The Prudent Investor's Guide to Beating the Market

Rating:
Summary: Good book that based on academic research, not latest fads
Review: If you're looking for clever tricks to get rich quick, forget this book. It's focus is on the steady accumulation and growth of capital, the approach with by far the highest success rate. Actually, if you think you can outpick the market, you really owe it yourself to read this first. It's a heck of a lot cheaper than being wrong about investment decisions.

For me, reading this was an eye openning experience. The book is solidly based on academic research, and essentially proves that attempts to time the markets and pick the perfect stock are largely futile. In essence, research shows that for every person who timed the market perfectly ten times in a row, someone else timed exactly wrong ten times in a row. The only difference between the two is that the second guy didn't get anybody to come to his seminars.

Good explanations, and a clear presentation of the economics of investing. Combine this with practical advice on building a portfolio for the long haul. Great stuff.

BTW, I made a fair amount of money picking stocks before I read this book. I now realize I was just lucky and any stock picking I do now is just a fun hobby. To make money, I follow the book.