Penny Stock & Options Trading audio book review


Penny Stock & Options Trading audio book
Penny Stock & Options Trading audio book

I’ve been interested in the concept of investing for quite a while now, and am still researching all the possible opportunities to grow personal wealth. Earlier this year I considered the prospects of investing a small amount of my income in penny stocks. Thinking this would be an easy, inexpensive way to dabble in the stock market without risking huge sums of money that I didn’t have, I set up an account with an online brokerage and began the process of searching for companies in which to invest.

However, as I began to research the penny stock landscape, I got cold feet. The more I read about it, the more cautious I became. After a few weeks, I realized that I didn’t know enough about penny stocks to feel comfortable enough to dive in, so I backed out of the idea entirely and without investing a single penny. I’m glad I waited.

Recently I received an invitation to review an audio book called Penny Stock Trading & Options – Trading QuickStart Guides: The Simplified Beginner Guides to Penny Stock Trading & Options Trading. Published by ClydeBank Media and available at Audible.com, this audio publication is a primer for the beginning investor who is interested in dipping a toe in the penny stock and stock options markets. Actually, it isn’t one audio book, but two, offered together in one convenient bundle for $14.95. I received a copy of this audio book free in exchange for my honest review. As it turns out, it was just what I needed.

Narrated by Peter Bierma, The Penny Stock Trading Quick Guide is a no-nonsense, easy to understand beginner’s introduction to the world of penny stocks, and in some aspects, the stock market as a whole. The first chapter starts off with the basics of stock trading, and I mean the basics, such as what stocks are, what a stock market is and how stocks are traded. From there it dives right into the specific area of penny stocks with a fast but surprisingly thorough set of tutorials. These lessons covered the risks involved, the metrics and formulas to learn and use when researching the performance of the stocks and companies in which you want to invest, and the pitfalls to watch for when trading. The audio book also warns about the many scams that permeate the penny stock marketplace.

I had already done some research into the topic, so the first few chapters were somewhat rudimentary for me. I was also aware of some of the more well-known scams, such as the pump-and-dump schemes. However, the metrics, formulas and ratio calculations were quite helpful. These were the tools I did not have on my first visit to penny stocks. I now have something to work with, a renewed interest in the penny stock arena and a little more confidence in the world of investing.

The second title in the audio book bundle, Options Trading, was a bit more awkward to get through. Also narrated by Peter Bierma, this one dealt with stock options, something I’ve heard a lot of but knew little about. It is clear this one is also written for beginners, but it also tackles an area of the stock market that is more complicated to navigate and understand than simply trading the stocks themselves. I slogged through it, and I learned a lot more from this one, but I was still left somewhat confused. To be fair, my interest in the stock market doesn’t include the specific area of stock and commodity options trading, so I’ll admit I got lost a few times. I do know that knowledge is power. The more I know about how the stock market works, the greater the chances of success with it, so I listened.

In short, Options Trading does a good job of explaining what I consider a more convoluted area of the stock market in relatively simple terms. Had it been a dryly written paperback, I would have dozed off after page 1, but it wasn’t. I can’t say that it was more interesting as an audio book, but it kept the explanations simple with enough real world analogies and examples to keep me from getting totally lost. The only downside to Options Trading is that the topic itself doesn’t work well in an audio book format without a visual element to accompany it. Some of the concepts can be difficult to grasp without a chart, graph or some other illustration to more effectively explain them. Fortunately, this package has it covered.

The audio book bundle includes a supplemental in the form of the Audiobook Companion PDF, a document in pdf format with all the charts, graphs, tables and formulas referenced in both Quick Guides. Although touted in the audio book as helpful but not necessary, the supplement is indeed important, especially when listening to the second audio book.

The pdf file isn’t bundled directly with the audio book. It needs to be downloaded separately, and the audio book includes instructions at the beginning on how to do so. Do this before you get too far into the books. Trust me, you’ll need it.

There is one issue with the audio book bundle. Each illustration in the companion pdf is labled figure 1, figure 2, etc. and the narrator refers the listener to them as the book progresses. The Options Trading book and companion are not in sync from illustrations 24 to the end of the companion. For instance, when the narrator says “please refer to figure 24 in the companion pdf”, the correct reference is figure 28. It isn’t a deal breaker, but makes an already challenging topic to grasp all the more confusing.

In summary, Penny Stock Trading & Options – Trading QuickStart Guides: The Simplified Beginner Guides to Penny Stock Trading & Options Trading is a recommended listen for anyone who wants to get into the stock market for the first time. It’s relatively easy to understand and easy to listen to, even when you are on the go. It also contains some good advice, without being preachy. Before you spend a penny on penny stocks, you may want to consider this audio book. It may save you much more.

Full Disclosure: I received this book for free in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.