Day Trading For Dummies Book Review

Overview of Day Trading For Dummies

Like the rest of the Dummies series, Day Trading For Dummies by Ann C. Logue is not for dummies. This book assumes you know little about day trading and tries to speak to “smart people who is thinking about doing it”. That is a pretty good pitch.

Ann C. Logue holds an MBA and the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. She has 12 years of experience as an investment analyst before moving on to lecture in the University of Chicago at Illinois. She is also the author of Hedge Funds for Dummies. However, there is no mention of her own trading experience.

The scope of the book is comprehensive and has four major sections.

• Day Trading Fundamentals – Definition, financial instruments for day trading, and regulatory concerns
• Day Trading Tools – Trading computer, brokers, and taxes
• Day Trading Strategies – Technical analysis, short selling, and arbitrage
• The Part of Tens – Reasons for and against day trading, and useful alternatives

The sub-topics are diverse, ranging from day trading for investors to part-time day trading.

The book also includes resources like a directory of brokers, websites, and trading software for day trading.

Our Review

Although the author did not mention her own day trading experience. Given her financial background and knowledge on day trading, at least, she seems familiar with trading and has spoken to a few day traders. (In fact, in her book, Ann C. Logue interviewed James Okada Lee, a day trader in Tokyo)

Like the other books for Dummies, the writing style is clear and avoids jargon. It provides a concise introduction to almost every day trading topic.

However, the scope is too ambitious. (The table of contents takes up 10 pages.) Among the many concepts and information, it is easy to get lost.

The solution is to focus on what you need to know. For example, if you have decided to trade futures, you can skip the chunks elaborating on stocks, options, and forex. If you have decided to trade with technical analysis, skip the part on fundamental analysis.

The Day Trading Strategies section barely scratches the surface. It shows you that those day trading strategies exist, but does not teach you how to trade with them.

The main merit of Day Trading For Dummies is its extensive scope. There are many aspects of day trading, beyond the trading strategies, that are often neglected. But Day Trading For Dummies has managed to combine them in a single book. Its table of contents is like a checklist of everything a day trader should consider, from personal well-being to setting up your computer.

Day Trading For Dummies is great for complete beginners and the experienced trader worried about missing out on some vital aspect of day trading.

After reading this book, you cannot start day trading immediately, but you will be well-prepared to learn more about how to day trade.