Trading Books

Plenty of fluff in this book. But also some genuinely good trading ideas. That is more that can be said for most trading books.

I reviewed this book before and gave it fewer stars. i reread it a few times, and I must say its better than i thought. the "strategy" section is not much, but quite frankly you will have to find your own anyway, so that is not so important. the psychological aspects covered in the book as well as the interviews are quite good. Trading only has to be as complicated as you want it to be. you can learn that lesson from this book as well as many others.

Because of the author's name and reputation, I was anxious to open this book, read and gain something. Within forty minutes of the read, I found myself skimming through the book to find something with some meat in it. Instead, I found the first 24 pages covering "The Psychology of . . .", "Overcoming the Psychological Barriers . . .", etc., etc. Then we go to 8 pages that touch on "Market Analysis & Day Trading," and then, "The Innergame Trading Approach." Mind you, 8 pages, or a little longer than most forewards. The vast remainder of the book is the author interviewing several well know traders about this and that. The questions are general and as often as not the trader being interviewed rambles on in generalities. My impression of this work is the author was evidently long on positions in the market and decided to write this book while he waited for a price move. Conversely, a book I purchased at the same time,"Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom," by: Van K. Tharp is excellent. This book has something to say and information for anyone to consider or incorporate.

Interesting and well-written day trading volume. It has heped my trading immensely.

Im sure the author is a great trader. However, there is not very much content in this book. If you are familiar with basic trading ideas and the importance of self-control, confidence, and disipline, you will not find anything new here. This is definitely not charlitan material like so much of the other "educational" trading books out there. However, I did not find it worthwhile.

Written well to help new or relatively inexperienced in the options field. I learned much and have used the knowledge gained immediately.

This is not a textbook of option strategies and option trading. However, it makes for interesting and educative reading. If you want to learn the trade strategies in depth, I recommend the companion book by Lawrence McMillan "Options as a Strategic Investment".

Think of this as the Bible for the options trader. It's the word from the God of Options trading.

I think at least half of the book is common sense, but then again, I learned options trading when I was in my mid-late teens.

Well written, put together, organized. My only suggestion is to the publisher - make it cheaper!

This book is a comprehensive guide to a lot of trading strategies, not at all limited to the use of options.

I liked the fact that the author used a lot of real life examples, that helped to understand the strategies and sometimes the mistakes you can make

I loved this book, written in a language that is easy to understand for non native speaking, like me.
A few points:

- this book is not for absolute beginners. Mr. McMillan indeed provides the basis for understanding options and the most known strategies, like spreads, strangle or similar. I would however direct the reader who is unaware of the basis to the other ponderous work of Mr. McMillan, Options as a strategic investment
- McMillan drives the willing reader to a thorough understanding of concepts/tools often misused, like volatility, put/call ratio, etc. Specifically, the third chapter is a truly inestimable (at least in my opinion) key to harness the predictive power of options.
- This is a no-hype book, if compared with the average of the sector. Mr. McMillan does not indulge or indulges only with tasteful sobriety in describing or promoting his professional services.
In conclusion:
Though if this book is not an easy reading, I would strongly urge the serious professional to read and re-read this book. It is really one of the few eye-opener books I've ever read in this domain.

This book is a nice synopsis of technical indicators and is written in common understandable English. There are big tomes written on this subject but this is all you will need to get a good grasp of the subject. It is not a recipe book that will tell you how to make a bundle of money in the stock market, but you are unlikely to make a bundle without mastering the analytic techniques discussed in this book. You will develop your own favorite indicators and combination of indicators to help you invest, but without understanding the basics of the technical analysis, you will be lost. And this book is a good source of learning just that.

I found this book to be not too heavy, not too light in dealing with technical analysis. I wanted something that would expand upon the various indicators, etc. a bit more than I would find with a wiki search, and the book hits the target. I'm pleased and I think that others who are looking for something that's more than an "entry-level" book will be pleased as well.

I have read more than a dozen books on forex, some good and some bad. I'm afraid this book is somewhere at the bottom. The author kept babbling about self-proclaimed experts in technical analysis all throughout the book it became pathetic. Discussions on most technical indicators was blurry, not the english, but the material simply was not good enough. Very flimsy in many cases and as a result gives you a feeling the author is far from being an authority on the subject. The only reason I gave a generous 2 stars is the discussion on momentum indicators where there was a little bit of substance. Example charts also were poorly selected. After reading the book I felt I really did not pick up anything new.

I'm new to individual stock investing, and wanted a good introductory book on TA. I've found the "Dummies" series of books quite good. This book is no exception.

Before reading this book, I wouldn't know trending, momentum, or volume indicators if they bit me. After reading the book, they're my good friends.

When initially "putting my toe in the water", TA seemed quite daunting. After carefully reading the book while pouring over TA charts on various financial websites, I'm now fairly comfortable with the fundamentals of TA and ready to dive in.

This book gave me the basics and the confidence I need to start. Experience and additional learning will just make me better...

Let's hear it for the 3-way crossover!

I bought this book secure in the knowledge of what I didn't know, so the choice of a Dummies book was perfect. When I say that the book was honest, I mean that it made no extravagant claims as to what Technical Analysis (TA) could do for me as an investor. Instead, it consistently qualified any statements it made about the predictive nature of TA. If anything, the book erred on the side of caution; statements along the lines of "The trend is your friend--until it isn't." were common. Some might find this to be overly cautious; I found it reassuring. I didn't want a book on TA with the word "Rich" in the title.

I give the book four stars instead of five, because it could be a bit difficult in explaining more obscure points. Rarely, a paragraph which referred to a chart to make a point would be difficult to follow. This might have been avoided with better annotated illustrations. All in all, the book does a good job of defining the key concepts in each chapter. It is profusely illustrated, and doesn't run the risk of information overload.

Lastly, this is a book for beginners. It does give a good idea of the scope of all that is included in TA, but it isn't an exhaustive look at any specific topic. I often found myself wanting to read more on certain subjects. While this is perfect for an introductory book, those who already have a passing acquaintance with the subject matter might best look elsewhere, say Alexander Elder's Trading for a Living: Psychology, Trading Tactics, Money Management.

Ordinarily, this is not the type of book that I would have chosen to purchase or read, but it was given to me as a gift.

With all of the mass media infatuation with the Kennedy family, it is interesting to note that it is the Bush family that may have quietly assumed the position as the greatest American political dynasty since that of the Adamses: Prescott Bush was a United States Senator from Connecticut; his son, George Herbert Walker Bush, a certifiable war hero, relocated to Texas and served in the Congress before becoming Vice President and President; two of his sons, George W. Bush and his brother, Jeb Bush, have served as the governors of Texas and Florida respectively; George W. Bush is completing his second term as President.

Barbara Bush's memoir is a political love story. It is remarkable to see what a great beauty that Mrs. Bush was at the time of her engagement and marriage. When her husband left the oil business to concentrate on politics, Barbara Bush became a valuable political asset. She possessed a sense of humor and steel backbone that allowed her to be a tower of strength when needed. There are some poignant recollections included in the book also: George W. Bush proved to be a great comfort to his mother following the childhood death of one of his siblings. Clearly, he inherited his mother's sense of determination and tenacity.

It would have been interesting to imagine Barbara Bush as president.

After reading this book, her husband's second book, and finally her second memoir, I did have a profound respect for her dignity, love for her family, and stamina. This book was an easy read and was absolutely fascinating to go along on exotic trips and learning about the side kick's day to day existence as wife to President. The book made me admire the Bush's as a couple more, the love for their kids and each other, and their principles, even if I did not agree with all of the latter.

I'll admit up front that I am a fan of both 41 and 43--and have always admired "Bar". That being said, I loved the book. Mrs. Bush has such a gentle, warm way about her and this is certainly reflected in her writing. She is able to weave together the story of her life (including some not-so-wonderful moments) with wit, warmth and clarity--all without ever resorting to name-calling, self-pity or egotism. This book is a refreshing change of pace and should be taken for what it is: a remarkable woman's life story told from her (very sunny) point of view.

What a poitive, gritty, yet appreciative woman hlding dear the basic human values of life that hold our country together. Truly, she was one of our greatest first ladies--she put "first things first," meaning her family and husband first. A must read for all American women who think raising a strong family isn't worth it!! What a payoff! When walking through the George Bush Library at Texas A&M, etched on a wall is George Sr.'s comment that his greatest blessing in life is "that his children still want to come home" Now I understand why.

Tugboat Babs has finally written her memoir. She is in the weird situation of having been married to one president and having spawned another. She is most informative on the Bush's early years together -- although she provides very little information on the family's connection with the Medellin cartel. She is also mum on Laura's vehicular homicide conviction.

All in all, it is a tale to rank with that of the Sopranos.

Dave Landry wrote a 200 pages book on strategies. A good read on price bar and how read the market using ADX, volatility, and his bowtie method. Couple of gems in the book, and alot of examples. His methods are varient of the same thing, thus, reading between middle to the end of the book was quite bored. Three stars for beating the dead horse.

I have read hundreds of books on trading ...and this actually works..

Mr. Landry's concepts are good to study at least as a first-time traders' primer. One must realize, however, that the book was written (and strategies tested) in a time when pullbacks could be measured in three days and a "monkey with a dartboard" could pick a NASDAQ stock chart and pull down 20 points profit after each breakout (that is, the stock bubble late 1990s). These techniques work best with growth stocks of that era, but are somewhat limited in volatile and sideways markets that we are experiencing currently.

Regardless of this limitation, the basic techniques are presented in a concise and simple-to-understand manner. One thing Mr. Landry gets right in this book is that the simplest trading methods really do work the best, and that documenting one's mistakes and successes in a journal is perhaps the quickest way to gain mastery in trading.

Buy it used or borrow it (as it is not the be-all-and-end-all trading reference), but give it a look if you are new to trading. Just don't dump good retail money into it.

Dave Landry provides ideas that are easy to find in the stock market. They make sense, and over the past year have generated profits when entry opportunities have been present. A good book by an author who answers emails and clears up any questions.

Since I started Dave Landry's trading method's back in June of 2005 and bought his two books, my trading skills and techniques have been greatly improved. As time progresses, my skills get better and better. It becomes more natural to pick out the winning stock charts. Dave's methods are not rocket science, and ego's need not apply for this book. It takes some humility to realize that it can be just pure chart reading and skills that bring home the bacon and winnings. Complicated methods, indicators, zig to the zag patterns, and hyped-up trading gimmick make things too complicated, yet this book gives clear insight to make the grade in the trading paradigm. With patients and sticking to this books methods, you will improve your trading performance. Guaranteed.

With that said, this book is for all type of traders. If you're long-term trader, the techniques presented in the book can help give you a better eye for stocks and help with better entry points and give your psyche a boost. Short-term traders, duh!. Same thing. Dave lays out step by step, what you need to do. Starting from the basics, he guides you through finding the right stock, where to buy, where to sell, and money management. Also, the psychology section is one of the best parts for me. It will make you laugh and cry, when it comes to the trading world. I highly recommend this book. If you read it, be patient. Re-read as many times as it takes.

P.S. Pick up Dave Landry's second book, also. It has some great new concepts and patterns.

I have read some negative comments here about this book not being detailed enough etc... but it gives very clear, understandable explanations of all the patterns, and they are all grouped in an excellent orderly easy to find fashion. Other books of this kind may be a bit more detailed but they are a difficult dry read, far too lenthy and not as organized nor as well written. Greg morris delivers all the neccessary goods in this book.

Good book for someone who doesn't know anything about candlesticks, but I think you need to have some sort of understanding of investing before reading this book. The reason why I gave it a 4 star instead of a 5 star was because this is the first book on candlestick I've read. I haven't read another book yet on this topic.

Read this book the first time when I bought it several months ago and got a glazed over look in my eyes because I had no clue about any of it. However, as I let some months pass by and got better with my technical analysis utilizing other charts like MACD, stochastics, MA, BOP, TSV, MS, etc....the terminology and how the market moves allowed me to better understand what I was reading in Morris' book.

It would've been nice if he had a simplified table of the various individual candlesticks and what they represented and another table of the reversal patterns in bull & bear markets.

I like how the chapters were formatted in the reversal chapter. This was a long chapter and probably could've been broken down into shorter chapters to better categorize various reversals.

I have been able to validate some of the reversals by experience. I wasn't sure if I was reading the candlesticks correctly and went against what I read. The candlesticks were correct and I was wrong. Good thing I am learning about this when I don't have lots of money to lose yet.

All in all, I will read this book to glean even more information from it. I've already read it twice.

This book is an excellent reference for all the candlestick patterns. I like the fact that it has a pattern breakdown for every formation and also data on how well the patterns perform as far as accuracy at the end of the book. The descriptions are clear,concise and very well organized with great illustrations and psychological explanations behind the candlestick moves. I found this book an easier more understandable read than nison`s books on candlesticks and for less than half the price. I keep this book close by whenever i need to review a certain pattern, its very easy to flip through and find any of the formations since they are all neatly grouped by category, which i like. I think its the best.

Mr. Morris did wonderful research on technical trading and clearly knows what the charts are about. Morris goes on to clearly discuss that the difference between using technical analysis and using it well is understanding the philosophy of the market, the specific pattern and the interpretation of that, not simply by saying yes this is a buy signal because of the specific pattern but rather because of the physicology behind it and feeling that went with it. He fails to execute what he claims he will do in his introduction. I would save your money and not waste trying to struggle to unearth whatever little advice Morris gives.

A great question is which is better: Nison or Morris? Nison is for those who use indicators; Morris is the purist using only volume.
Reference book? Morris gives you the picture and the explanation in an easy format and an index to find it. He also breaks the candles into groups and types. This is the valuable part of the book.
Who is more in depth? Well that's a tie with Morris winning slightly on candles & losing if you want to view the whole Japanese charting world, Kagi, Renko, 3 line break. Nison gives other Japanese charting types weight in the book which is good if you have Metastock bad if you don't. Personally I like the other methods.
So why did I give Morris the nod? As a professional trader I can't really give away an edge except that Morris is more tuned towards stocks & gives hints that Nison did not.
Nison is also a boring writer, better lecturer. Morris is a better writer, teacher.
Remember Morris gives you everything and if that's not enough then you're not reading carefully; looking over these previous reviews makes me happy because they obviously missed Morris' hints and guides. I saw them and my trading improved & I had used Candles for a long time before getting to Morris ala Nison & began to think them worthless. Now I understand their role.

Enough said.

If I could, I'd give this 3 1/2 stars.

In general a pretty good book. The big thing that drags it down is that Mr. Ehlers starts using some very technical DSP terms right away without giving any type of definition or explanation. Therefore, those who are familiar with that field will benefit most, while those of us outside it are left to muddle through. Still, a reasonably intelligent person should be able to get most of what he's saying, with some work.

Fine book for what it is, but this is just not the right technique for systematic trading because the models proposed are misspecified for the signal over the time series (as another reviewer pointed out, price time series do not conform to the conditions of electrical and telecommunications signals).

Still, many of the skills needed to isolate real signals and deploy real strategies are built through exercising with these methods, so all is not lost if you wade through this, deploy something, and come back with knowledge but little cash.

Who is the book not for: phynance-lite Excel-based users.

Who is the book for? Do you use Matlab or Mathematica or Maple? Do you know what an Active X link is for data feeds? Do you look at the tick data of the currency and swaps market and see gold? Are you laughing at me because these questions are inefficient baby-level stuff? (Hint: you've outgrown this book).

I don't own this book, and I haven't read this book, so I could be way off. But based on the two pages I read using Amazon's new "read the page" feature, from a mathematical/scientific perspective I wouldn't touch this with a 200' pole (for the record: I have 3 graduate degrees in physics and mathematics, including a PhD, so my opinion of this guy's methodology should carry some weight). The way he explains the mathematics and science reads like something I'd expect in an essay from a (not too bright) College Sophomore: lots of handwaving and meaningless analogy, hoping that you don't know enough about the subject (and most of his audience doesn't) to distinguish valid argument from snake-oil.

Whoever reads the reviews for this book will note the polarity: people either think it's wonderful or it's horrid. I'll try to give a more balanced review here.

* This book is for the mathematically/analytically inclined. If you don't consider yourself in this category, I would not suggest this book. At the VERY least you should have a solid background in trigonometry.

* This book is exactly what is says: Digital-Signal Processing (DSP) applied to stock trading. I myself am an Electrical Engineer who's day-job consists of about 90% DSP-work / 10% other tasks. For this reason, I believe I can fairly say that the DSP concepts presented are done so in a fairly clear and fairly accurate manner (this varies from time-to-time).

* Most of the concepts presented in Ehlers' book would be what I consider "traditional" DSP. There is a problem here (that is almost completely overlooked in the book): "Traditional" DSP is based on a series of assumptions that must be at least approximately fulfilled. Recent academic research has tended to show that stock-market "signals" tend NOT to fulfill these assumptions very well. In some ways, this puts a significant dent (in my view) in the theory used as the basis for the indicators derived.

* The attention to detail at times is very obtrusive to a reader with a keen eye and understanding of what is being described. For example: there is (what I consider to be) a glaring error in the MAMA filter that no one has ever pointed out and that is not corrected on his website. How has this escaped notice for so long? [Side note: be careful about his claim that MAMA's avoid whipsaws - they DON'T at all in ranging markets!]

* Two mechanical systems are described in detail in the book: the SineTrend Automatic System and the ZeroLag Intraday System. I have EXTENSIVELY tested both systems, exactly as described in the book, on a very-wide range of stocks, commodities, and currencies. These simulations were carried out using a test suite I had developed for my own use to simulate trading conditions as realistically as possible. This includes conservative, but realistic allowances for slippage, commissions ($15 round-turn), and signal reaction.

Ehlers results for the SineTrend Automatic System grab your attention in the book (greater than $100,000). However, no initial investment is listed in the book and one should be careful to note that these results are over a 15 year period. Assuming a $10000 initial investment (though this isn't specified in the book), this is a 17% annual return. Not bad, not great.

The REAL problem here is that a more realistic simulation shows that one is hard-pressed to show ANY profit on ANY type of stock/commodity/currency. I've tried the system (unaltered) on dozens of instruments, with a couple rather moderate successes and the rest losing money terribly, even with reasonable stop losses and money management.

* Almost (if not all) of Ehler's graphs in his book are from the same time series: specifically the US96H (March 1996 Treasury Bond contracts). I HAVE been able to reproduce all of the graphs in his book using the indicators: so there is no falsification in them, as implied in other reviews. However, the time period under consideration shows a series with nearly ideal characteristics for Ehlers systems, while almost all other series I've tested his indicators and systems on do not exhibit the same performance.

* MOST ALL of the information presented in his book is available for FREE download on his website as Word DOCs. There is also a lot of other papers he has written available on the site.

* Ehlers is doing what I think needs to be done in the trading industry: trying new techniques and methods. He has a good grasp of the electrical-engineering concepts and how to apply them to trading, but the results presented in his book are NOT indicative of TYPICAL results of the performance of his systems. The ideas and the theory behind them are, generally, good, though he is a bit prone in parts to handwaving and glossing-over of some obvious pitfalls (obvious, at least, to another electrical engineer).

* For the mathematically-inclined who enjoy working on their own ideas and own systems, this book could give you a lot of insight into technical trading and provide some good jumping-off points to developing systems that are TRULY profitable. I have yet to see (or develop) one that I would be willing to risk real money on and I would caution readers from thinking that either of the two systems presented will provide the type of profits described in the book.

To all others (probably the vast majority of those interested in this book!) I would say be very careful before spending your money on this. There is no reliably turn-key system provided in this book, even though there are two that are purported to be such.

I think this book is great even for non-math people. In fact, I am not good at math at all. I read it a couple of times and figured out what the author wanted to say.

This book is especially good for people who are interested in creating their own trading systems.

LARRY WILLIAMS IS A PROLIFIC,SUCCESSFUL, EXCELLENT TECHNICAL ANALYST AND TRADER. VERY FEW HAVE ACHIEVED HIS SUCCESS. THE BOOK IS NOT FOR BEGINNERS. HE GIVES A GOOD 3D ASPECT OF HOW TO VIEW THINGS IN THE MARKET WITH EMPHASIS ON OPTIONS.

Larry gives good insight into COT report. It will open you your eyes, because you will know why the price change. With COT you will know what the big guys are doing and that is very important for trading.

There insn't much stuff for stock, almost all is dedicated for commodities...

(i).Thesis / Book Purpose
"I heard Goldman's was selling bonds the other day.... ",
"General Mills has a massive long futures position..."
We have all heard stories like that, usually when the market has been coming off some impressive rally or decline. However most of the times as the market turned the opposite direction, such statements proved to be equally short lived.
Nevertheless is there really a way of knowing what the "Big Boys" are doing on a collective basis ?
Welcome to Larry William's "Trading Stocks & Futures with the Insiders", the first (and only) book ever written on the subject of analysing commercial trader positions using the Commitment of Traders (CoT) data provided by the CFTC. The book's sole purpose it to get you in investment alignment with the largest participants in each futures and option market. It is an alternate way of viewing the fundamentals by tracking the footprints of the largest market participants' view of each underlying market.

(i) Organizational Structure:
The organizational structure of the book is not that apparent at a first glance, but the chapters can be roughly rearranged and "pigeonholed" in four different thematic categories as follows:

1. The Market Participants from a CoT point of view
Chapters 1 & 3 are about the commercials, an intro to their motives, mistakes and what to look for.
A thorough description of the CoT report contents as provided by the CFTC is given in chapter 2.
This is probably a chapter for those with the intellectual curiosity to know how the CoT data is gathered in its final format. Chapters 5 & 6 describe the operations of the Small and Large Traders categories (from a CoT point of view) respectively.

2. CoT Analysis
Chapter 4 is the first attempt to "quantify" commercial activity through the CoT Index (first introduced by Curtis Arnold). Chapter 10 features how to view the commercials vs all the market alongside other accumulation / distribution activity. Larry then goes to construct some custom (price-based, non CoT) indicators and then uses them in conjunction with seasonality. During the last part of the chapter, the EMH is "attacked" with some simple systems / tests. Chapter 11 presents a synthetic CoT index, however the specifics are not disclosed. Chapter 13 features another version of the CoT index, examples of how to use a simple CoT system that combines CoT data with a trend-following filter. Additionally, another intermarket system for Gold using the US Dollar is combined with seasonality. Lastly chapter 15 shows an example of CoT analysis on the bond market.

3. Volume & Open Interest
In Chapters 7 - 9, Larry deals with one of the most misunderstood aspects of technical analysis. Properties of volume and open interest (OI). Larry exposes myths and explains how these interact and how they can be used in context of the strategy. In chapter 9 Larry expands in the topic of OI, by taking a more thorough view that provides insight into OI quality.

4. Issues general about Trading
Chapter 12 is about stop importance and geared towards the novice. Discussions on preframing, and mental preparation, a sample long term exit strategy, entry & exit strategy adjustments according to the nature of the trend, bad trading habits. Chapter 14 is aimed at highlighting the use and abuse of technical analysis and the ineffectiveness of tools such as Fibonacci, candlesticks, chart patterns and formations.

(ii) Audience & Style of writing:

The book is the first on the subject of commitment of traders data analysis. Thus the largest part of the book's audience is by and large "beginners". Either literally or professionals uninitiated to CoT analysis. Larry however has managed to accommodate both audiences, by keeping on one hand the strategies and style of writing geared towards the less quantitatively inclined beginners, but providing enough ideas / hints for the seasoned professionals to work upon and to expand research methodologies.

Since CoT data are weekly, and analysis is mainly geared towards big picture views, consequently the book is not recommended towards day-traders / short-term traders. Additionally among the medium/long term community, the ones with a contrarian slant will find themselves in line with the philosophy exposed. Although the material is primarily used by futures/option traders, stock investors may also be utilise CoT data either directly (through Larry's advisory service) or indirectly (focusing on sectors that exhibit a high degree of correlation to underlying commodities). So although CoT is not suited for individual stock picking, it could prove to be very useful for identifying sectors (which according to academic studies explain 60% of a stock's performance). Therefore criticisms that the Larry has not included much stock-specific analysis may be true, but fail to see past the obvious.
As far as style is concerned most of the work is aimed primarily towards discretionary (or quant-guided traders at best), not completely systematic ones. However there are examples of such attempts.

The book is easy to follow, non-technical and mostly narrative. Larry manages to keep reader interest by using analogies from life to trading (how fishing in Montana is similar to trading, p.80) the common aspects of driving and trading (p.123) and the common mentality shared by trapeze artists and trading (p.123). The "emotional" qualities of writing are apparent in the use of humour and wit.

(iii) Main Points / Bottom Line:

Trying to distil the author's words of wisdom conveyed in the book in a few points would be:

1. Markets carry an enormous amount of randomness, but are not totally unpredictable.
2. Focus on the "big picture" and the fundamentals.
3. A way to follow the fundamentals is through CoT analysis, and by focusing at the extreme readings of commercial activity in particular (among other CoT tool readings).
4. Technical Analysis on its own is not productive, thus it is advisable to follow the forces that "move" the charts. A lot of Technical Analysis tools are of little use.
5. CoT analysis is not a market timing tool. It is a "big picture" technique.
6. No methodology is perfect, and the same applies to CoT research. Thus best results are obtained if CoT analysis is used in conjunction with other tools, such as cycles, seasonality, technical triggers, etc.

(iv) Degree of analytical exposure :

After reading the book, one of the most obvious conclusions is that Larry is a stern master in CoT analysis and an authority in the field. A lot of the ideas he exposes are just an exhibition of how much work needs to done in this particular area of research.

All of the examples are simple in computational intensity (as the author is the first to admit), but serve as an "idea generation platform" to those that wish to look past the obvious. Those that are looking for "easy answers" (exact system rules) or "math intensive" illustrations, are missing the point that Larry makes.

The CoT data can be used in either standalone format (chapter 4), or as model components. The illustrations are simple but illustrative of the possibilities. A simple trend-following application for high probability setups (page 150- 153), CoT used in conjunction with intermarket analysis (p.154), seasonality (page 156), custom indicators, sentiment. Although the examples provided are simple in nature and not suitable for stand-alone use, they do provide a useful illustration of the effectiveness of this analysis technique and the importance of looking past purely price-based, trend-following methodologies.

The examples provided to make the aforementioned points are mostly chart based.
Quantification of the data is in the form of normalised indicators (such as the CoT index, in chapter 4), oscillators (to study open interest activity in chapter 8), trading systems / setups that provide threshold actionable overbought/oversold levels, ratio smoothings (chapter 13).

Hypothetical trade performance statistics are reported in the form of dollars gained on a per contract basis. Precise entry and exit rules are not provided since the main point is to highlight the magnitude of the trends that can be spawned by CoT "signals", rather than actual trades / positions. CoT analysis (as the author repeatedly states) is not a precise market timing tool.

However, although examples are drawn from all asset classes, it would be more beneficial to the reader if there was a more extensive market coverage, even in the form of an appendix providing visual / chart based evidence for strategies. Another omission, is that although the author does point out that the methodology is not perfect he does not provide in depth causation for commercial signal failure, how to identify and deal with it. These issues are dealt in his advisory service.

(v) Comparative Evaluation
Since the book is the first of its kind (solely devoted to CoT analysis) it is not possible to do a comparative evaluation, as it would not serve justice to authors that have devoted a few chapters on the issue.


(vi) Possibilities for development
It this writer's view that the there is considerable scope of further research for CoT analysis (several ideas already being in investigation progress), and applied as part of a Decision Support System or integrated into a more systematic structure (there are already some papers on the subject from the academic community). Like all pioneering manuscripts, this book sets the foundations and fundamentals tools upon which further research will be done. A fundamentally robust technique, which means that it is able to sustain market environment changes (regime shifts).


If you would like additional information,
please refer to the conversation/ interview I had with Larry
on the subject of Commitment of Traders Analysis and Trading

Alex Spiroglou

This is a good book to understand the participants in the market and how they behave. The charts tended to be small and hazy which made it difficult to see each weeks information discretely. I would recommend this book to someone that is green to the market to illustrate the importance of trading with the trend and as importantly, with the largest participants in the market. Worth a read.

I am glad to consider Larry Williams as a friend, so it is was with great enjoyment that I read his recent book. One of the great pleasures and benefits of knowing the Specs is being able to meet and discuss market ideas with the best.

The commitments of traders report provides good additional information to speculators in the futures markets. Larry presents many good ideas for quantitative specs to test, and even hints at some of the many tricks he has up his sleeve, without giving away the family jewels. The book's use of charts is aimed at the less quantitatively inclined beginner, and while some of the chart-based reasoning suffers from chartism's typical retrospective bias, Larry does have a chapter on quantitative tests, although limited to win/loss ratios and amount of wins, and briefly discusses down days in S&P. However, any astute spec can test the many good ideas rigorously and develop his own more precise methods.

Ideas for new trades can come from any source, as the Specs have shown us, and new ideas are necessary to keep an edge in a competitive market. Rather than try to find entries base on comparing chartpoints and indicators which is non predictive, better to use the ideas and data to refine the entries. It is in this spirit that the book is helpful to a speculator. It's a fun an quick read, in Larry's breezy and folksy style.

In many ways the most basic and important call in the market is if it is going up or down. Seems so deceptively simple, but the paths it takes throw one off the track. Good information, just a bit more than the next guy, is what it takes to head in the right direction, and the COT report may give an edge.

I give the book 5 Stars.

I read through the book in about 2 days, but it can be read in one sitting if you have the time. As some of the other commenters have stated, this book will not teach you how to trade. However I would not trade without reading this book first. Richard Waldron has done a wonderful job in explaining something as complex as futures trading to the person of average intelligence like myself.

The Hillary Clinton chapter is worth reading, he states how he was not a Hillary Clinton fan, but after researching her 1000 to 100k in cattle futures he sees that the media was trying to smear her. She did nothing illegal.

Excellent service. My book arrived on time and in excellent shape, just as described on the site.

Neophytes will not find a better explanation of the futures market. How it works, what it is, terms and what they mean. The guy has a gift for explaining what could be confusing in a very straight forward manner that will also stick in your head. You learn more than you think.

I do find the typewriter look to the text annoying. Which is why it is only 4 stars.

And this is a book for someone knowing little or nothing about the futures or commodity markets. But it will get you up to speed very quickly and painlessly.

I received the 1997 edition, NOT the 2000...therefore my comments are based on the earlier edition. I enjoyed the book as it is a very easy read and could more appropriately be titled 'Futures 100: An Orientation', as the author does exactly what he promises to do and that is to introduce the reader to the world of Futures. I read it in one day and would recommend it to anyone who is eager to learn about Futures. Waldron does provide a couple of interesting examples of success in trading, but more knowledge should be ascertained. He also offer additional resources to assist the reader with their journey for more information regarding concepts, research and trading.

I would recommend this reading if your only interpretation of Futures are multiple tomorrows :-)

This book is a FANTASTIC first book to read about commodities trading. Will it show you how to develop a Chart? NO. Will it teach you how to feel a market? NO. Will it give you the skills to begin trading as a beginner, paper trading or otherwise? NO. But what it will do, and it is a fantastic book for this... It will give the reader, especially a novice/beginner or a person who is interested in exploring "commodities" trading a good base of knowledge, in a simple and uncomplicated way. It will make clear what trading is, what are the ground rules, how it works in theory, and what you will need to do and emulate, to see any success in this complex and interesting field. I have purchased this book 7 or 8 times for several of my friends who 'want to know' what commodities trading is. The explanation of leverage, the concepts of 'longs and shorts' the idea of selling something (going short) is complex to the everyday person. Most people cannot imagine you can sell something (going short) without actually having something, and then buying later to fill your short. My wife is very smart, but she had "never knew" you could do such a thing. So, if you want to 'get the idea' of what commodities trading is, buy this book. It will not overwhelm you, but will help you understand enough (like putting your toe in the water of the pool) to determine if you want to jump in, or just wade in, or if you would rather find something 'less risky'.

Having read through the book, I decided to teach a class based on it. The 'Married With Young Children' age group that I teach stuggle to develop close relationships because of the hectic schedules they keep. Going from activity to activity threaten's the framework of their marriage as well as creating a less than ideal situation to raise and nurture their children. Although some of what Mr. Frazee presents would be very difficult for most to adopt, much of the book is very practical and if nothing else, drives home the importance of developing a close and personal relationship with our children that many of us have or are currently missing out on.

This book is about to change my life practice as well as that of my family and neighborhood! I am buying this one for a neighbor.

Although the beginning of this book has some good insights about the current chaotic state of many families and why change is important, once you get into the heart of it, it's not ideal for many families. He suggests a fairly regimented schedule to keep families balanced. Although this may seem ideal, I'm not sure its realistic. There are too many unique factors in families such as kids with learning disabilities, etc., which would prevent this plan from working well. There are things from the book which can be implemented though so its worth checking out. Gain what you can from it but don't feel bad if it's not a good plan for your family.

This is such a simple book to read and yet it may have the most profound impact on our lives - I hope and pray! We fit exactly the type of family who desperately needs this book: suburban, near a very large, fast-paced city and living somewhat frazzled, disconnected lives (other than with our children) because we are working all hours of the day (my husband) and our church and church friends are 30-45 minutes away. Frazee talks about how the greatest problem in the American Church today is our fragmented lives - the fact that we have so many relationships with many different groups of people, and rarely do these groups overlap. My husband and I have bemoaned for years now that we are not able to "do life" with those in our small group nor church as we live all over the city. I have also felt for a long time that not observing a Sabbath Day (one of the Ten Commandments) is one of the greatest sins of omission of our church today and in our lives personally. Frazee's book resonates with us to the core! And, I might add, that we are parents of 2 children under age 3 and that my husband works from home - often working evening hours and weekends since he can wrap up for early dinners and time with the kids. While we may not be able to implement everything that Frazee urges (I sure would like him to address those with preschoolers), we are already praying about what kind of changes we can make. We can live with the tension of it not really fitting our life-stage exactly as we trust God to show us how to build community right here in our neighborhood/community. It is a beautiful picture of what life CAN be and what we were created for - deeper relationships and more sane living. You must read this book for the picture he paints of family dinner time, if nothing else. While we do eat dinner together every night as a family, I love his vision of making it a reward and festive occasion at the end of every day and also of enfolding others into it. Beautiful! It is also a book that has given me permission to take the time I need to step back from the frenzy, refresh my soul, and to consider finding a church closer to our home sooner rather than later. Thank you, Randy Frazee and thank you, Lord Jesus! May we trust Him for the wisdom and application in our specific lives.

Randy Frazee is correct. We do need to make room for life. In a culture that is individualistic, narcissistic, and pragmatic, the great need of our time is to return to the relational life we were meant to live--the life God created us to live, the kind of relational life that brings about life transformation and allows us to live the Abundant Life.

For calling the church back to that life, I applaud Frazee, but I do not believe his solution is necessarily relevant or realistic today. (Other reviews do a good job of outlining the book, so I'll resist the urge to do more of that here.) Yes, we need to be counter-cultural--maybe even revolutionary--from our society in our our approach to life. But the ancient Hebrew Day Calendar is, I believe, simply archaic. What worked well 2,000 years ago may very well be outmoded and obsolete today. Also, I see it as a simplistic, pragmatic solution, rather than a vision for a new way to look at life.

When I first read Making Room for Life when it was first published several years ago, I liked it's main message, and I made some changes in my life to live out the values Frazee advances, for instance sitting in our front yard more so that I can connect and build community in our neighborhood. I went to hear him speak on this three separate times, and sat there nodding my head in agreement each time. His vision is all good stuff, but he spends a lot of time advocating the Hebrew Day Calendar, which, while thought-provoking, left me perplexed and frustrated with trying to implement it.

Here's the thing. As a small group pastor, I'm passionate to see people in my church connect in what I call "radically real relationships" in Christian community. But I also know that almost everything in our culture creates huge barriers for people to actually live this way. The #1 excuse for not being in a small group is busyness. And yet, according to the A.C. Nielsen Co., the average American watches more than 4 hours of TV each day (or 28 hours/week, or 2 months of nonstop TV-watching per year). In a 65-year life, that person will have spent 9 years glued to the tube. It seems people would rather watch people living relationally than actually living that way themselves. Perhaps it's safer for them that way. Yes, I desperately want to see people connect in community, but I know that I need to offer them more than simplistic, archaic, programmatic solutions. They need to change their attitudes first.

My advice: If you are going to buy a book on making room for life, get Scott Boren's book, The Relational Way: From Small Group Structures to Holistic Life Connections. Boren references Making Room for Life in his book, and even borrows one of Frazee's illustrations to make a vital point. Frazee also wrote one of the two Forewords for Boren's book. But to me, The Relational Way provides much more practical theology, relevancy, and real-world insights. (See my review of the book on its product page or my Profile Page.)

If I were to buy just one book on the topic, I'd have to make room on my bookshelf for The Relational Way.