Customer Reviews

Trader Vic--Methods of a Wall Street Master

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This sums it all up. Vic presents a thoughtful methodology for capital preservation. Violate his rules at your own risk.

I'm sure people will not find this review "helpful" , which is typical of the masses. They hear what they want to hear, then blank out everything else because it is threatening information. Shrug.

I am well aware of all the solid reviews on this book, so I keep thinking I've missed something in my reading. I gave the book 2 stars for content, 3 because it was [cost effective]. It is definitely well written by someone who has quite a track record in trading. The one chapter on Dow Theory, 2B, trendlines and trend reversals was the only one worth mentioning. The rest of the book is lengthy filler material. Some good, some bad, mostly "average".

...gives you a "street" perspective on trading. There's some useful information in this book, but also a lot of useless information such as Sperandeo's economic theories (which are just plain nuts). If you plan on trading it's a good book to read just for the value of seeing how Sperandeo approaches it.

I've read most books on trading and this one is neither exceptional nor terrible. Take from it what you will and apply it to your own knowledge.

Some years ago an experienced trader introduced
me to this book. I read it and I learned many
things from it. The main topics in this book
include: Preservation of capital, consistent
profitability, technical analysis and trading
rules, etc. Trader Vic also talked about
macroeconomics and how it affects the stock
market.

One doesn't have to agree on everything trader
Vic said in his book. And I personally believe
that the writing style could be better. The
outstanding points in this book are Mr.
Sperandeo's great insights about trading and
his very practical real-world trading strategies.
This is a book every trader should read.

Rating: 4  Stars

Victor Sperandeo says that if there were a Hall of Fame for trading he wouldn't be in it but he sees himself as a career pro who consistently performs at an elite level year after year. In fact consistent performance is his central theme, which he says requires not only a successful approach to trading but to life itself. He delves into this in the second part of the book that is dedicated to the psychological approach. Sperandeo says that he trained a group of traders but only a few were successful, and in searching for why he discovered the most important cause was false pride associated with the 'idealised self'. I found this interesting in that paying a ton of money to be taught by any of the world's so called greatest traders isn't any guarantee of success!

His reasons for writing the book it seems is frustration with the image the world has of traders in which the unsung career pro goes unnoticed. Whatever his reasons are it is a privilege to gain an insight into the mind and methodology of a New Market Wizard.

His methods are a mixture of fundamental and technical analysis. He uses economics as a forecasting tool and says that cycle analysis actually just gets in the way. If you can understand the fundamentals of economics you can interpret government intervention in the market and profit from it.University taught economics is useless for this. All booms and busts are a result of credit expansion in an effort to lower interest rates, whereas Keynesian economics attempts to use interventionalist policy to smooth out the peaks and troughs but in fact is the predominant cause. Surplus production, savings and innovation create wealth as much for the individual as the economy on the whole. Wealth is actually consumed by government created prosperity via deficit spending. You can't get something for nothing. By understanding these cycles, you can speculate profitably.
Technical tools can then be used for timing entry. He demonstrates how trendlines can be drawn objectively to determine a change in trend using his 123 and 2B rules. A unique approach in this book is an approach to measuring risk by calculating market life expectancy profiles which he says has been instrumental to his success along with his business philosophy of protecting capital, consistent profitability and the pursuit of superior gains.

This book is as much a confession of the soul as a guide on trading methods, which I've found most of the best trading books are.

Over the last two years I have read over 20 books focusing upon trading. This ranks only second to lefevre's Reminiscences of a stock Operator.

In this book Vic details the critical factors / techniques necessary for successful trading. He focuses upon key areas which I believe summarise the key tenets underlying successful trading. It was almost as if this book was tailor made for me given the emphasis upon psychology and the necessary mindset to win. His comments so often ring true. He clarified a number of issues in my own mind and extended my thinking in critical areas.

Not to be missed

I am an equities trader and I have read over 20,000 pages about investing in the stock market, fundamental and technical analysis, and many related topics. The ideas presented in Trader Vic's book are extremely practical and relevant and I've not seen many of the ideas expressed in it anywhere else. His ideas about weighing the odds of the future course of the markets based on historical, statistical measurements of time and how far the markets have moved are truly useful. The background he gives about economics made sense and are useful as well. I'd rate it in the top 5 books I've ever read about the markets.

I like this book because Trader Vic really lets you into his head. He gives you a bird's eye view of the trading world, some of his strategies, trials and tribulations, and market commentary based on his years of experience. This guy is of the same caliber as the guys, for instance, on TradingMarkets.com. Trader Vic really knows his stuff; this is a must-have book in any trader's library.

I was torn between 4 or 5 stars. Half the material rated 5 stars, but the other half was 4 stars or even 3 stars. The first 30% was part of what I was expecting -- psychology of the market and predictions. The last 20% was the other part of what I was expecting -- psychology of the trader. The rest is filler, but good filler, mostly geared towards beginners.

When I first read this book a few years ago, my reaction was one of dismay- not because I was disappointed, but because I thought Vic’s stuff was so good that I hated the thought of any other traders getting their hands on it. Sperandeo is a trader’s trader, the kind of guy who sees life as a fun challenge and would be happy to trade anything from pork bellies to pokemon cards, as long as the liquidity and profit opportunity is there. His credentials- 10 years of 70%+ returns- are top notch as well. While those returns are well in the past now as this book is a little dated, someone who is able to demonstrate ability that consistently has learned the game well enough to clean up in most any environment.

His observations on treating trading like a business are golden. The three principles (I won’t divulge them here because you really need to buy this book if you haven’t read it), are elegant and to the point. They are the cornerstone of my trading philosophy and methodology.

Sperandeo’s explanation of trends is clear and succinct, and he cuts through many misconceptions of how to draw a trendline. His 1, 2, 3 method for determining a change in trend is simple and useful- so simple and useful, in fact, that it has been co-opted, doctored up and flogged to death by a certain get rich quick huckster (many of this huckster's faithful mistakenly think 123 tops and bottoms are his personal invention- as if ...).

The 2B is a powerful and useful tool, but one that needs to be used judiciously and in line with the overall trend from what I can see. Rather than calling a top in a market that is trending higher, I have found the 2B more useful for calling a mini top in a market that has been in an overall downtrend and is finishing up a short term upside correction- precisely the time that professionals are adding to their shorts. (The opposite of this example would go for a bottom type 2B signal in an uptrending market.)

To top it all off, this book contains a more lucid and understandable explanation of economics than you could get from most college professors, and a section on psychology and emotion that is right on the money. The only place where I would have a small disagreement with Sperandeo is that I think he perhaps displays the trend a little too concretely- even when a trend is drawn correctly, if a new high or low comes in the trend has to be redrawn, so I would have stressed the fluidity of shorter term trends and the notion that they are much more general guidelines than hard reference points. But that’s a small quibble with an overall excellent book.