents a fantastic overview of the hedge fund industry. The intended target audience is hedge fund investors, which is reinforced by the author's credentials as an executive in a "Fund of Funds". In addition, the book would be very useful as an interview to financial markets, useful for business students interested in careers in trading or hedge funds.

The book starts with a broad overview of market theory, covering efficient markets, diversification theory and strengths and weaknesses of the "Random Walk" theory. The book then moves to an overview of the various investment tools available to hedge funds, such as going long and short on stock prices and volatility. (If you'd like to know in plain english what being "long volatility" means, this is a good book for you!) The book then covers legal, financial and operational details of running a fund. Lastly, it covers the various types of funds, such as equity funds and event driven funds. The scope of the material covers financial institutions such as investment banks and brokers that support hedge funds.

In summary, this was a very informative introductory text on both hedge funds and markets. It will be very useful to both new investors in hedge funds, as well as students of financial markets. The math is well explained, and there are only a few tough technical sections.

Enjoy!

Excellent Primer on Hedge Funds and the Industry
This book delivered what I was looking for and more. I needed an introduction to hedge funds and the industry and the book does an excellent job of providing this information in complete and concise detail. In addition, the book also gives a good overview of portfolio theory and how it relates to actual practice. There is also a section that describes the prevalent hedge fund strategies with historical performances. I highly recommend this book to those interested in starting their own fund or wishing to work in the industry.

Best book I've read on hedge funds
"All About Hedge Funds" is lucid enough for beginners, sophisticated enough for those in the know, and written with a clarity and intelligence rare in the world of money books. Jaeger avoids hype while providing plenty of insight into this often misunderstood investment tool. ... Read more

Book Description

Performing Venture Capital Due Diligence the Right Way

Venture Capital Due Diligence provides a clear and complete explanation of the venture capital (VC) due diligence process and shows you how to use it to assess investment opportunities, make smart investment decisions, and increase the return on your overall venture capital portfolio.

This comprehensive guide offers a full explanation of the VC due diligence process, from using screening mechanisms that sort out potential opportunities, to assessing the management qualities, business models, legal issues, and even intangibles of target companies. Structured around a number of carefully crafted questions that venture capitalists often ask when performing due diligence, this book puts you–the reader–in the position of a VC conducting due diligence on a particular company.

In-depth discussions of these questions and their possible answers pull together opinions from many of the major players in today’s venture capital industry, including . . .

• Richard Testa of Testa Hurwitz & Thibeault
• Ann Winblad of Hummer Winblad Venture Partners
• John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
• Craig Johnson of the Venture Law Group
• Don Valentine of Sequoia Capital
• Kevin Fong of the Mayfield Fund

. . . and many others who are qualified to comment on the proper methods of performing VC due diligence and making VC investment decisions.

An essential guide for anyone involved in venture capital investing, Venture Capital Due Diligence helps you uncover potential problems, while showing you where to look and what to look for when conducting VC due diligence. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

This book is a really great resource.
As a new entrant to the field of venture capital, I found this book extremely helpful. Anyone hoping to become a VC should definitely take a look.

Skip it
This book is a disappointment.

Although it is carefully documented, it is almost entirely made up of quotes from secondary sources. If you've read some basic books on private equity, you probably already read most of the sources used in this book. There is little in the way of analysis or any kind of value add.

Don't Skip this Book!
Written in simple format, layman's terminology, and constructed very well. If you are looking to build a business, even have one funded this is a book you have to read. It gives very good perspective and is a great supplement to "The Venture Capital Cycle" and "Venture Capital and Private Equity: A Casebook". The reading is highly informative and the 3 go together exceptionally well.

One of the finest due diligence books I have read.
Justin Camp puts the whole due diligence process into a logical, easy to read, and concise format. I found it both informative and thought provoking. I believe this book would not only be helpful to venture capitalists but entrepreneurs can use it to prepare themselves and their companies to attract vc funding. The book should be a reference work for anyone looking to build or invest in a young company. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Missed Fortune: Dispel the Money Myth-Conceptions
I wish I had read a book like this years ago. This book change the way I think about money. I can't thank Douglas Andrew enough for sharing his insights. A must read for anyone with a mortgage!!!!

I learned quite a bit from this book
I stumbled unto this book and I only browsed the first couple of chapters while I was at the bookstore. For now, I'll write an incomplete review, because this is such a good book, I was kind of surprised it only had one anonymous Amazon review thus far.

This book, or at least the little that I've read from this book, is truly outstanding. It takes the common sense financial practices of the average financial investor/homeowner, and it tells us why they're a bad idea.

A couple of juicy tidbits:

- Overpaying on your mortgage paiment will increase the risk of losing your property.
- In a real estate downturn, bankers like to take over equity-rich properties, not equity-poor properties (it's less work for them).
- In a real estate downturn or in an emergency, it's better to have your money in a side liquid fund, than to have it tied up in your property.
- And in case your bank tries to repossess your property, you'll have more leverage against the bank and you'll have more room to maneuver if your money is out the property.

Now again, I haven't read the book fully, these are just the couple of ideas that I remember at the top of my head, but those ideas were very thought-provoking (to me at least). I intend to buy this book, read it fully, and come back here to give a better review.

Absolutely amazing
If you are in the financial services industry or even just looking to have a safe and secure retirement, you need to read this book! It is absolutely amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ... Read more

Book Description

FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE BUSINESSWEEK, USA TODAY, AND WALL STREET JOURNAL BUSINESS BESTSELLER HOW TO MAKE MONEY IN STOCKS!

Simple-to-follow strategies for making--and keeping--profits in today's perilous stock market

More than 80 million investors lost 50 to 80 percent of their savings in the recent stock market crash. Investor's Business Daily publisher William J. O'Neil, however, was one of the first to see--and warn investors about--the dangers inherent in what had been, up to that point, a historic bull market run. Those who followed his counsel were able to sidestep devastating losses and emerge with their sizable bull market profits largely intact.

In The Successful Investor, O'Neil steps up to tell all investors how they can make money and, more important, avoid losses in up markets, down markets, and everything in between. Showing how mistakes made in the recent market collapse were amazingly similar to those made in previous down cycles, O'Neil reveals simple steps investors can follow to avoid costly mistakes and:

• Buy only the best stocks at only the best times
• Follow a market-tested 3-to-1 Profit-and-Loss Percentage Plan
• Know when to sell for the biggest possible profit
• Recognize chart patterns that presage enormous market moves
• Manage a portfolio over time to maximize its returns

William O'Neil has succeeded in virtually every market environment by following a stable, nonemotional investment plan. In his latest book, O'Neil explains how anyone can follow that plan to become a profitable long-term investor, regardless of market tides or turns.

The Successful Investor will bring reason and welcome relief to all investors buffeted and bewildered by the perils and uncertainty of today's stock market.

Reviews (20)

Don't just buy it, use it!
I have read O'Niels previous books and I read IBD everyday. In The Successful Investor, O'Niel goes beyond what he wrote about in his previous books. It's what 80 million people could have used during that last bear market.

Besides this book, I also recommend reading IBD everyday. Yeah, I know that sounds like a commercial, but the paper is great and you'll find it more benefical than reading the local paper. It will certaintly make you more money.

I also recommend Wall Street Money Machine VOL I & II and Red Light Green Light by Wade Cook. The first two saved me a ton of money during that last bear market. The last one has made me a lot of money playing earnings.

Great books and IBD is a great newspaper. Good luck.

An updated version of How To Make Money in Stocks
I read O'Niels book How To Make Money in Stocks which was excellent. The Successful Investor covers much of the same information with some new. It is excellent and particularly pertinent to investors who have become "gun shy" after the last three year long bear market.Obviously a lot of new people became investors in the late 90's and were totally unprepared for what happened post March 2000.Fortunately I moved out of aggressive stocks and funds and partially into cash (money market funds) and into other investments that produced a 20%-40% annualized return even during the bear market.IBD is the first thing I read and I read it voraciously. I would not be in the maket without it. In particular, I check the Monday edition with the top 100 stocks based on eps. I AM NOT TOO PARTUCARLY CONCERNED ABOUT P/E RATIOS AS LONG AS THE STOCK IS GROWING AT AT LEAST A 20% LEVEL QUARTER OVER QUARTER.IBD mas finding these stocks so easy.In 2003 I stayed with tech stocs even though many thought they were overbought, had risen too far and too fast. I bought good names like INTC, DELL, IBM, CSCO, YHOO and EBAY. I also bought some no tech names based on eps and information found in IBD.Interesting is that these stocks are still moving up despite continually hitting new 52 week highs.The Successful Investor covers an easy 5 step method that anybody could follow. O'Niel once again has a chapter on CAN SLIM, the whole basis of his system---which does really work.The Successful Investor is a must read for anyone who is currently in the market or wants to be. I also recommend Winning On Wall Street by Martin Zweig and More Wealth Without Risk by Charles Givens. In More Wealth Without Risk, Givens details his "money mvement strategy" (a technique that I used back in 2000 and still use today) which has you in the best investment for the times.Good luck with your investments!

I agree with chrisbest01 from NY RE: Buffett
I find it amusing that some people like to compare people like O'Niel with Warren Buffet. Not only did Buffet start with $7 mil way back then (more like $35-$40MIL) in todays dollars, an amount which only those with rich parents could do, what is Warren Buffet doing to show the average investor how to make money?

O'Niel provides a paper and his newest book that can show anyone how to make money predictable and consistently. Buffet is okay for those who those who already have a wad and can handle missing opportunities (like Buffet missed the technology boom in the 90's and again since Oct 1992) and are into "buy and hold." I don't know about you, but "buy & hold" didn't work for me and it certaintly didn't work for the 80 million who lost over a trillion during the Clinton bear market.

This book is O'Niels best book to date. Use and it profit.

Good luck!

Realistic and powerful advice
80 m illion Americans lost between 50-80% of their wealth th anks to the Clinton Bear Market that began in March 2000. When considering advice pertaining to the stock ma rket, it is a lot like that old tv show, Who Can You Trust. Certaintly the events that followed March 2000 have shown 80% of Americans who they cannot trust.

Bill O'Neil is more than a author of successful books and publisher of a great newspaper-IBD. He is also a successful, savvy investor. He knows how to win on WALL STREET and now he shows the rest of us how we can win and win big.

I highly recommend this great book by Bill O'Niel. It goes beyond his previous books. It provides a blueprint, a road to follow that works again and again. If you were to do nothingesle but buy this book and IBD, that alone would make you a very successful investor, far ahead of those who listen to brokers, financial planners, advisors and other so called investment experts including other authors.

Read Bill O'Niel, but more importantly, follow his advice to achieve your wealth.

I agree--read this book along with IBD -Be wary.........
I have to agree with the previous reviewer who said that all you really need is IBD along with this book. By contrast, I found the review by an obvious book peddler indicating that he has "averaged 50% gains per year" and "is considering writing a book if there is enough interest" laughable.

Where do you suppose this guy is going to get his information? That's right. From O'Niels book and IBD! You can do the same yourself.

Be wary of certain reviewers who are trying to peddle books. On the other hand, I highly recommend O'Niels books and IBD. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Completely Revised with Updated Tax Law Information, Income-Building Strategies, Online Resources, Success Stories, and More
With hundreds of thousands copies in print around the world, Smart Women Finish Rich, by renowned financial advisor David Bach, has shown women of all ages and backgrounds how to take control of their financial future and finish rich.Whether you’re working with a few dollars a week or a significant inheritance, Bach’s nine-step program gives you tools for spending wisely, establishing security, and aligning money with your values.Plus, in this completely revised and updated edition, David Bach includes critical new long-term investment advice, information on teaching your kids about money, Internet resources, and new ways to attract greater wealth–personal and financial–into your life.
... Read more

Reviews (88)

The BEST Personal Finance Book Out There. PERIOD.
I've read about 90 books on personal finance, frugality, etc., in the past year. This is THE BEST. PERIOD. Bach doesn't tell you how to get rich. He talks to you, coaches you, cajoles you to figure out what's really important to you. And then he tells you how to fund those important goals. I've never seen such a beautiful blend of coaching and advice. After reading the couples version of this book, I got my husband to read it, and then we held a "Finance Night" in which we did all the exercises, talked them through, went over our budgets, insurance coverage, etc., and then came up with a 10-step action plan. This book motivated us to do all that! I've since read the version for women and am getting copies for every one in both our families for Christmas. I personally can't remember the specific financial advice Bach gives. Personally, I think financial strategies need to change as events and circumstances change. I don't need a book for specific strategies. I needed a book to help me figure out very specifically what we wanted out of life, and get me motivated to move in that direction! And that's what this book did.

Well written financial planning primer for women and men.
I am a Certified Public Accountant with a background in financial planning. In February, I purchased the book for myself. The information wasn't new, but it spoke to me in volumes. For Valentine's day, I purchased the book for my assistant and secretary.

I have finished the book once, and have now been going through it a second time implementing each of the seven items.

During tax season, many of my clients ask for advice? What should we be looking to invest our money in? What does the Roth mean? How much insurance do we need? How do we plan for retirement? Should we be making gifts to our children's college fund? Many times I am not able to spend as much time, during the tax season as my client will need to absorb the information provided then begin working on the plan. This book allows my clients the time to understand the basics of financial planning. Know the time requirements on both them and myself to become effective. This is a wonderful starting point.

I often recommend books that I have read on financial planning, but this was the first time that I not only have recommended the book I went out and purchased over a dozen additional copies. I have given them out not just to Smart Women, but young couples, and those looking toward retirement. The information is sound. It's easy to understand. If the steps are followed they will make any client Finish Rich.

Awesome, highly recommend
I picked up this book because I like to read as much as I can about investing. I thought I knew it all--but learned a ton from this book. This book is for every single woman out there. Being financially literate is as important as having good health. It is vital to get finances in order and this book explains how, is easy to followm and Bach makes the topic of money and saving a lot of fun. A must have in your library.

Perfect For Those Who Don't Have A Clue About Finances
I had tried asking others regarding finances but it was the usual in one ear out the other. Learning, hearing and asking questions about finances can be a confusing and frustrating task. I decided to give this book a shot and I was pleasantly pleased.

Everything was spelled out in the simplest terms and explained thoroughly. I can now discuss financial matters with the best of them. This book also pushed me to take those first steps to financial freedom without my old fears.
I also enjoyed the fact that the book discusses how our values are also important and made me think about more than just dollars and cents, but also about what I want out of my life.

I highly recommend this book and also the "Smart Couples Finish Rich". You'll be surprised how much you didn't know!!!

Very Insightful
This is a great book. I had gone to the bookstore to pick up a different book which they did not have. I came across this one and decided to buy it since the other one was not available. This book is very insightful and definitely helps you with your money. It gives steps and worksheets and advise. There are success stories and practical solutions. ... Read more

Book Description

Kaeppel beams a very bright light on 4 of the most common yet most difficult to overcome trading ‘dont’s’. In easy-to-understand terms he breaks down the problems and offers solutions. Keep this concise little gem near you at all times while trading.

You can earn big profits in options trading by avoiding the 4 most common and most costly mistakes the majority of traders make. System and software developer Jay Kaeppel shows you how to avoid common pitfalls option traders encounter that cause them to lose money in the long run.

In Kaeppel’s quick reading style you’ll . . .

> Learn to isolate the 4 most common mistakes

> See why they are so common and easy to make

> And discover a simple strategy to avoid these mistakes altogether

Concise and to-the-point here’s an action plan you can read and put into place immediately to become a more profitable trader in no time. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Short and sweet but too theoretical
This book is useful in directing novice options traders to the four biggest mistakes usually made in this area. The book does what is says with describing the theory behind the authors arguments but unfortunaly does not provide market examples on how that should be implemented in real life. Having read other books by this author, I am sure he is capable of supplementing his theory with examples . One of the mistakes he mentions is buying only out of the money options and he recommends buying in the money options. Unfortunately he does not address the fact that this approach could still result in a total loss if the option ends out of the money by expiration day. In addition to be successful in trading in the money options your timing needs to be accurate enough to be certain you do not face a total loss. Timing is never addressed in this book and you would need to supplement this by other books that focus more on this area.
Why 5 stars? Even with these shotcomings it is important that beginners know where they can go wrong and then focus on what to do right.

A worthwhile read for any option trader
I have just finished reading Jay Kaeppel's 1998 publication "The Four Biggest Mistakes in Option Trading". I found the book to be the most down to earth common sense approach to options trading that I have read to date.

Excellent book that delivers exactly what its title says
There are four basic mistakes all beginning option traders make, these are:
1) Relying solely on market timing;
2) Buying only out-of-the-money options;
3) Using strategies that are too complex; and
4) Casting too wide a net on option choices

Relying solely on market timing.
It causes failure because it ignores implied volatility. It can lead to paying far too much to purchase an option. It would be like buying a stock without knowing its P/E, or buying a car without knowing its blue book value. The way to avoid this mistake is by carefully analyzing which options are best suited to achieve your objective. Also, measure what is the current implied volatility of these options and compare it vs. the historical volatility of this option. This will give you an idea of the current valuation of this option, and whether it appears overpriced or underpriced.

Buying only out-of-the-money options.
By doing so, you ignore the probability that the option will eventually be in-the-money. It leads to buying options with little likelihood of profiting. You can get lucky once. But, such a blind strategy is a sure way to get wiped out in option trading. Instead, you should know exactly what is the probability of you making money on each option trades. This entails knowing the "Delta" of a specific option. If an option has a Delta of 20. It has a 20% chance of being in-the-money.

Using strategies that are too complex.
This leads to unfavorable risk\reward situations. First, you should determine your objective and make certain the trade you are going to make can achieve those objectives without more risk than you can handle.

Casting too wide a net.
You will spend too much time wasted looking for opportunities among illiquid options. By doing so, you will waste a lot of your potential returns on the wider bid and ask spreads of these less than liquid options. Instead, focus on securities that have actively traded options.

This book is a real eye opener on option trading.

To succeed you must know your enemy
This is a very good book for what it does. It introduces novices to the common mistakes option investors make. Many more experienced option investors may find this book too simple for their taste. That would be unfortunate. Often times where more experienced investors falter is by dismissing the importance of fundamental information.

Mr. Kaeppel delivers that here. I have been involved with futures for almost 12 years. In that time I have caught myself committing any one of the "four biggest mistakes". Even throughout the years, after writing three books on futures and option investing, available on amazon.com, coI have had to catch myself in my trading.

This book is an easy read and will definitely add to your knowledge base if you are a novice. The more experienced will find this a welcome refinement to their trading style.

Save Your Time and Money--This Book is Worthless...
This is a brief and shallow book. It assumes that the reader, who is an options trader, has limited intelligence and will do stupid things. The best thing about the book is that it is short; therefore, you can quickly find that it has nothing to offer. ... ... Read more

Reviews (16)

Valuable Information for Tax-Deferred Investment Accounts
Anyone who enjoyed Stocks for the Long Run will find this book to be a very valuable addition to his or her knowledge about stock investing for tax-deferred investment accounts.

Professor Siegel has checked history again.This time he has looked for ways to do stock investing that have performed better than indexed mutual funds for tax-deferred accounts.

Much of what he finds is counter to the conventional wisdom, but makes sense when examined objectively.

Here are some key findings:

1.High dividend yields, when reinvested in the same stock, provide superior returns.That's only true in a tax-deferred account, of course.

2.Buying stocks with low multiples that grow faster than expected is much easier and more profitable to do than simply choosing companies in fast growing industries.

3.Exciting new companies make lots of money for founders, employees and venture capitalists . . . but not enough for investors.

4.Avoid capital intensive businesses.

5.The most productive companies are those who develop new business models (something I discuss in The Ultimate Competitive Advantage) regardless of how bad the industry is.

6.Beware of excessive valuations . . . no matter how good the future looks.

7.If a company has neither a high dividend nor any cash, assume something's wrong with the accounting.

8.Indexed stocks in slower-growing emerging markets have high potential to deliver huge gains in the future due to demographic influences.

From these findings, Professor Siegel suggests a model portfolio for equities that will intrigue you (see page 254) with high-dividend ideas, global firms, attractive sectors and interesting value plays.

In addition, Professor Siegel addresses the question of what to do about paying for the retirements of all those Baby Boomers around the world.His proposal is to encourage young emerging market workers to purchase the assets of older workers in the developed world.You'll find the argument to be intriguing and compelling.

I cannot remember reading a more stimulating and original book about investing.I was particularly impressed by his historical research that shows the superiority of sticking with companies that have been around a long time rather than searching out newer companies to buy.I think the exception to the latter comes in those cases where the management has proven to be adept at improving upon their business models to provide more value to customers.

Almost every investor would benefit from reading and thinking about this book.

New findings
There are several new revelations regarding the kind of stocks that are consistent winners, supported by data in this book:

Consumer Brand Names/consumer staples and healthcare industry have been strong performers.

The relationships of the top performers' P/E and growth rate.

Low P/E,high dividend stocks outperform.

These findings of characteristics make this book worth 5 stars.

The book also predicts a "global solution" to the demography issue. This solution is like saying a wealthy family that can no longer produce would sell their assets to the productive newcomers in order to maintain the life style are have become accustomed to. If this turns out to the solution, it's a pathetic one.

The importance of dividends and the dangers of growth
Jeremy Siegel has rediscovered the importance of dividends.When Charles Dow did his seminal research nearly a century ago he relied on dividends and ignored reported earnings because he knew that companies were lying on their balance sheets.Dividends, on the other hand, don't lie.Dividends let you compound.Very old fashioned.

The other important point this book makes is that investors almost always overpay for growth.He calls this the growth trap.It is critical for investors to distinguish between those companies whose innovations power the economy and those that provide superior returns to investors.They are usually two different things.

Many people seem to have learned nothing from the recent bursting of the NASDAQ bubble.Siegel has the research that shows what went so wrong several years ago and how to keep your head if it happens again.

The old is new again.

must read for all investors
Jeremy Siegel did it again with his new book. Filled with historical facts and observations, he shows how a company with 10% earnings growth is often a better investment that a company with 20% earnings growth. The reason for this phenomenon can be summed up in one word--valuation. Fast growing companies are expected to grow and that is taken into account in its price. Slower growing companies are expected to grow slow.

Professor Siegel shows how some of the best performing stocks in the past half century were companies with good dividends and earnings above expectations. He proves his point by comparing Standard Oil of New Jersey and IBM. IBM has grown faster than Standard Oil of New Jersey by any measure, except stock appreciation.

Professor Siegel also explains how fast growing sectors are not always good investments. Obviously, technology stocks in 1999 and 2000 were fast growing, but some of the worst investments you could have made. He also uses the Financial sector as an example. It has been one of the two fastest growing sectors in the past 50 years, but the stocks within the sector have not performed as well as the S & P 500. The reason this is possible is because new companies enter the business. These new companies bring competition and make the sector bigger, but not more profitable.

This book is great for any beginning investor or any professional.

The Role of Luck in Siegel's Success
An absolute disappointment. This is a classic example of misreading the formula that made you successful in the first place. Sequels are usually bad, in this case Siegel's are bad. The reviews and cover quote by Warren Buffett are misleading, and I seriously doubt whether the reviewers read the book. There is nothing new here. Undervalued stocks (value stocks) have been touted as being superior forms of investment for a long time. Eugene Fama, and others, have produced fantastic research in this area. I found the book to be self aggrandising, offering no original contribution and totally out of character relative to the first book. The data mining is significant, and to suggest that tried and true is the way forward simply because the past delivered such a pattern is foolhardy. Give this book a miss. ... Read more

Book Description

Commonsense Rules for Financial Freedom--Anyone Can Do It!

Safe Strategies for Financial Freedom shows you how to know in 30 seconds whether you should be in or out of the market. The authors show you how great investors avoid mistakes--and win big. With Van Tharp's legendary risk-control techniques, learn how the world's most profitable investors reduce their risk and leave their wealth-generating potential unlimited, and how you can too.You'll learn how to invest wisely--in every type of market, protecting what you earn, and developing sources of regular income to achieve financial independence.Safe Strategies for Financial Freedom provides you with a specific program for freeing yourself from the workplace--forever. Let it show you how to seize control of your financial life by investing in the assets that will provide you with steady income until the day when your investment income surpasses your monthly expenses--and you are, once and for all, financially free. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

The Financial Freedom Number Concept alone is worth a star
Firstly, I would like to state that I'm a Van Tharp fan. I read his "Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom" at least 15 times. I think that book and Marcel Link's "High Probability Trading" are the best books written about trading in a long time. I rated both as 5 stars.

There are good things and bad things about this book.

The good things: The Financial Freedom Number Concept alone is worth the price of the book and 1 of the stars. It was quite a revelation that you become financially free when your monthly passive income exceed your monthly expenses. It may be a blinding flash of the obvious, but most people don't realize it until someone points out that fact. The other good things about this book are that there are strategies that work in up, down and sideways markets. The system expectancy and risk control methods are included (but I already read them in his other 2 books).

The bad things: The down side is that there is too much damn advertising and it's damn irritating. I had to look twice to make sure it wasn't a "Wade Cook" book. I deducted 2 stars from the rating to show my disapproval!!!

Van K. Tharp, you DA MAN!!! But if you write another book, can you just please just write new material and leave out the marbles game thing, and the expectancy thing, and the position sizing thing? You already wrote them in your other 3 books. And if you have to put in all the damn advertising, at least have the decency to put in all in the appendix and not all over the book. Thanks.

EXCELLENT! A must have for those wanting financial freedom!
This book provides you with the basics you need to develop your own path to financial freedom. Prior to presentation of any strategies, there are worksheets and exercises for your own financial evaluation. This in itself was a big eye opener. In addition to the concepts of financial freedom, the authors do a fantastic job in presenting the reader with many options to acquire your financial freedom; from stock market (including Mutual Funds) strategies, to Real Estate strategies, and more. Each chapter ends with a series of action steps for you to perform to get you moving on your own safe path to Financial Freedom. The examples given in the book illustrate the needed information to evaluate any particular strategy. It is then up to the reader to act upon their selected path.

A must have for those who want to take control of their financial future!

Absolutely Fantastic
Amazing, I can't believe anyone would give it less than 5 stars.

Excellent book, logical strategies that helped me
I day trade stocks, have traded options, futures, commodities, you name it. I continually search for the holy grail of books to "enlighten" me with wisedom. I found the strategies in this book to be logical and and useful in my trading habit. Tharp has excellent ideas on position sizing, risk management, and market analysis. The chapters on Real Estate and the "Trade Simulator" that you can purchase were not of interest to me. This simulator is (I'm looking for a nicer word than "hokey"). Overall, the book was definitely worth what I paid for it. It wasn't the holy grail but had some excellent information and ideas I haven't seen before.

All you didn't learn in school about finances
Finally, a book where you can get some real how to's. This book offers a great explanation of what financial freedom is and how you can achieve it. One of my favorite aspects of it are the action items throughout the book and the many references to free downloadable materials as supplements to the book! So often you read a book- and think what a great concept but have no support or simplified ways to take action. This is a book I reference often-- mine has many highlights and stickies on it already. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Intelligent Investing for Retirement
This is the best book I have seen regarding investing for retirement.Don't waste your time or money trying to beat the market, just understand Dr. Ross' basic principles for dealing with a volatile market.Forget the "get rich quick" models and come down to earth and use common sense and indexing.The first 2 chapters alone are worth the price of the book.

Contentful and serious, yet understandable
This book is an excellent and easily understood survey of the arguments in favor of the Efficient Market Hypothesis. Material is compellingly presented, abstract ideas are made easy to understand, and strong arguments are put forth in favor of passive funds (ie Index Funds) as against actively managed funds.
This book is one of few business books directed toward the general public that isn't trendy, insulting, ridiculous, or trite. I intend to buy this book for the next friend of mine that starts "day trading" or doing anything similar.

WAKE UP AND READ THIS BOOK!
I just finished this book and it has completely changed what I think about the stock market.The author starts off with background information on basic economics which is then used throughout the book to prove why and to what degree the stock market is impossible to beat.Before reading this book I was an avid technical analyst and despite my horrific returns, I felt that beating the market just took some more talent, skill, and a bit of luck.After reading this book--and realizing how sensible each of the author's arguments are--I've decided to face the facts and hang up my trendlines for good.Although the book is quite frankly disheartening, I am glad that I read it before I wasted any more of my hard earned money trying to find hot stocks.
The only thing that I felt should have been more thoroughly covered in the book was the effect that emotion plays in the stock market.Clearly the market isn't quite as efficent as the author believes when we see stocks such as amazon and yahoo get bid up to such astronomical levels in the late 90s.And it would be tough to explain how efficient stock prices are to those who were smart enough to short those stocks in 2000.
All in all though, this is an amazing and eye-opening book to say the least.Anyone who tries to beat the market through actively managed mutual funds or through trading NEEDS to read this book.Well written, easy to understand, and convincing as hell. Take the commission fee from your next trade and use it to buy this book instead.

Highly useful!
Correctly understanding the securities markets and how the financial industry ticks is critical to one's financial health. No other book I know does a better job in wading through the patently false, unscientific nonsense that banks, brokerages, the financial media and nine out of ten book authors typically disseminate. Why to they do that? Simple. It maximises their commissions or circulations at the expense of investors' net returns. Why is it simple? Because a large number of investorsbelieve the rubbish that Wall Street and the media yells at them since it sounds somehow plausible and sophisticated. Other "eductated" investors allow their greed and "overconfidence" to get the better of them and hence fall for the same hogwash. This book explains it all and it is surprisingly entertaining. Strong buy!!

An Unbeatably, Efficiently Perfect Book
I have been an active money manager for more than 25 years. I loved this book. I found the advice in Ron Ross's book to be totally on the money. He displays how most mutual fund companies squander investors assets by charging high hidden fees. He effectively takes Wall Street to task for covering up poor performance while exxagerating the performance of the few (and temporarily) winning funds. Each chapter contains a wealth of logical presentations aimed at educating the individual investor.
I learnedhow survivor bias increases the perception of outperformance, and why active funds can never be 100% invested.

While I do still believe that Warren Buffet, Stan Druckenmiller and Michael Steinhardt have an uncanny ability to capitalize on market inefficiencies, Ross Convincingly proves that the typical Mutual Fund can never outperform the market and that investors are better off in low fee low turnover index vehicles.

An Excellent Investment Book! ... Read more