23 Useful Forex Books for Both Novice and Advanced Traders

Foreign exchange (forex) trading is the process of trading currencies of different countries in the world. There are trillions of dollars traded every day on the forex marketplace. Forex trading requires a general comprehension of technical analysis, chart patterns, and indicators.

As a new or experienced trader, reading Forex books is always one of the most popular methods to gain knowledge about important forex trading knowledge. These books can build the foundation for creating effective trading strategies, helping you know how to choose high-quality stock and Forex pairs, and minimizing possible risks.

In this article, we’ll give you a heads up to the must-have forex books. Let’s take a look at the following list and pick up the most suitable reference source for you.

Table of contents

• 1. The Black Book of Forex Trading by Paul Langer
• 2. The Simple Strategy by Markus Heitkoetter
• 3. Forex - 3 Manuscripts by Matthew Maybury
• 4. Forex Trading Money Management System by Don Guy
• 5. How to Start a Trading Business with $500 by Heiken Ashi Trader
• 6. The Art of Currency Trading by Brent Donnelly
• 7. The Foreign Exchange Matrix by Barbara Rockefeller and Vicki Schmelzer
• 8. The Little Book of Currency Trading by Kathy Lien
• 9. Technical Analysis Of The Financial Markets By John J. Murphy
• 10. Day Trading and Swing Trading Currency Market by Kathy Lien
• 11. The Alchemy of Finance by George Soros by George Soros
• 12. America’s Bank by Roger Lowenstein
• 13. Trend Following by Michael Covel
• 14. Bollinger on Bollinger Bands by John A. Bollinger
• 15. The Black Swan by Nicholas Taleb
• 16. Foreign Exchange Option Pricing by Iain J. Clark
• 17. FOREX by Dave Matias
• 18. The Death of Money by James Rickards
• 19. Currency Trading for Dummies by Kathleen Brooks
• 20. 50 Pips a Day Forex Strategy by Laurentiu Damir
• 21. Forex for Ambitious Beginners by Jelle Peters
• 22. Adventures of a Currency Trader by Rob Booker
• 23. Currency Forecasting by Michael Rosenberg
• Final words

1. The Black Book of Forex Trading by Paul Langer

The contents of the first edition are created after many years of testing and getting fingers burnt in the financial market’s instability. One can hear the success stories in the financial realm, but few will grasp the skills and agility one gains after overcoming failure, and this book shows the same.

The Black Book of Forex Trading book aims at beginners to intermediate traders who are attempting to succeed in the trading world and can be equipped with robust tactics to manage difficult situations. It contains the three main areas in Forex trading:

How to draw a definite winning strategy suitable for the personal lifestyles and demands Methods to maximize benefits without taking risks Traders need to control their emotions and biases while executing and following a few steps in the trading process.

Besides, there are some other aspects included in this book:

• Fighting struggling market scenarios
• Making money on a consistent basis
• Ensuring one can have their financial freedom within the specific limitations and boundaries.
• Achieving sufficient confidence to trade with the proper knowledge and number in place
• Tactics for becoming a successful trader in 4 months

Although the book’s size is relatively small, it contains a hugely significant amount of knowledge that can be applied to complicated situations.

2. The Simple Strategy by Markus Heitkoetter

The Simple Strategy book is a helpful trend-following day trading strategy for the trading of stocks, futures, FOREX, and ETF’s. The book becomes popular because of the reasons below:

• Clear Entry Rules are generated according to specified indicators, such as the MACD above the zero lines or not, and the entries are simple to determine and implement.
• Clear Exit Rules whereby one will have a good idea to leave the market at the time of taking the position. Thereby, one can control the amount of risk for the sizing of the positions and money management. Besides, one can set the trade auto-pilot when the entry order is full, maintaining the trade management to a minimum and therefore decreasing costs.
• Leveraging Small Insta-day Trends: Trading can be implemented on a pulse’s beating, and one doesn’t have to wait for the trading day to be finished. This forex book will provide tips to handle such situations.
• Sophisticated Algorithmic Trading Software is not needed: An easy charting software with fundamental capabilities is needed for plotting Bollinger Bands, Range Bars, RSI, and MACD. You won’t have to buy any proprietary indicators or pricey charting software.

3. Forex - 3 Manuscripts by Matthew Maybury

The Forex - 3 Manuscripts highlights two broad areas: one is a fresher’s guide to forex trading, and the other is excellent strategies for high profit and mitigated risks.

The beginner’s guide offers a blueprint to create a trading plan with the use of forex and how one can optimize their achievement. It will focus on the absolute fundamental components towards an introduction to the $2,000 billion forex market.

This foreign exchange book shows how people should attempt to earn an amount of money according to their financial demands over a period of time for specific events such as marriage or retirement. One can make a profit margin in the variation of 70-90% following the forex market rules.

The second part describes the excellent forex trading strategies for high profit and low risk. One can be an expert in forex by utilizing various strategies. Besides, experienced traders can find a strategy that must not have been heard of before.

To help readers acquire knowledge about foreign exchange, the book covers the following:

• Fundamentals of forex trading
• Identifying and understanding the market trend
• Strategies like Moving Averages, Candlestick, Scalping, Price Action, Turtle, and so on
• Mitigating the risk of loss
• Street smart tactics to survive in the volatile market conditions

4. Forex Trading Money Management System by Don Guy

The Forex Trading Money Management System book includes a simple theory that reverses the forex market movement with a simple money management system and supports optimizing profits. The book’s cover emphasizes the difference, which presents the market’s performance with and without the system. b

It is widely known as “Roulette Trader Money Management,” which performs reverse engineering to increase profit while lowering drawdown in most of the scenarios at the same time. The author once went to a Casino in Las Vegas, where he lost $2,000 playing Russian roulette. Therefore, this system was built to “Crush Financial Markets like a Professional Gambler.” The system can be used manually or set automatically.

After growing the system, the author came back to Las Vegas with $20 and made it into a profit of $500 within one hour. That was locked in from the automated profit locking mechanism and is applied in financial markets. The cover page shows how profit increases four times higher, and the maximum drawdown accounts for ⅓ of the size.

5. How to Start a Trading Business with $500 by Heiken Ashi Trader

New traders who start running their businesses often have very few approaches to attracting capital. This foreign exchange book demonstrates a practical method of how one can become a full-time trader with limited capital, including private traders. It offers step-by-step instructions on how to access trading business with a low capital of $500.

Some vital components covered in the book are:

• How should one gain and seamlessly perform Good Trading Habits
• How to become a disciplined trader
• How to become a professional trader
• Optimize returns from $500
• Social trading
• Ommunication skills with a broker
• Trading activities for a Hedge fund

6. The Art of Currency Trading by Brent Donnelly

The Art of Currency Trading book will show you how to trade currencies in real market conditions profitably. Fresh traders will have a chance to learn from specific strategies and tactics that the author used during 20 years of his trading career.

This forex book consists of 400 pages of material. In addition to including a single trading strategy or philosophy, the author walks readers through a variety of trading philosophies and approaches. That means you can learn about technical analysis, macro fundamentals, behavioral finance, fundamental analysis, and how these disciplines intersect in the currency markets.

7. The Foreign Exchange Matrix by Barbara Rockefeller and Vicki Schmelzer

For most of the new investors, it is challenging to navigate and grasp the foreign currency markets. Barbara Rockefeller and Vicki Schmelzer used their years of knowledge and experience to share with readers about the most crucial concepts and dynamics of this market.

There is more than $4 trillion of trading happening every day. This huge amount of trading volume lowers the trading size of the US stock market.

The Foreign Exchange Matrix book describes a number of topics, including what creates trends in the market and how the foreign currency market affects trends in other markets. The two authors utilize a matrix concept to combine different themes and topics.

Moreover, this reference book gives an in-depth treatment of market dynamics and instruction for how to explain events happening in the market.

8. The Little Book of Currency Trading by Kathy Lien

Forex traders, especially beginners, will find The Little Book of Currency Trading book helpful. The book contains the fundamental factors that drive currency markets and provides specific strategies and tactics to leverage opportunities.

The book includes some basic principles, including:

• How to look for the best investing approach adhering to your personal style
• How to avoid scams and pitfalls
• Common investor mistakes

9. Technical Analysis Of The Financial Markets By John J. Murphy

Technical Analysis of the Financial Market covers everything you need to learn about technical analysis - from the fundamental concept of trading with a forward indicator. Written in 1998, the book has been considered a bible for traders.

The book offers over 400 technical analysis charts to bring to life. It also has a section to help you turn what you have got into practice. Furthermore, there are various topics, including candle patterns, dow theory, moving averages, various indicators, chart patterns, relative strength, Elliot wave, cycle theory, inter-market linkage, and market breadth.

Actually, those topics are quite dull and dry subjects; even you can find it difficult to get through sometimes. However, be patient and keep reading until the end of the book as this massive amount of knowledge is significant for your trading journey.

10. Day Trading and Swing Trading Currency Market by Kathy Lien

The Day Trading and Swing Trading Currency Market book offers traders a number of technical and basic strategies that can be utilized to see the market overbought and oversold. New technical trading strategies involve how to trade news, efficiently time market turns, and attract new shifts in momentum. Proven basic trading strategies include trading off commodity prices, option volatilities, fixed income instruments, event-driven macro traders, and intervention-based trades.

In addition, the book also illustrates a strategy that shows the difference in interest rates and news Intermarket relationships.

11. The Alchemy of Finance by George Soros by George Soros

In the Alchemy of Finance book, the author George Soros demonstrates an approach to trade and introduces “reflexivity” - a basic theory that can be affected by the price. Although standard economic reasoning contradicts this, Soros insists this approach gave him an edge over other traders in his career.

First released in 1986, the book gives merchants a fascinating insight into the mindset of one of the most outstanding traders of all time.

12. America’s Bank by Roger Lowenstein

The America’s Bank book introduces the events that resulted in the formation of the Federal Reserve (Fed) in 1913. For a long time, the idea of an American central bank was greatly divisive, with many individuals having suspicions of bodies that tried to make nationwide interventions. Nevertheless, this changed after the panic of 1907 - a financial crisis that witnessed the New York Stock Exchange decreased by about 50% of its value.

The book reports the story of that crisis and the events involved, concentrating on the four primary characters in the central part of the story. Even though readers will not acquire any specific trading tips, it offers interesting insights into the Fed’s history.

13. Trend Following by Michael Covel

This forex reference source illustrates how traders can monitor prevalent market movements to profit, even during times of instability. Wholly updated after the market crash of 2008 - when trend followers could surpass expectations - Michael Covel creates a technical system that traders can leverage to speculate on a number of markets.

The Trend Following book also provides hands-on tips generated to make readers think and act differently, optimizing their opportunities for implementing a successful trend-following system.

14. Bollinger on Bollinger Bands by John A. Bollinger

As its name, Bollinger on Bollinger Bands is the author’s instruction to his eponymous indicator. He shows how to utilize the tool appropriately and avoid common traps and analyzes the complementary basic analysis techniques that can help affirm how markets will move.

Additionally, the book clarifies the market conditions that sparked the growth of the indicator and three approaches that can help traders make the most advantage of it.

15. The Black Swan by Nicholas Taleb

In the Black Swan book, Nicholas Taleb explains the influence of erratic events and how they will be rationalized after they have happened. His main idea is that most financial models have flaws as they cannot account for these events, leaving traders encountering unnecessary risks.

The book acts as a reminder to prepare for the unpredictable and take actions to mitigate the potential drawbacks of every trade.

16. Foreign Exchange Option Pricing by Iain J. Clark

The Foreign Exchange Option Pricing book introduces every aspect of forex options from the viewpoint of a Finance Practitioner. This publication also provides all the necessary information that a trader or quantitative analyst needs to possess to work in a bank or a hedge fund. Plus, it contains the theoretical mathematics aspect and the thorough coverage of execution, pricing, and calibration.

The content is expanded with inputs from traders and real-world examples. It also mentions the more requested items from the FX options along with different models catching the risk characteristics needed for the precise pricing of the products.

Moreover, the book includes the numerical approaches for calibrating these models, which is a significant component in practice but often neglected. Additionally, robust treatment is provided to the features below:

• Accurate market conventions for FX volatility management
• Three-factor long-dated FX model
• Applying variable methods for strongly path-dependent options using Monte Carlo simulation or partial differential equations
• Adjustment for settlement and delayed options delivery
• Numerical calibration techniques for all the models under consideration
• Pricing of Vanilla and Barrier options contract under unstable conditions

Including the mathematically strong theory and practical scenarios, this guide is critical to forex options in the real-life marketplace.

17. FOREX by Dave Matias

The Forex book by Dave Matias focuses on the vital role of fundamental analysis in the FX markets’ movement. Fundamental analysis is considered the base of trading and the primary driver of FX flows, which offers hands-on knowledge and understanding of FX. The market is unstable in nature and is sensitive to any type of micro and macro releases. Therefore, it is essential for you to capitalize on fundamental analysis.

The book emphasizes the following:

• Myths of fundamental trading
• Currencies and bonds
• How can micro and macro events impact the market
• Global market flows and other crucial trading concepts
• Usage of hands-on examples and use of models in fundamental trading
• Trade and capital flow in relation to the FX model

18. The Death of Money by James Rickards

The US Dollar has dominated the world economy since World War II, and its performance may have a negative impact on the financial condition of other countries across the world. The Death of Money gives a glance at the financial future, considering the financiers’ greed, the central bank’s incompetence, and the dangers of over-dependence on the US Dollar as the reserve currency.

The 2008 international financial crisis has badly affected the US economy, and the FED is paying the penalty for supporting the bankers. It is compelled to print money to cause inflation for counterbalancing the deflationary influences of the debt from the bank crisis. The Government is required to borrow money to save Wall Street.

The downside of Devaluation because of excess printing, decreasing the intrinsic value has been extensively discussed. The author has come up with two assumptions for the following theories:

• Gold is the only “true money.”
• The Recession of 2007-2008 has been structural, and the central banks have been utilizing the wrong tools, presuming it is a cyclical situation.

19. Currency Trading for Dummies by Kathleen Brooks

This is a reader-friendly guide illustrating the functioning of a forex market and how one can gain benefits from the same. It provides easy-to-follow instruction to the Global Forex market, which clarifies the scope, size, players, and other dominant economic drivers that impact currency values and how to explain the data and events in a channelized manner.

Besides, readers can discover multiple trading styles for building a concrete strategy and a game plan for implementation. The areas covered are:

• Currency trading convention and its tools
• Grasping the significance of organization and preparation
• Giving an insider’s look at the main characteristics of established and successful currency traders
• Providing guidance on the drawbacks of trading to be prevented and rules to handle different kinds of risks

The Currency Trading for Dummies starts from the basic levels for trading and will boost the mechanics of trading on how the currencies are traded, currency pairings, comprehending price quotes, and how the international trading day flows are. Then, readers can test their knowledge and intuition by opening a practice trading account with an online foreign brokerage before investing in the real market.

20. 50 Pips a Day Forex Strategy by Laurentiu Damir

The 50 Pips a Day Forex Strategy provides a detailed strategy proper for beginners who have never traded in their life, creating profits of at least 50 pips per day. The book allows readers to learn about money management, gives an introduction to forex trading, and includes instructions on how to construct winning trading strategies.

21. Forex for Ambitious Beginners by Jelle Peters

The Forex for Ambitious Beginners book helps prevent traders from stepping into the forex market headfirst without caution. It introduces a very practical approach and explanation, making sure the readers grip the different drawbacks when they trade the forex market.

What’s more, readers can learn the important elements of successful forex trading, including how to protect your trading capital, search for a forex trading strategy that fits your trader personality, and create your trading system and adjust it for maximum performance.

This book also covers necessary fundamentals about the FX market, for example, who the players on the forex are, or which factors impact the most currencies. In addition, the book also demonstrates specific forex trading strategies, prevailing technical indicators, how to read candlestick charts, and how to identify chart patterns.

22. Adventures of a Currency Trader by Rob Booker

The Adventures of a Currency Trader book tells the story of a fictional forex trader Harry Banes and his experience trading in the forex market. With his anecdotes and situations, traders can explore different challenges, conveyed in an entertaining format.

The book shows both the new and experienced traders some hard-won truths about the currency market through a variety of insightful and entertaining vignettes. If you have traded or are just thinking about trading in the forex markets, this is still a must-have option.

23. Currency Forecasting by Michael Rosenberg

The exchange rate of a currency decides the asset’s price in the forex market and the currency’s worth around the world. These rates vary according to a number of factors, such as economic growth, geopolitical risk, political climate, and so on.

The Currency Forecasting book presents how to clarify and grasp the key factors driving the value of every nation’s currency. It suggests that investors should use an integrated approach to currency forecasting that blends technical-based and fundamental-based exchange rate models.

Final words

That’s our list of 23 interesting foreign exchange books for both novice and experienced traders. We hope that these reference sources can help you have a deeper understanding of the forex markets and gain some of the best tips and practices for your trading journey.

If you know another useful forex book, please share its name with other readers via the comment section below.