Reminiscences of a Stock Operator

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Reminiscences of a Stock Operator is a 1923 roman à clef by American author Edwin Lefèvre which is the thinly disguised biography of Jesse Lauriston Livermore. The Wall Street Journal described the book as a "classic", it was ranked #15 on 'Fortune's 75 The Smartest Books We Know', and Alan Greenspan said it is "a font of investing wisdom."

Video Reminiscences of a Stock Operator

The Art of Speculation

First published in 1923, Reminiscences is a fictionalized account of the life of the securities trader Jesse Livermore. Despite the book's age, it continues to offer insights into the art of trading and speculation. In Jack Schwager's Market Wizards, Reminiscences was quoted as a major source of stock trading learning material for experienced and new traders by many of the traders who Schwager interviewed.

Plot

The book tells the story of Livermore's progression from day trading in the then so-called "New England bucket shops," to market speculator, market maker, and market manipulator, and finally to Wall Street where he made and lost his fortune several times over. Along the way, Livermore learns many lessons, which he happily shares with the reader.

In print

The book remains in print as of 2008, (ISBN 0471770884). In December 2009, John Wiley & Sons published an annotated edition in hardcover, ISBN 0-470-48159-5, that bridges the gap between Lefèvre's fictionalized account and the actual exploits, personalities, and locations that populate the book. Page margins in the 2009 edition explain the historical setting and the real companies, individuals, and news events to which Lefèvre alludes.