Wondering what to do with all the bookstore gift cards you received over the holidays? Consider getting some investing-related reads. While there are plenty of financial-focused tomes out there, only a few are worth poring over. To help you decide what book to buy, we present our investing reading list.

The Intelligent Investor

Benjamin Graham

Ben Graham was a legendary American investor who pioneered value investing. His book, first published in 1934, has been read by countless investors, including Warren Buffett, who said it was the best investing book he'd ever read. After digging into this you should have an idea on how to pick stocks cheap and you'll understand many basics of investing.

The Billion Dollar Mistake

Stephen L. Weiss

The best lessons come from failure, so it's only natural that someone would mine the mistakes of big investors to see where they went wrong. Wall Street veteran Stephen Weiss talks about 11 billionaires and how one error caused each of them to lose $1 billion or more. While you may not be investing as much money as the people profiled in the book, you'll still be able to learn from their mistakes.

The Wealthy Barber

David Chilton

Although it was published in 1989, The Wealthy Barber -- arguably the top Canadian personal finance book ever -- is still a favourite among people concerned about their money. The book is less about investing and more about personal finance and savings, but Chilton does offer tips on how to use RRSPs. He also delves into life insurance, buying a home, paying tax and more. If you've already read this, check out his new book,The Wealthy Barber Returns.

A Random Walk Down Wall Street

Burton Malkiel

If you're looking for a solid investing primer, there may be no better book than this one. Malkiel, an American economist, talks about stocks, bonds and mutual funds and strategies behind both technical and fundamental analysis. He also explains why mutual funds have trouble beating the market and why owning index funds might be a better way to go.

The Naked Investor

John Lawrence Reynolds

In this page turner, John Lawrence Reynolds looks at the seedier side of the Canadian investment industry. He talks to real people -- who had hoped to retire comfortably -- about how they were burned by their financial professionals. The book talks about the greed that permeates the investment industry and how everyone wants to make a buck for themselves, instead of their clients.

After you're done with these, check out Amazon's list of investing books for more ideas. The more financial books you read, the better the investor you'll become.

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