Rating: 
Summary: Mark Twain said it best
Review: There are many flaws to this book & most of them Bulkowski admits. The first is the sample is cherry picked based on fundamentals which TB never gives out. The second is that while TB is obviously familiar with stats (he mentions the terms freq distribution & population enough that at least a passing idea of them is true) he dwells on the sample of 500 stocks over 5 years and gives us a population of X. Well that's a bit bogus as most PATTERNS take longer than a day to create (forget this hanging man thing, it's minor) so if you average out the span of a pattern creation, which is the true size of a sample not the one day of data, that he is using. Finally this books data was from only one market, a baby bull market, whether the stats quoted would hold up in a bear or a mature bull is questionable. I for sure wouldn't be able to extrapolate that based on what's given.I'd recommend the source instead, Edwards & Magee, Technical Analysis of Stock Trends & for those interested in indicators/gann/elliott waves, Connie Browns Aerodynamic Trading. On the plus side, it is very complete though the kook-sounding review about trendlines and support has a point; a lot of TB's work could have been done with Fib Retracement levels. Still if you are really into patterns you cannot pass it by though realize it's a starter in your analysis not a complete foundation. The 'Sample Trade' section is a real waste; there is not enough information other than pattern formation for you to do your own analysis. If you read the Identifcation section and the first summary paragraph you probably have gotten all you need out of the 46 chapters and saved yourself a lot of time.
Rating: 
Summary: Lots of Info.
Review: There was a lot of stuff in this book I didn't need to read, but I suppose it would help out other people. I just got it for the last 5 pages! Take what you need out of it and ignore what you don't. It is a reference book, and it is up to you to decide if you can use it, and how to use it. Personally I prefer Candlesticks, and got a lot more out of the book "Japanese Candlestick Charting Techniques" by Steve Nison, which is not for everyone, but depends on what type of trading you are doing.
Rating: 
Summary: Outstanding Source of Information
Review: This book definitely serves it's purpose. I'm not sure how anyone could give it less than 5 stars. Of those who rated it lower, they seem to want someone to give them "The Holy Grail". With 43 chart patterns, it would have been impossible for Mr. Bulkowski to study the effects of support/resistance lines, low-cap vs. blue chip, etc. lest he end up with an 8,000 page tome. He assumes that each individual reader will be able to take the information given, and create their own testing to suit their individual needs. Impossible to put down once you start reading it.
Rating:
Summary: A stunning achievement, a classic
Review: This book is a must-have for anyone interested in technical analysis, whether just starting out or more experienced. It is a thorough review of patterns not seen since Edwards and Magee (1948) and deserves the name "encyclopedia". The author takes a scientific approach and does not make "claims" for one pattern or another, as a critical reviewer states. He clearly acknowledges that patterns, as with any technical method, only indicate, they do not dictate, and we are always working with probabilities. The back-testing that yields statistics on pattern performance (failure rate, average gain, etc.) is useful, but best of all is the absolutely clear description of the patterns with identification guidelines. Of the 100 or so books on technical analysis on my bookshelf, this is far and away the most-consulted. I have been using statistics-based technical analysis for over 20 years (moving averages, stochastics, and the like), but increasingly see patterns like double tops, triangles, etc. This book is an invaluable adjunct to software-generated statistics-based technical analysis. I am a professional financial writer on technical analysis as well as a money manager.
Rating:
Summary: A classic on the analysis of chart patterns
Review: This book, written in the spirit of the Edwards and Magee classic, is a definitive reference on stock chart interpretation. In it you will find an incredible variety of chart patterns--from the familiar "head and shoulders" to the obscure "dead cat bounce"--presented and dissected. You will also find something lacking in most books on charting: detailed statistics on the real-market performance of the patterns analyzed.
Not only is this book a valuable reference for the visually-oriented stock chartist, it is also a great source of ideas for the system-based trader; with some programming, and perhaps a neural network or two, many of the patterns described can serve as the basis for profitable automated trading engines.
The writing style is lucid, and the content rich and rewarding. What more could you want? I strongly recommend it to anyone contemplating trading on the basis of price patterns.
Jeffrey Owen Katz, Ph.D.
Author (with Donna McCormick): "The Encyclopedia of Trading Strategies" (McGraw Hill, 2000)
Rating:
Summary: One of the best "Technical Analysis" book you'll ever find
Review: This is a very good book about "Technical Analysis",objective and honest. Bravo and thanks to Mr Bulkowski.
Rating:
Summary: The Bible of Chart Patterns
Review: This is the ultimate book. The chart patterns are very profitable. Use them and make real money!!
Rating:
Summary: THE Best book on Chart Analysis
Review: Whether you are a novice or experienced technician, the Encyclopedia of Chart Patterns is a much needed reference. I have read many of the "best" books on Technical Analysis, and ALL of them pass off unsubstansiated market folklore as competent, rigorous analysis. This book actually makes an attempt to prove some of its claims with evidence, making it a stand head-and-shoulders (forgive the pun) above the rest. Bulkowski does an excellent job of describing various formations, providing performance statistics, such as percentage of correct and failing trades, average gains (or declines) and most likely gains or declines. No book is perfect--I could think of a number of ways to improve the it: 1) some stats on inter-rater reliability--could several chartists see these formations using these rules, and do they come to the same conclusion (bullish, neutral, bearish)? 2) Do chart patterns work better on different types of stocks (large vs. small cap) or sectors 3) how important is the market (or sector) trend when evaluating a pattern? Should bearish patterns be given less weight in a rising market? Testing the patterns over several market cycles would also help. The scope for creative, individual research is endless. I would hope this book sets a new standard in the technical analysis literature--actually trying to provide some quantitative evidence for theories. Market technicians, who are always looking for respect from fundamentally oriented traders, should follow Bulkowski example and become more scientific in their approach.
Rating:
Summary: All his statistics are worthless
Review: You can't go ahead and analyze chart patterns without first looking at the trend line channel. Violation of these support and resistance are essential to chart analysis. Simply ignored in this book.
Furthermore, although his statistics is not supported by mentioning the name of the program he used. Exhaustive testing have already been done with different results than what appears in his book. For example, his method, buying at the lower right shoulder of head of shoulder formation produced the worst results, much better results where obtained waiting for the break of the neck line and the symetry of the shoulders.
Technically outdated. To say that one web site use artificial intellegence and neural network (over ten years of testing) to evaluate the quality of the trend on a scale of 1 to 6. Similar formation have different quality evaluation. For example, if you test those charts patherns in a rising trends, you will get different quality evaluation results than those in falling trend channel. That is also ignored his book. All his statistics are worthless. He should write the program that is already written on this web site ... and back test it and do neural network analysis before writing and formulating trading techniques
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