5 Best Investing Books: Must-Reads for Every Retail Investor

They say knowledge is power so reading up on how to make the best investment decisions is well worth the time spent, not to mention it could help you learn how to invest smarter and avoid some serious financial missteps.

The news and social media can only tell you what has happened and what may occur in the near future; the best investing books supply answers to “why?”

Here, we’ve compiled a list of the 5 best investing books you shouldn’t miss. They were written in different years in the past but might still form the basis of your investment education in 2024.

Table of Contents Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. 5 Best Investing Books You Shouldn't Miss
3. The Bottom Line: Why the Best Books About Investing Are Worth Reading
4. FAQs
5. References

Show Full Guide

Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. 5 Best Investing Books You Shouldn't Miss
3. The Bottom Line: Why the Best Books About Investing Are Worth Reading
Show Full Guide
4. FAQs
5. References

5 Best Investing Books You Shouldn’t Miss

Naturally, dozens if not hundreds of worthy investment books had to be excluded while compiling this list. It will probably even miss out some of your future favorites but this selection will be regarded by most as some of the best investing books out there.

The subject of how you can grow your money is practically inexhaustible, with new titles coming out all the time – our recommendation is that you start reading today and just never stop.

1. The Little Book of Common Sense Investing – John Bogle (2007)

Keep It Simple, Go With What Works

It’s all too easy to call yourself a financial trailblazer on LinkedIn; John Bogle has actually been there and done it. His track record proves that he’s not just lucky but good; his approach relies less on picking “hot stocks” and more on reaping consistent rewards in line with a market index.

Above all, as the title suggests, he believes that retail investing is a matter of common sense. Diversifying your portfolio is a sensible move, as is buying to hold rather than trying to time the market. Getting high returns matters little if all your gains are wiped out by tax and brokerage costs; this, too, isn’t rocket science.

Bogle manages to strip away excessive complexity and give down-to-earth advice about investment for beginners. Along the way, he manages to introduce you to the mindset of successful investors and gives you the confidence to get started.

The Little Book is far from the last word in learning how to invest, but it does give you a solid foundation to build on.

2. I Will Teach You to Be Rich – Ramit Sethi (2009)

Get a Handle on Budgeting, Saving & Debt Before Fooling Around With Stocks

There are plenty of introductory books on how to invest. For beginners, though, this isn’t necessarily the right starting point: if you’re a recent graduate or still in the springtime of your career, you may need to bone up on the fundamentals of personal finance before you start poring over intricate books on picking stocks.

Sethi does a good job of packaging all you need to know into one compact course spanning about 300 pages and 6 weeks. A lot of this is spent on subjects other authors assume you already know: choosing the best bank account, paying debt off quickly, and living within your means.

Of course, he also covers investing basics, though rather superficially compared to The Little Book. Still, given that about half the people in developed countries struggle to answer basic questions about banking, compound interest, and related subjects, this remains one of the best books to learn about investing as well as the financial machinery that underpins it.

3. The Intelligent Investor – Benjamin Graham (1949)

Don’t Speculate – Buy Cheap, Hold Forever

Including this blast from the past on a list of the best books on investing may seem a little nostalgic. Honestly, though, it’s sometimes better to get your advice straight from the horse’s mouth – in this case, the inventor of value investing and Warren Buffet’s mentor.

His basic premise is that gimmicks that sometimes work in the short term don’t hold up well over longer periods. By contrast, buying stocks that are undervalued – those whose book value is higher than their market capitalization – often leads to attractive returns.

Of course, there’s a lot more to it. If these undervalued stocks were easy to find, they would already be trading at their true value. You’re probably not going to start reviewing penny-stock companies’ annual reports as soon as you put this book down, but reading The Intelligent Investor will give you a much better idea of what analysts are talking about.

4. Fooled by Randomness – Nassim Taleb (2001)

You Can Never Know Everything for Certain

Nassim Taleb’s academic publication history is nothing to sneeze at; he’s also been a lecturer at NYU, the London Business School, and Oxford. Despite his intellectual horsepower, he retains the ability to appeal to the uninitiated.

This means that you’ll be able to understand his half-a-dozen popular works easily, though you won’t necessarily like his ideas. Rather appropriately, the author of The Black Swan is known for ruffling feathers. You can expect more than a few contrarian, unpopular opinions in this book.

In Fooled by Randomness, he says brokers and fund managers have no “skin in the game” and reasons that their decisions are quite different from those people risking their own money.

He also emphasizes the importance of uncertainty in financial markets – ultimately, luck, not strategy, makes or breaks even the best investment.

A provocative book for sure, but based on solid math.

5. The ABCs of Real Estate Investing – Ken McElroy (2004)

How to Get Started With Brick-And-Mortar Investments

Every list of best investing books should contain one title on real estate investing. Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad, Poor Dad popularized the rental property investment strategy in the late 90s, selling over 40 million copies. However, it did not contain the kind of comprehensive guidance a novice investor needs to get a foot on the property ladder.

Apart from simply purchasing shares in a REIT, this can be a messy, hands-on, and complicated business. Fortunately, the best books on real estate investing, like The ABCs, don’t assume much prior knowledge on the reader’s part.

You’re walked through the entire process, from scouting properties to teaming up with other investors to handling maintenance. The importance of positive cash flow is emphasized throughout.

The only real criticism you can level at this book is that it’s mostly aimed at people who are interested in larger investments, like apartment complexes or commercial real estate.

The Bottom Line: Why the Best Books About Investing Are Worth Reading

Some books make you think that you know everything on the subject once you’ve turned the last page. Others leave you with the uncomfortable sense that you’ve only scratched the surface: though your understanding is now broader than yesterday, you actually feel less further along than before. Both are needed to get better at investing.

Though more challenging, the latter kind also brings you closer to appreciating the complexities of the real world. Those that supply tidy theories that only apply some of the time will eventually lead you astray. So, try to read various thought-provoking books until you develop your investment paradigm.

FAQs