There are many books on personal finance and stock market investing which promise to enlighten readers about the nuances of investing and to guide them on the road to riches. But the book, Booms, Busts and Market Cycles, written by Maneesh Dangi and published by penguin is unlike the other books in this genre.

The book presents the brutal reality of stock market investing without couching it in softer tones. It bursts myths in investing such as -- investing for long-term always pays or the power of compounding is infallible. It doesn’t hesitate to tell us that heroes such as Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and Warren Buffett also have feet of clay.

But what sets it apart is the strong philosophical undertone. It stresses on the need to be self-aware before beginning to invest. As Dangi writes, “philosophy is not a retreat from investing reality. It is its highest, most necessary preparation.” It reflects the deep understanding of market and investing that Dangi has gained through his long career as an analyst and fund manager.

Some of the ideas are so deep that they may have to be read twice to be properly understood. He presents his ideas in an interesting format, in a series of essays and conversations, with characters ranging from Buddha and Mahaveer to Thanos of Avengers and Vijay of Agneepath.

Awareness not analysis

The initial part of the book on the philosophy of investing is very interesting and will be quite invaluable to new investors.

“If one looks at investing from the lens of Buddhism, it is about being mindful of the market, aware of every twist and turn and observing every economic data with full attention, without getting emotional about it and not reacting to it like our monkey mind would have us do, but simply assimilating all of it… watching the market as if it were a mindful meditation and then, at times, before we act, acting as if it needed us to pour infinite attention and reason to do so.”

At a time when there is an overload of information and a penchant to react to every small news, slowing down and going into a meditative state that enhances concentration may be the key. As Dangi writes, “Awareness, not analysis, holds the key to the right action.”

An honest take

What stands out in the book is the honesty with which the author has written about stock market investing. Instead of singing paeans about all those who became billionaires through stock markets, he writes that in “default mode, failure is not an accident, it is the norm. This book documents the many ways you can fail. Failure is an integral part of investing. An investor must not only learn from his own failures and mistakes but also from others.”

He asks readers to not obsess with data and stick to rigid structures in investing. “Not all truth screams from spreadsheets. Some whisper in instincts. To invest well is to know when numbers lie.”

He says that it is alright to be unsure and afraid. If being superstitious and praying to God helps, he asks investors to do just that. For, “superstition is both an acknowledgement of the error in the neat equation and a cure for fear of the wilderness. An acceptance that anything can happen… In the streets of medical science it has been given another name, placebo.”

The warning about logical fallacies is especially important at a time when the entire investing fraternity is raving about the potential of AI. The author points out that logical fallacies arise when we take a leap from seemingly sound premises to conclusions that aren’t guaranteed. He warns about the false bridge created by using ‘thus’ in an argument.

Valuable lessons for investors

The book has many valuable lessons for investors. For instance, Dangi writes that while investing in stocks, it is best to accumulate slowly and exit fast as soon as the news turns adverse. However, for fund managers or a macro speculator, the strategy should be to buy fast and sell slowly. This is because when there is panic in the market, prices tend to collapse very quickly, and the moment needs to be seized. But rallies tend to get extended in Indian markets so exits can be gradual. The author also advises leaving some cash, some slack and some humility in the portfolio, given the unpredictable nature of markets, and using stop losses to survive the market. The mantra that has worked best for the author is buying based on valuation and selling based on macros.

The narrative is a little jumpy in parts. But the brief introduction before each essay helps summarise the key ideas. A little more expansion of the ideas put forth in the book would have helped younger readers, who may find it more difficult to absorb the concepts. But overall, the book is a treat for those who have been closely connected to the stock market over the years and have the intellectual honesty to acknowledge its fallacies.

Check the book out on amazon.

Published on November 16, 2025