In the great game that is trading, the game never really changes.

New technology is introduced; new methodologies are dreamed up; new investment fads come and go. But the essentials of trading are the same now as they were generations ago.

There is a class of books that brings home this timelessness. Four of the best are The Money Game by Adam Smith; Devil Take the Hindmost by Edwin Chancellor; Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds by Charles MacKay; and of courseReminiscences of a Stock Operator by Edwin Lefevre (with the guidance of Jesse Livermore).

The oldest of the above is MacKay’s book, published in 1841. The Psychology of the Stock Market, by G.C. Selden, is another addition to the “timeless classics” list.

Though published in 1912, Selden’s book could have been published yesterday. This makes complete sense, as the main topic — human psychology — has not changed at all in the past century. (more…)