13 Books that you must read before Investing in Stock Market

If you want to make money in the stock market then you must read.

The CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Warren Buffet spends 80% of his time reading books.

He says:

Read 500 pages like this every day. That’s how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it.-Warren Buffet

According to a study, the richest people who are self-made spend most of their time reading.This is a trait shared by many.So if you want to make money from the stock market then you must READ READ AND READ.

There are no shortcuts to reading.

When I got introduced to the stock market I was overwhelmed by the information that was available. Being from non-finance background made things much worse. But you know what? People from any segment of work can learn to invest.

You probably had seen the movie the Big Short where Doctor Micheal Burry makes a fortune by shorting the housing market. It was based on a true story. If a doctor can make money who is from a non-finance background why can’t you?

All you need to do is read as much as possible. There is no alternative to it. I am listing here some of the books in chronological order that you must read before you start investing.I read them all(Except one or two which I mentioned) and you should read them too.

Rich Dad Poor Dad (by Robert T. Kiyosaki)– This is the first book that you should start with.You will get a lot of inspiration by reading this book.This book doesn’t provide anything technical related to investing.But it will give you some basic insight and inspiration that you should be rich.Why rich are rich and poor are poor. etc.

It will give you insight about how rich people think about money and how poor people think about money.

Read More: Rich Dad Poor Dad Book Review

There are more than one thousand customer reviews on Amazon.You need to buy this.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”This is an interesting book by Robert Kiyosaki in which he uses a parable of his own father, who was an employee, and his friend’s father, who was a businessman, and the lessons that he picked up from each about what to do and not do for financial success.”

Intelligent Investor (by Benjamin Graham)-The tag line on Cover of this book by Warren Buffet reads-

By Far the Best Book on Investing ever written.

Indeed it is the best book written on Value Investing. It is considered as the Bible of the stock market.

Anyone who is a successful figure in the stock market has read this. Warren Buffet says he has read the book so many times that he remember the lines in the book!

My personal opinion is that you must read and grasp it’s concepts before investing a single penny in the market.The book has presented the history of the stock market and analyzed it.We know that history repeats itself. History repeats itself in the stock market too!

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”Not just an investment guide, but a foundation work to understand value investing. Although if you are not from finance field, it is a bit difficult to understand after first 2-3 chapters but if you re-read and understand….”

Berkshire Hathaway Letters to Shareholders (By warren Buffet)-The Paperback edition of this book is very costly.The link to the paperback edition of the book on amazon is given. I will recommend downloading the letters from Berkshire Hathaway official website.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”If more people read this book then all those fat cats in Wall Street would find themselves out of work. In fact, many of them would be on skid row…”

 

Value Investing and Behavioral  Finance (By Parag Parikh) -I consider this book as the Indian version of the Intelligent investor. For anyone who investing in the Indian Stock Market, this is a must read book. I read this book and recommend everyone to read it. It is an amazing book.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”This is perhaps the best book on investing set in the Indian context. The various examples oIndianan companies greatly help in understanding the matter which has been presented…”

Common Stock and uncommon profits(By Philip A. Fisher)-This is a classic read.I have listened to its audiobook version and can recommend it to everyone. Investors and students of finance should never miss this masterpiece.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”Great book for someone who wants to start thinking about investment in Stock market. I read this book twice and really its aa fantastic read. This is one of the few books every investor….”

A Random Walk Down Wall Street(By Burton Malkiel) -This book is bit costly but if you manage to read this book somehow, you will gain immensely from it. I read the PDF version of this book after downloading it. Alternatively, you can buy a Kindle device available on amazon and start reading the books. The Kindle versions of the book are cheap than the hardcover.

Now let’s talk about the book.The book was written about 40 years ago.The concepts of the book still work.This book can be recommended both to the novice and pro.

I have read the book and what I could tell is it simplifies difficult to understand concepts.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”This book is the most rational book written on investing that I have ever read. Malkeil’s balanced approach in presenting his take on Efficient Market Hypothesis is the most logically presented as he addresses…”

One Up On Wall Street(By Peter Lynch)-Peter Lynch is the best fund manager in the history of Wall Street.He started working in the fund from 1977 and ended work in 1990.During his reign, the fund grew from 20 million $ to 14 billion $.He averaged an annual return of 29% during that time.

Now let me talk about the book. Peter Lynch says that ordinary investors can beat the professionals as they have the liberty to take positions as they way they want. There are no rules laid for ordinary investors as there are for fund managers. I will recommend both novice and seasoned investors to read this book.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”I’ve read Benjamin Graham’s – Security Analysis and Intelligent Investor – Definitely, the textbooks on value investing.
Whereas – One Up On Wall Street – Is the modern day application of what has been said by Benjamin Graham in his books.
Very nicely written. Facts are….”

How To Make Money In Stocks(By William J. O’Neil)–I can say you one thing that most of the books on investing has generalized the concept of investing. You will not get things that you can directly implement.But this book has concepts that you can directly implement and make money in the stock market.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

Awesome read for newbies and experienced professionals too. It would change the way you look at stock markets and how you pick the stocks in future. Highly recommended.

Stocks to Riches(Parag Parikh)-I read this book thoroughly.The author talks about behavioral finance in this book.The author of this book started his career as a sub-broker. The author has presented what he has learned following others in the investment world.This is a must read for those who are starting to invest.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”A must read the book for Indian Investors. Written in very easily and understandable language.
The writer wrote the whole truth of stock markets.
Before entering into stock market read this book and then enter, so that you can avoid a lot of mistakes instead of learning from your own mistakes….”

The Tao of Warren Buffett(By Mary Buffett)- If you want to know how Warren Buffet made money by buying stocks at a reasonable price, then this is the must read the book for you.It is on my to read list. I haven’t read it but had seen its reviews.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

“The Tao of Warren Buffett is a concise Bible of the world’s most successful investor’s thoughts on business, investing, and life! Its a wonderful read and I highly recommend it!”

The Warren Buffett Way(By Robert G. Hagstrom)-This book is also on my to be read list.From the reviews what I can tell you that it is very important you go through this book.Believe me, I ordered a copy while writing this post. Amazon has 124 reviews on this book and all looks pretty good.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”I’m not an expert in economics and finance at all. However, the author explains difficult terms very easily and provides the reader with interesting examples and curiosities about the professional life of Warren Buffet. Especially interesting the explanation of the intellectual framework of Warren Buffet, that is….”

How to Avoid Loss and Earn Consistently in the Stock Market(By  Prasenjit Paul)– This book in simple words explains what are things one should know to invest in the stock market.I will suggest if you are a newbie stock picker then you can start your investing journey by reading it.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”I think this is the first time I have finished a book faster than a fiction story book. This is also because I have grown an interest in the subject of late. Honestly, this is more of a reference book….”

The Little Book That Still Beats the Market(By Joel Greenblatt)–This book is also a little bit costly.You can buy a Kindle device and read this book.The kindle edition of the book is not that costly.You can buy the Kindle device by clicking on the image below.I read most of the books on investing on Kindle. But I keep a hard copy of those books that I must have on investing too.

This small book is written by Greenblatt who is managing partner of Gotham Capital, which is a private investment partnership that has achieved 40% annualized returns since its start.This book had been a New York Times bestseller.

What other people are saying(taken from amazon reviews):

”An excellent and simplified approach selecting and picking high-quality value stocks. The trick is to believe in the magic formula and stick with it. Not for short-term….”

Conclusion

I covered all the books that are to be read in chronological order to invest in the stock market. But people with less time will be overwhelmed with the book list.For them I will suggest only two books:

• Rich Dad Poor Dad to start with so that you get a taste of what you require to do to make money.(This book does not have too much of technical things.It is to inspire you in general)
• Intelligent Investor–This is a must read the book for anyone who is into investing.

For those who think it will be difficult for them to buy the above books as it will be costly for them, I will suggest them to buy Kindle device from Amazon.It will be lot cheaper if you read books on Kindle.