I don't think books and guides on the topic are very useful unless they are explaining very specific techniques which are still applicable to current market situations. But then you are unlikely to find such information in these "manuals" as it costs pretty dear, way above what you are assumed to pay for it in the bookstores. People who write such guides are most likely writing them for making money off the people who buy their books. Don't you find it utterly ironic that people who are supposed to make piles of money by trading are actually trying to earn by writing about trading? Some books may in fact make an interesting read as autobiographies or just life stories, but it won't boost your trading skills and won't help you trade better.