Books To Learn About The Economy and Investing

[joelfernandes]

I'm looking to scratch the tip of the iceberg here. Little background: I have a college degree that's not in business. I own a successful small business that gives me financial independence. I invest and have some basic understanding about things like ETFs, cryptocurrency, target date retirement funds, and some understanding of the way markets behave (if there's such a thing as understanding). But I'm a beginner in every way. I saw "The Big Short" and became enamored with understanding the housing market and housing crisis of 2008, as well as other stock market crashes. I want to learn much, much more.

So the question is this: How does a person who doesn't want to go back to college full-time learn about basics of economics and investing? Specifically, my end game is to understand the relationship between the market and various securities (so yes, understanding everything discussed in The Big Short because my head starts spinning when I learned about bonds, mortgage-backed securities, collateralized debt, etc). I also want to understand the basic workings of economic markets. I want to "get" why some stocks rise and fall, how to identify trends (while they're happening), how to speak intelligently about emerging markets, the tech sector, understanding commodities, etc. I want to be able to better understand macroeconomy, especially as it relates to the available securities for trade on the public market as well as foreign currency exchange rates and how that relationship works.

I know I'm asking for what amounts to an advanced degree and asking for advice on topics you can probably NEVER truly master. I'm just looking for where to start. I thought about going back for my MBA, but my hunch is that the cost of getting an MBA is only valuable if you plan on using it to get a high paying job. And I have no interest in that. I looked at doing some free online courses (places like MIT love showing off their non-credit courses) but listening to an hour long recording when I know I could read a couple chapters of a book seems like a waste of time. That leaves popular books on Amazon (many of which seem very opinion-based and niche), or just straight-up buying a textbook on Micro or Macroeconomics and studying from there.

Lots of options, most of them are probably viable, but I really wanted to see what some smart people such as yourselves may suggest.

[TerryLewis]

Hello @joelfernandes,

Larry Swedroe: The Quest For Alpha: The Holy Grail of Investing; The Only Guide to an Investment Strategy You’ll Ever Need.
I think you may find some useful journals too: like Journal of the American Association of Individual Investors. Blogs are also great, but starting with books cannot do any harm, so good luck.

[TerryLewis]

Hello @joelfernandes,

Larry Swedroe: The Quest For Alpha: The Holy Grail of Investing; The Only Guide to an Investment Strategy You’ll Ever Need.
I think you may find some useful journals to writemyessay on economy and finance: like Journal of the American Association of Individual Investors. Blogs are also great, but starting with books cannot do any harm, so good luck.

Here's my personal list of books on investing and economy (if you want some basic understanding and self-learning strategy):

Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment by David Swensen;
Security Analysis by Benjamin Graham;
The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio by William Bernstein;
Extraordinary Popular Delusions and The Madness of Crowds by Charles Mackay.