The best value-investing books to start with
Start with The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham. The foundational text. Buffett calls it 'by far the best book about investing ever written.'
The 8 books, in reading order
Tap a title to jump to it below.
| # | Book | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Intelligent Investor | Benjamin Graham |
| 2 | Security Analysis | Benjamin Graham & David Dodd |
| 3 | Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits | Philip A. Fisher |
| 4 | The Little Book of Common Sense Investing | John C. Bogle |
| 5 | The Little Book of Value Investing | Christopher H. Browne |
| 6 | Value Investing: From Graham to Buffett and Beyond | Bruce C. N. Greenwald |
| 7 | The Warren Buffett Way | Robert G. Hagstrom |
| 8 | Contrarian Investment Strategies | David Dreman |
Every serious value investor starts in the same place: a handful of books that teach what a business is worth, why price and value diverge, and how to keep your head when the market loses its. This is that shelf — the foundations, ordered from the first book to read to the ones that deepen it.
If you only read one, make it The Intelligent Investor — the book Warren Buffett calls the best ever written on investing. From there, Security Analysis shows you how to actually read a filing, Fisher and Greenwald teach you to judge business quality, and Bogle keeps you honest about costs. Together they are the grammar behind every 13F on this site.
Most of these have strong audiobook editions, and a free Audible trial covers many of them — a low-friction way to get through the shelf on a commute.
Start a free 30-day Audible trialNew Audible members only · cancel anytime · many titles included with membership.
More reading lists
This is one shelf of the full value investor's reading list. The others:
Common questions
What is the best value investing book to start with?
Start with The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham. The foundational text. Buffett calls it 'by far the best book about investing ever written.' Then read Security Analysis and Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits.
Which books are on this list, and in what order?
8 books, in the order we'd read them — see the table at the top of this page. The full reading list has 5 more topics.
Does HoldLens earn money from these book links?
Yes. The book links go to Amazon, and as an Amazon Associate HoldLens earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Books are chosen on merit, never paid placements.
Amazon affiliate links — as an Amazon Associate, HoldLens earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you. These are books we genuinely recommend, chosen on merit, never paid placements. Nothing here is investment advice — always do your own research.