I note that the book review section of this site rates this book quite highly, with a present favorable rating of 96%. Most respondents regard it as being well worth the money. However, I note that Amazon sellers presently have only one new book available for $680.82, with used copies starting at $114.90. As someone who has read over 120 books on trading and the markets, I have concluded that, with very few exceptions, they are all somewhat similar and worth fairly little. And so the question is: What is so special about this book that gives it value despite its comparatively high cost?
Probably because they look at it like they are selling you a system. I have the book but can't tell you how good it is because I barely got through the 2nd chapter. That was a few years ago. Its been collecting dust since.
Last I checked the book was out of print, but you can find a pdf using google. The book does not contain any big secrets. It is basically Oz's trading diary that documents 4 weeks worth of trades. He uses simple stuff, but follows stops religiously. It does have educational value, but I wouldn't pay 600 dollars for it. -Neo
Probably the same reason you can sell Toby Crabel's book for $1000, it's out of print...so the fact that its "not available" makes people want it more.
I owned this years ago and read it a few times. Covers about 4 weeks of trading where Tony explains each trade (both entry and exit), and he's only trading from the long side. In short, an enjoyable read as he has a relaxed writing style. Is it worth $115? Sure, if you like to read trading books. Is it worth $681? Not by me, but that's an individual question. As Brandon mentioned, the high price is due to its Out of Print status, not any magical revelations which will suddenly turn someone into a trader of Tony's level.
Both books collect dust on the shelves. Stock Trader: Essentially, a diary of his trades which are primarily discretionary, minimal systematic type approaches with no statistical or summary type analysis. Large portion of allocated principal applied towards trades with small scalping style profits. How to take money from wall street: similar in scope. Bit more coverage of patterns and money mgmt. On the positive side; a bit more honest than most of the books with cherry picked examples that were never traded. Negative side is as previously mentioned, very little summary of analysis from a system perspective. Coming from someone who has read a similar breadth of books on trading (if not more), I have gravitated towards looking at books that show systematic type summaries for objective comparison to other approaches. As an example, last night, I started browsing "seasonal market trends." Not a whole lot of new information, but, like it or not, there are nice comprehensive summaries of each approach using standardized metrics for trading. On another note, a good example of a recent non-systematic book IMO, is how to beat the forex dealer, a true insiders view and comprehensive expository of how retail traders are set up to lose from the start.
I too have read a large number of trading books over the years. The truth is, no one book is going to make you a great trader. The best you can hope for is to pick up some idea or concept that you can integrate into your trading to improve it a bit. That said, to me no one book is worth over $100. The good news is that there are plenty of books you can pick up pretty cheap on Amazon by buying them used. For example try the Education of a Speculator, by Niederhoffer, or the Arms Index, by Richard Arms. Best Regards, Miracletech