It's not hard to understand why options trading continues to grow in popularity, especially among sophisticated investors with large stock portfolios. Options are a cheaper and therefore, inherently less risky way of speculating on the price movements of stocks or other under-lying goods, yet, due to their volatility, they provide more price action per dollar than do stocks. And, when traded in conjunction with stock portfolios, options can significantly enhance an investor's ability to manipulate the risk and return characteristics of their entire investment. Yet, despite these and other advantages of options, many investors shy away from this highly lucrative type of speculation because of the seeming impenetrability of many of its underlying concepts and technical principles.

This book is a contrarian investor's ultimate guide. Written by a portfolio manager and business reporter who know their stuff, this is advice to take to heart. Whether a beginner or highly experienced investor, everyone can learn something valuable from this tremendous resource. It is also an excellent introduction to anyone interested in the concept of contrarian investing. All aspects are covered including a history of market manias, factors which drive the markets, an individual investor psychological evaluation and a series of formulas in order to calculate what stocks might be ideal contrarian plays. This book belongs on every investor's bookshelf, especially anyone seeking to make profits from "the crowd's" mistakes. It deserves 100 stars.