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A Random Walk Down Wall Street: The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing
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Whether you’re considering your first 401k contribution, contemplating retirement, or anywhere in between, A Random Walk Down Wall Street is the best investment guide money can buy. In this new edition, Burton G. Malkiel shares authoritative insights spanning the full range of investment opportunities—including valuable new material on cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, and “t
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Paperback, 480 pages
Published
January 14th 2020
by W. W. Norton Company
(first published April 1st 1973)
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You might. This book will recommend that you put your money into index funds and will give you some ideas about which funds to start with.
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Start your review of A Random Walk Down Wall Street: The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing

Many years ago I bought this book about the stock market. In retrospect, it is the worst book I've ever bought because it made me believe in efficient capital markets. The author made his point with a lot of arrogance - just like finance professors did 15-20 years ago. At the time the markets very certainly not as efficient as the author believed. There have been several updates to the book, but the condescending voice of the author remains.
For the statistically interested, the problem with a lo ...more
For the statistically interested, the problem with a lo ...more

English (A Random Walk Down Wall Street) / Italiano
A challenging walk around Wall Street, in different time periods that affected the American economy and consequently the World, in order to provide us the necessary elements to understand the main investment rules applied on the stock exchange. Burton G. Malkiel describes with clear examples the differences between audacious investment strategies, designed to quickly profit, and more prudent strategies that aim to increase profits in longer time
...more
Oct 16, 2014
Roy Lotz
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
dismal-science,
help-me-help-myself
Because I read so often, I sometimes think that once in a while I should read something that might materially benefit me. So when my brother gave me this book, I thought "why not?" and dove in.
The first thing I noticed is that Malkiel is a surprisingly gifted writer. He is capable of telling a good story, he's cultured enough to make interesting references, and he has that quintessential skill of all popular writers: the ability to present ideas clearly without dumbing them down. For someone in ...more
The first thing I noticed is that Malkiel is a surprisingly gifted writer. He is capable of telling a good story, he's cultured enough to make interesting references, and he has that quintessential skill of all popular writers: the ability to present ideas clearly without dumbing them down. For someone in ...more

From talking to friends and reading an internal financial mailing list at work I got the vague impression that this book was somehow too esoteric or controversial to bother with. I am very glad that I decided to read this book.
It's hard to work in Silicon Valley without being affected by Wall Street. When I started working I was interested in technology, not business and finance. Business and finance seemed a bit beneath me. (Actually, technology seemed a bit beneath me too. I was kind of a snot ...more
It's hard to work in Silicon Valley without being affected by Wall Street. When I started working I was interested in technology, not business and finance. Business and finance seemed a bit beneath me. (Actually, technology seemed a bit beneath me too. I was kind of a snot ...more

We live in an age when most people have to control their own retirement destiny by making decisions about 401(k), 403(b), and IRAs. Even people with the most modest incomes are encouraged to confront that reality.
Malkiel’s approach is excellent for most of us who are not into stock analysis. He gets high marks for a couple of things: (1) He proposed a market index fund before such a thing even existed. (2) He has revised his book eleven times. In other words he has some street cred. Wall Street ...more
Malkiel’s approach is excellent for most of us who are not into stock analysis. He gets high marks for a couple of things: (1) He proposed a market index fund before such a thing even existed. (2) He has revised his book eleven times. In other words he has some street cred. Wall Street ...more

Jun 12, 2011
Chad Warner
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
investors
Shelves:
finance,
non-fiction
Investors are bound to have heard about this classic and it’s author, economist Burton Malkiel. In this book, he explains that the market is highly efficient, and no one can accurately predict its ups and downs; it’s a “random walk”. So, the best approach is passive, “buy and hold” investing using diversified index funds held long term. I recommend this book to investors of any level, especially those attracted to active, speculative investing.
The book begins with a fairly boring recount of seve ...more
The book begins with a fairly boring recount of seve ...more

Malkiel's been writing and rewriting this classic tome on investing for the last thirty-five years. I gave him 5 stars for being fully engaged in the process of revision. Sometimes I wish all authors would write (and rewrite) just one good book (and that actors would star in only one movie). But that's like asking investors to put their money in just a few low-cost funds and hold it there for decades ... hey, that's what Malkiel's talking about! So it's not the most exciting approach to investin
...more

This is probably the best book ever written on the investment side of personal finances. It goes into extensive detail as to why you should strongly consider index funds or ETFs rather than mutual funds, individual stocks, or help from a personal financial adviser. All 3 of these last alternatives come with a load in terms of either your time or money (or both).
First, Mutual funds are managed and rarely outperform the market. For this lack of performance, you get to give away a percentage each ...more
First, Mutual funds are managed and rarely outperform the market. For this lack of performance, you get to give away a percentage each ...more

An absolutely amazing book going through the essentials of investing and the financial market. There is so much useful information digested for the common folk which I have been looking for in various other titles without success. The author occasionally exaggerates and gives extreme examples to put emphasis on his points which can be a bit annoying at times. I also regret reading a quite old version of the book which has been published right before the economic crisis of 2008. I would say its a
...more

This is a gem of a book. I can whole heartedly recommend this to anyone thinking of venturing into financial markets. It assumes very little and gives a brief glimpse of how financial markets work.
You won’t turn into an overnight millionaire by reading this, but the advise here is pretty sound for growing your pot over time.
It ventures into the history of how people have played the game, fundamental analysis, technical analysis and modern portfolio theory.
You might be tempted to skip to the en ...more
You won’t turn into an overnight millionaire by reading this, but the advise here is pretty sound for growing your pot over time.
It ventures into the history of how people have played the game, fundamental analysis, technical analysis and modern portfolio theory.
You might be tempted to skip to the en ...more

Feb 25, 2015
Ami Iida
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
interested in finance
Shelves:
finance
It is one of the book that gave the most influence in my life.
I apply that approach the (index funds) to the Nikkei Stock Average and the Dow Jones industrial average stock price.
I have already read the book several times by overlapping edition.
I carry out the index funds .
Periodically I buy it
Practice is important!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
---------- it probability distribution manner to distribute the investment in each month
This is the right decision.
the book is worthy of reading repeat and then You ...more
I apply that approach the (index funds) to the Nikkei Stock Average and the Dow Jones industrial average stock price.
I have already read the book several times by overlapping edition.
I carry out the index funds .
Periodically I buy it
Practice is important!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
---------- it probability distribution manner to distribute the investment in each month
This is the right decision.
the book is worthy of reading repeat and then You ...more

Mar 01, 2017
Saeed
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
favorites,
road-to-wealth
Thank you, Burton, for writing this masterpiece. I always have fear of reading this book because I thought it would be a tough one to read but now I am saying that this book is easy reading with much fun and I am very appreciated for Malkiel's great style of writing.
Great lifetime investing advice, fabulous wisdom and a complete book for Americans but As an Iranian person, I am saying It helped me to think sharp and by every piece of my heart I am saying that I am owing you, Burton G. Malkiel : ...more
Great lifetime investing advice, fabulous wisdom and a complete book for Americans but As an Iranian person, I am saying It helped me to think sharp and by every piece of my heart I am saying that I am owing you, Burton G. Malkiel : ...more

A pretty good read for what it's worth. A good primer into basic finance. Personally, it was a good review of finance 101, with a pretty solid explanation of modern portfolio theory, and CAPM. Book seems timely, updated to include a large section on speculative bubbles, and even includes a chapter on behavioral economics. Includes a brief section on the 2008 financial crisis (kind of the standard narrative). It discusses the two competing views of stock prices, which is basically the fundamental
...more

Malkiel's book is just a repackaged version of the same garbage investment firms have fed to the public for years. If the last decade-plus has proved anything, it's that one cannot expect to succeed as an investor by placing your investments on auto-pilot. Following Malkiel's strategy of buying and holding index funds (and not reacting to market conditions), an investor would have reaped negative returns when inflation is factored in.
I've read more than a few books on investing and trading. Malk ...more
I've read more than a few books on investing and trading. Malk ...more

Aug 10, 2016
Leonard
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
finance-investing
A common sense approach to investing. No hypes.

Jul 12, 2017
Dorotea
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-in-english,
audiobook
Solid, basic, advice.

Burton Malkiel's "A Random Walk Down Wall Street" is the book that popularized passive investing. As a Princeton professor and board member of the Vanguard Group, Malkiel brought the practical implications of the efficient market hypothesis to the general investing public. The ideas in this book are now so ubiquitously accepted, that I actually learned very little new information. However, I am pleased to have experienced the original source of this powerfully simple yet effective investment phi
...more

One of the few books about financial markets and investing, covering the essential parts and providing a lot of useful guidelines, ideas, and information about the former topics. All mentioned investing strategies and ideas are described with their advantages, disadvantages, and some examples which is very helpful for beginners in those fields like me. Also, the book is updated regularly and the author includes some of the recent examples in our times such as the Real Estate bubble and others.
Ho ...more
Ho ...more

This is the book that turned my interest in personal finance into a low-boiling obsession. It's a classic that I highly recommend for anyone who wants to get serious about investing and financial matters.
...more

No one's going to consistently beat the market. Not the guys who sit in front of their Bloomberg terminals for 12 hours a day; not the causal investor who gets her cold-off-the-press news from the FT; and definitely not you: the person who just spent 40 minutes looking up acronyms mentioned on page 3 of an introductory book on investing, written in a double-spaced size-14 typeface.
After hammering that point across for the first half of the book, Malkiel walks the reader through various sound fin ...more
After hammering that point across for the first half of the book, Malkiel walks the reader through various sound fin ...more

I read this book to gain some knowledge about the investment world and to start evaluating possible long-term investment strategies. I'm an engineer so I have little finance knowledge and zero investment background. Given that, I found this book to be extremely useful as a high-level introduction and to start acquainting myself with the terminology and the available investment options for the non-professionals. If you have a similar goal, I would recommend this book.
Here are the topics discussed ...more
Here are the topics discussed ...more

As a college graduate with a child's understanding of economics and personal finance, Malkiel's guide was invaluable in understanding how the market works, tips on how to manage money, and his succinct yet rigorous and clear treatment of various investing strategies. I now have a much stronger grasp on how to invest and manage my finances as I enter post-graduate life.
Pros:
- An easy and mostly accessible read for those with almost 0 knowledge of economics or finance. Some economic and finance te ...more
Pros:
- An easy and mostly accessible read for those with almost 0 knowledge of economics or finance. Some economic and finance te ...more

I was already sold on Malkiel's approach to the stock market before I even picked this book up -- I'm a big supporter of Wealthfront, the investment platform for which Malkiel serves as CIO -- but it was a valuable exercise to understand his reasoning in greater detail. A good representative quote:
The record of professionals does not suggest that sufficient predictability exists in the stock market or that there are enough recognizable irrationalities to produce exploitable opportunities to earn...more

This is a grade on a curve.
This book is a far more robust reference on investing than Dave Ramsey's advice. (Props to Dave for helping lots of people get out of debt though.) However, if you're reading this book, you're probably not really in the market for Dave Ramsey, and vice versa.
Investing has moved on since Malkiel wrote this book, and a lot of his thoughts and information are outdated. There's just better research - Bogle, Kitces, Wade Pfau, Larry Swedroe, et al have advanced the indexin ...more
This book is a far more robust reference on investing than Dave Ramsey's advice. (Props to Dave for helping lots of people get out of debt though.) However, if you're reading this book, you're probably not really in the market for Dave Ramsey, and vice versa.
Investing has moved on since Malkiel wrote this book, and a lot of his thoughts and information are outdated. There's just better research - Bogle, Kitces, Wade Pfau, Larry Swedroe, et al have advanced the indexin ...more

May 14, 2018
Amr Khaled
rated it
did not like it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
economics-investment
Very tedious.
Annoyingly pretentious.
Absurdly uncalled for.
Just when the books starts to have something going for it, it immediately back pedals & delves into another story from history. And although I normally enjoy these stories for the wisdom they have, the writer is extremely talented in removing anything resembling interest in his tales.
I could swear I had previously read half a dozen of those stories in other books or articles & they sounded very intriguing when I read them there, but in th ...more
Annoyingly pretentious.
Absurdly uncalled for.
Just when the books starts to have something going for it, it immediately back pedals & delves into another story from history. And although I normally enjoy these stories for the wisdom they have, the writer is extremely talented in removing anything resembling interest in his tales.
I could swear I had previously read half a dozen of those stories in other books or articles & they sounded very intriguing when I read them there, but in th ...more
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“Never buy anything from someone who is out of breath.”
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“It is not hard to make money in the market. What is hard to avoid is the alluring temptation to throw your money away on short, get-rich-quick speculative binges. It is an obvious lesson, but one frequently ignored.”
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