Market Wizards: The Next Generation by Jack Schwager Review

TL;DR

Market Wizards: The Next Generation is Jack Schwager's latest installment in the franchise that started in 1989. Same format — long, careful interviews with traders who actually have audited track records — applied to a new generation working in modern markets, electronic execution, and post-2008 macro. It holds up to the originals better than expected and is genuinely useful, not just nostalgic.

Why It Matters

The original Market Wizards books shaped a generation of traders because Schwager asked better questions than anyone else and his subjects had real numbers to back their stories. The Next Generation matters because most trading-interview content today is podcast-fluff or self-promotion — Schwager still does the homework and pushes back. The result is honest answers about edge, drawdowns, and how careers actually unfold.

Key Specs

Author: Jack D. Schwager
Pages: ~544
Publisher: Harriman House
Format: hardcover, paperback, ebook, audiobook
Reading time: 15-20 hours
Prerequisites: none, but more rewarding with some trading experience

Pros

New traders, new strategies, new markets
Schwager pushes back on vague claims
Each chapter ends with extracted lessons
Mix of systematic and discretionary subjects
Covers crypto, futures, equities, macro
Track records are real, not anecdotal

Cons

Some interviews drift into autobiography
A few subjects are less impressive than the originals
Lessons section can feel repetitive across chapters
Long — easier to read in pieces than cover-to-cover
Less mythic than the original 1989 book

Who It's For

Working traders, aspiring professionals, and anyone who enjoyed the earlier Market Wizards installments. Useful for both systematic and discretionary readers because Schwager intentionally mixes both. Skip it if you want a how-to manual — this is a profile collection, not a textbook.

How to Use It

Read it one chapter at a time, with your trading journal nearby. After each interview, write down the two or three lessons that map to a flaw in your own process. Re-read the chapters whose subjects most resemble your strategy after a tough drawdown.

How It Compares

Vs. the original Market Wizards (1989): the original is more legendary, this is more current. Vs. Hedge Fund Market Wizards (2012): similar depth, different cast. Vs. trading podcasts: Schwager is more rigorous and edited; podcasts are faster but lighter.