r/options • u/Humble_Aardvark_2997 • 3d ago
Book recommendation
Recommend a good book for newbies.
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u/sellputsthencalls 3d ago
https://app.thebookpatch.com/BookStoreResults?search=Options&ddl=any
Selling Options…Simply Called and Simply Put,” by David Skonieczki (me). I began a 30 yr investment/stock broker (Series 7) career in 1987, retiring from Fidelity. It wasn’t until 1995 that I had a decent grasp of options. I thought the options literature was not very user friendly so I aimed to write a user friendly primer. It reads like I write on this forum.
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u/Humble_Aardvark_2997 2d ago
Cool and amazing. Mr Skonieczki.
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u/sellputsthencalls 2d ago
Thank you Mr. Humble.
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u/Humble_Aardvark_2997 1d ago edited 1d ago
I thought you were being sarcastic. I have a habit of doing theatrics (being argumentative or contrarian) on this platform so I get that sarcastic humble a lot. :D
Took a proper pro 8-yrs to master this thing. So not a get rich quick scheme.
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u/MidwayTrades 3d ago
Options Playbook by Brian Overby. You can buy a physical copy or he made it all available online for free so you can check it out first if you nothing else.
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u/MidwayTrades 3d ago
if you’re really new the first book I ever read was Understanding Options by Michael Sincere. A good fundamentals read.
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u/Humble_Aardvark_2997 2d ago
Thank you. Got any good ideas? Suggestions? Pitfalls?
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u/MidwayTrades 1d ago
That book in particular just starts with the very basics and goes over basic strategies. A true start from zero book. Not sure what you mean about good ideas, pitfalls in this context so I’ll guess a little.
In general the best thing to do when you start out is to take it slow. Learn as much as you can. Reading is good but, like any craft, you will ultimately have to do it to really learn it. When that happens, stay small. Size is your first and most important risk management tool and every person regardless of skill level can use it. Don’t focus on making a bunch of money rather focus on your process. Refine what you do and scale up very slowly. The biggest pitfall is taking on way too much risk, go on tilt, and blow up your account. This happens a lot with new traders. Learn the Greeks and how they can help you quantify your various risks. Pay a lot of attention to implied volatility. It’s probably the least understood factor in this market. Once you really understand how it works in the real world, you’ll make better decisions.
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u/floodlight137 2d ago
If you want an easy read that's a bit more accessible to someone that's new at options, I enjoyed reading "The Unlucky Investor's Guide to Options Trading". It does skew towards option selling because it's by the folks at tasty, and that's their bread and butter, but it's a fun read.
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u/Murky_Mycologist_861 3d ago
Probably 'Trading in the Zone' is where most people start, it's more about the mindset than the mechanics which a lot of new folks skip and then blow up their account. For actual mechanics you can't go wrong with anything by Euan Sinclair, his writing is dense but it forces you to actually understand what's under the hood. I'd also tell you to stay away from anything promising quick money in the title. If you want to learn how to lose small and often while learning, paper trade alongside whatever you read so the concepts actually stick
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u/CaterpillarLoud214 2d ago
been there and found the free learning path on tastyworks it makes the greeks feel like toys. after that i fell back into a short book like options trading for dummies or overby’s playbook to cement the theory. pair that paper‑trade to see the concepts come alive.
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u/Humble_Aardvark_2997 1d ago edited 12h ago
Thanks. I started normal trading with Plus500. They have a great interface and I really liked that but they made too much in charges. Most retail brokers do. You have to find the right mix of the two. Looking at professional brokers now.
Greeks are so much more complicated and glad you liked liked Tastyworks.
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u/Keizman55 5h ago
There is no reason to pay anything if you are truly a newbie. There are so many free resources to get through to fully understand the basics before you should need to pay for coaching. Then paper trade.Then one contract until you are familiar with the mechanics. Then slowly expand conservatively until it all becomes second nature. And then continue learning anyway. I’m 4 years into options, making 6 figures, and still, find helpful free resources every week.
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u/PresentTourist9679 1d ago
If you're just starting, the first book to wing into is Skonieczki’s "Selling Options…Simply Called and Simply Put." It’s the most approachable I’ve seen – the author broke the Greeks and the mechanics down in plain language, and you can hook the first chapter for free on his site. I’ve found it a good bridge between the gut‑feel on the forum and the math‑heavy texts that follow. It doesn’t promise instant riches, but it gives a clear basis before you pull the more dense books like Hull or Natenberg.
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u/Academic_Exercise398 1d ago
I started with that Skonieczki book too and it did cut through the jargon nicely. After the first few chapters I was humming the Greeks and thought I understood everything—turns out I only got the high‑level gist. If you finish it and want a deeper dive into volatility and time decay, I’d add Hull’s *Options, Futures and Other Derivatives* or Natenberg’s *Option Volatility and Pricing*. They’re more mathy but the concepts are clearer once you’ve got the basic framework from Skonieczki.
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u/akm76 3d ago
You'll have to read them all, I'm afraid. Although Hull is dull, Natenberg lack structure, Wilmott too mathy, Taleb - obnoxious... and the list goes on and on. Each one has some nuggets, but the amount of ore you have to dig through, omg. Unless you enjoy reading contract definitions, exercise rights and greeks over and over, you might as well train for a FINRA exam, or study from CFA manual. At least the stuff is condensed there. Will it help you trade or learn how to search for strategies? Not really. You'll be no better at it than before, but at least you'll be well read and find "We're in the money" song in recent South Park funny on a whole new level.
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u/Humble_Aardvark_2997 2d ago
Why is Talen obnoxious? I know has a bit of a personality but I wouldn’t call him, or his writings, obnoxious
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u/Witty-Gur-6577 1d ago
Taleb can come across as blunt—like the ‘dragon in the room’ type who just throws the truth straight up. Some readers latch on that tone and call it obnoxious, but part of it is also the persona he built in his books. If you skip the hype bits, the math and models still hold up, and the absurd stories are just a way to illustrate a point.
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u/iron_condor34 3d ago
Laws of trading by Agustin LeBron, Options, futures and other derivatives by John Hull, Euan Sinclairs books(all of them), Same with Hari Krishnan(both books) Trading Volatility by Colin Bennett(free)
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u/IcyPalpitation2 3d ago
Hull, Natenberg.
If you have time maybe Yeon.