The Bear Book (John Rothchild)

Trader's Library #84 · Market history, crises and scandals. A reminder that bear markets are part of the market too, and you have to know how to survive them.

Author: John Rothchild · Original: The Bear Book · Year: 1998 · Usefulness for traders: ★★★☆☆

What it's about

A book about bear markets: the history of the great declines in the US market, their size and duration, and advice on surviving long periods of falling prices. Rothchild also co-wrote Peter Lynch's books.

What it gives a trader

For a trader who has only known a bull market it's an important perspective: bear markets last a long time, and rallies within them can be very violent. It helps you prepare mentally for a change in market regime.

Lessons for traders

• bear markets last longer and go deeper than memories of recent years suggest (recency bias, Atlas of biases #24)
• violent bear-market rallies are normal
• in a bull market it's easy to mistake the market for your own genius

What to watch out for

A book from 1998, before the dot-com bubble and the 2008 crisis.

Discussion

The discussion takes place in Hetman Capital Club (in Polish). Join the discussion in the Club →

Navigation

← #083 Peter Bernstein: Capital Ideas and The Power of Gold · Library index · #085 Niall Ferguson: The Ascent of Money and the History of Finance →

Educational content, not investment advice. The book description is my own summary and assessment, not quotations. Edition details were checked in catalogues and bookshops, and where there was doubt I said so plainly.