The Short Seller

by Elissa Brent Weissman

Look out Wall Street—Lindy Sachs is about to make some serious cash. A twelve-year-old takes on the stock market in this money-minded middle grade novel.

It all starts when seventh grader Lindy Sachs is granted $100 and access to her father’s online trading account as a way to alleviate her boredom while she’s home sick from school.

Lindy learns something immediately—she is very, very good at e-trading. Her $100 becomes $200. Then $400. And more. With trading talent and access to her parents’ savings, the opportunity to make some real dough is too tempting to pass up. In fact, given how well Lindy’s stocks are doing, it would be a disservice to not invest it all… Right?

Genres: Realistic Fiction, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Fiction

256 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2013

About the author

Elissa Brent Weissman is an award-winning author of novels for young readers. Best known for the popular Nerd Camp series, she and her books have been featured in Entertainment Weekly, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Huffington Post, NPR’s “Here and Now,” and more. Named one of CBS Baltimore’s Best Authors in Maryland, Elissa spent many years in Baltimore City, where she taught creative writing to children, college students, and adults. She currently lives in Christchurch, New Zealand with her husband and their two super cool nerds-in-training.

Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute storyline. Factual market details that gave a great education for the kids.

[NewFranklin School · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a lot of interesting explanations about the stock market, how it works and what the pitfalls of being too involved in trading can be. I thought the story was a little repetitive, but really thought the author did a nice job of writing about a normal family, whose 12 year old gets into hot water. I also really like how the author nailed middle school relationships and how they can change - for better or for worse. The Short Seller is realistic fiction with a topic that is probably new to a lot of kids but definitely made me a little more savvy about how the stock market (and friendships) can go up or down with little notice!

[Ana(stasia) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I found the plot a little unrealistic. I think that Lindy's father should not have let her get involved in the stock market when she is just a little kid. It lead to Lindy making some illegal decisions when she accidentally lost all of her parents' money and she ended up in court. Lindy started feeling left out with Steff and Howe, who never really got along, when she came back from being home sick with Mono. I also found the crowds that started surrounding Lindy because she was so young a little unrealistic, too, but that's just my opinion, and it was still a good book.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book in a very funny way: my dad has been getting books from the library on stocks and trading, and accidentily borrowed this book. I found the cover unusual and picked it up.
I read for two hours straight that night, and then put it down somewhere. It was put in a cupboard and I found it this morning, and, once again, read two hours straight.
Wow. Just wow.
I was so impressed, partially because I hardly ever read books in this kind of genre. And through the book, I actually understood all the stock stuff, so I applaud how well explained it was.
I really liked how intense it got at the end. (I mean, I didn't LIKE it I mean it was actually making me get worried for the main character) REALLY well done.

[Lilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I started this book, I had no idea what the stock market even was. After this page-turner, I think that it is a very interesting business and I am surprised that Lindy's parents gave their twelve-year-old daughter an account. Although Lindy made a big mistake by using her parents' money, I think the way she earned it back was creative, even if she needed to pay off Ms. Hawtorne's bill in the long run. This novel is definitely a great book filled with humor, unexpected twists, and many lessons about friends and family. 👍

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not every day you come across a middle grade book about stock trading! But that's what you get with The Short Seller. It's certainly a creative concept!

Not the strongest pacing, and a weirdly high number of typos, but kids interested in money and/or math may be interested in the details of Lindy's investing. Some parts were better-explained than others, though--a kid who didn't know much about the stock market already might be confused.

[Bookworm4Life · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Lindy has to stay home sick, she learns a lot about her father's online trading account and is rewarded one hundred dollars. Lindy soon learns just how good she is at online trading and her one hundred dollars quickly begins growing. The more Lindy spends, the more her money grows and grows but Lindy soon realizes that stock accounts are more than just a way to earn money and soon she is faced with a case even more troubling than strep

[Bri Barkley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this with my 10 year old daughter who has been getting into the basics of stocks in class. We both loved this book. It was relatable to her everyday life as a kid, but also taught her a lot about the world of stocks. The book portrayed a good lesson for kids not only getting into stocks, but to anything in life- read the boring stuff.

[paige turner]

my theology teacher just explained the stock market to us and it reminded me of this book
the best escapism i read for a while
i don't remember when i read this but i remember planning to get rich

[Salma Traynham · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a very good book. Detailed, and descriptive.

[Hiu Ying]

漂書已記錄。

[Barb Middleton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lindy gets mono and is stuck at home for a month. When her dad asks her to buy some stock for him online because the website is blocked at his work, Lindy becomes interested in how the stock market works. She's struggling with math and when a tutor comes to help her his background as a stockbroker makes her even more interested in the topic. When mono causes her parents to cancel her ice-skating lessons her dad gives her $100 dollars to invest in the stock market. As she makes money on her money the temptation to dip into her parents savings is too great. When the market goes down and she starts to lose money she hatches a plan to get it back. The only problem is the plan is illegal.

Lindy is dealing with changing friendships at school and back-stabbing by other girls. She moves on to other friends accepting the changes and the author captures the fickleness of middle school quite well. Lindy and her sister fight and are best friends. The two are loyal to each other when it counts and bicker over dumb things just like siblings do all the time. Already the story seems a bit outdated with the electronic equipment and TV show names. The librarian teaching the kids about what a mouse was on a computer was dumb. We haven't done that in years and the libraries have turned to mobile technology. That derogatory poke irked me but that's just because I'm a librarian.

I'm not a big fan of math or the stock market but the author did a nice job mixing the facts up with the drama of Lindy's friendships. When I started to glaze she usually shifted gears to a different topic. Enough information was given to understand what was illegal with short selling stocks without overwhelming the reader with stockbroker jargon. The courtroom drama was well-painted and a nice link between Lindy having to stand up for her friends and herself at the end of the story.

This book reminds me a little of "Cardturner" by Louis Sachar with its unique topic. While this isn't about bridge, I can't say I've ever read a book about the stock market. This doesn't go into great depth on stocks and for that I am grateful, but some might find the topic somewhat slow. I thought she mixed the facts and friendships enough to keep the pace moving along and I think I can find some of my math-loving students who would find it a fun read.

[Cindy Hudson · Rating 4 out of 5]

When 12-year-old Lindy comes down with mono she’s too tired to think of doing anything but sleep. Soon she’s feeling better even though she’s still stuck at home for a while. To help her pass the time, her parents give her $100 and access to their brokerage account, so she can experiment with buying and selling stocks.

Lindy is fascinated by the stock market, and before long she’s taught herself a lot of the ins and outs of trading shares. As a bonus, math is fun for her for the first time. But she learns that the stock market can go up and down on a whim, and what looks like gains and losses on paper can have real consequences.

The Short Seller by Elissa Brent Weissman takes a look at investing in more ways that one. Lindy can’t understand why her parents are always restricting what she can buy when it’s obvious they have a lot of money. She’s not allowed to have a cell phone yet, or go to concerts without parents or buy a lot of clothes at the mall. She doesn’t understand why anyone would want to keep money growing in an account over a long period of time when it could be taken out and spent on something fun in the short term.

At the same time she’s learning about trading stocks, Lindy is also dealing with strains on the relationship she has with her two best friends, who have become close while she’s been out sick. Through it all she learns about the true meaning of friendship, solidarity between sisters, and the importance of paying attention to details. Girls between the ages of 9 and 12 should appreciate the issues Lindy faces.

The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this recently as I want to try to sample of a few of the books my son is reading as a middle grade reader now. I think this is a good book for middle grade ages. It is nice to see something a little different that isn't just fantasy and dragons or some sort of kid mystery. This story revolves around a girl who starts to pick up aspects of stock trading from her father when she has to stay home sick from school for an extended period. I did like that it gave the reader a little education about what can happen when you buy/sell stock and even the more difficult concept of short selling. For any parents wondering if there is questionable content, I would say it is pretty clean. I don't recall any swearing. There is a very mild middle school crush triangle going on between three friends, but there is no kissing, etc. The main characters older sister might comment that some boy is cute or things like that. There is a little tension between friends briefly and there is the idea that the main character does some stock transactions on her dad's account without telling him and causes some potential financial and even legal trouble. So you may want to discuss that idea if your kid read's it. But I think it is a good book to introduce you kid to stocks and business a little as they will have to learn more about that as they grow up. I enjoyed for a middle grade book and my 10-year old soon liked it too.

[Sandra Stiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

My love of this author’s work started with the book “Standing for Socks”. I read this when I was a Middle Grades judge for Cybils in 2009. I have read her Nerd Camp Books and loved them as well. I had no thoughts of not liking this book. As I thought, I loved it. Lindy Sachs, the main character of the book is a very lovable character. Lindy is like so many people, including myself, who struggled with math in school. When she comes down with mononucleosis and must stay home from school she is bored. Her parents hire a tutor for her so she doesn’t get further behind in her least favorite subject. She does a favor for her dad by helping him purchase some stock, since he can’t access the site from work. As he explains it to her she becomes interested enough that he fronts her one hundred dollars to buy and sell stock on her own. She becomes even more interested when she learns her new tutor used to be a trader. They have that in common. She begins to understand math better the more she works the market. Like others who have found that a little bit of money isn’t enough, Linday falls into that trap. One wrong move in the stock market, one bad and illegal decision has both her and her father in hot water.

I really can’t wait for my students to get their hands on this book. It is fun, funny, and full of enough adventure to keep you on the edge of your seat reading until the end. Once again I highly recommend this book to young and old alike.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

How is a seventh grader stuck at home with mono supposed to pass the time? With one-hundred dollars and access to her dad’s online account, Lindy Sachs is spending her days learning the ins and outs of day trading on the stock market. What Lindy discovers is that she is very good at e-trading. One-hundred dollars quickly multiplies to two-hundred dollars and it keeps going up. Then Lindy makes a big mistake, one that could cost her family everything. It will take all of Lindy’s stock market know-how to try and solve this problem.

Lindy is a fun character that students can easily relate to. Not being a stock market genius (or even amateur!) I found myself pleasantly surprised with how much I learned about the stock market. Younger readers might get a little bored, but I certainly enjoyed it.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Short Seller kept me reading until the end. I have never been a day trade with stocks or tried to short sell stocks. I kept reading to know how it was going to turn out. I totally believe a 7th grader like Lindy could use the computer to buy and sell stocks. I also like the realistic relationships she had with her classmates after being absent with mono. With all the humor, a good lesson is learned: people interested in buying and selling stocks would learn the most important thing is to educate yourself before you buy. I won this book free from Goodreads.com. Thank you Goodreads for this book.

[AtomicBiker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this through a Goodreads First Reads giveaway last year. Although it's aimed at young adults, I thought it only fair I read it myself.

It follows the story of 12 year old Lindy Sachs who becomes interested in stock trading online whilst off sick from school. I thought it had a good mix of technical knowledge written in language the target reader would understand whilst remaining a good entertaining read. I won't reveal the storyline or ending here.

I'm probably unlikely to read more of this authors work as I'm a little older than the intended audience. That being said, I would have been happy to read books such as this when I was that age.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seventh grader Lindy Sachs, who is home sick with mononucleosis, is bored, bored, bored until her dad gives her a hundred dollars and an online trading account. Lindy isn't great in math at school—in fact, she's just been demoted to the regular class from advanced math (woe!), and she's seeing a tutor on top of it all—but the hands-on application of math to the stock market makes sense, and something clicks…and she's shockingly good, it turns out, at the whole day-trader thing. Too good, in fact. Full review on Finding Wonderland: http://writingya.blogspot.com/2013/05...

[Camille Tesch · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a novel written for children to explain how the stock market works, short selling, and the Securities and Exchange Commission. The main character is a 12-year-old girl named Lindy, who starts day trading stocks with $100 when she is sick with mono. She gets caught up in the excitement of the stock market and making money, and gets in over her head.

I thought the book seemed formulaic, and a cover to explain how stocks work. That's also what I liked about it. I think the book is a great way to introduce kids to the stock market. It makes me want to take $100 and try a little day trading myself.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really did not like the way the author made day trading seem so fun and even when you get into trouble, you can get out of it. I know she was trying to explain day trading and stock market in a way that kids can understand but I thought it was not a responsible way to describe it, especially the father giving his daughter all his log in information and access to his trading account. I had already bought the book for my library because I loved Nerd Camp and Nerd Camp 2.0. I wish I had not purchased it. I think I will have to talk to kids about the book before having them read it so they can understand how really unacceptable what the father and daughter did with respect to trading was.

[Renee Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Day trading isn't your usual topic for this age range, but it makes for a captivating real-world adventure. There's a little bit of info-dumping on how stock markets and their regulations work, but it's not too distracting. My main complaint is that the middle-school friendship subplot doesn't quite gel with the day trading main plot as well as I would have liked, even though it's certainly realistic. A fun, quick read, and something different from the usual topics for this age range.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just thought this was cute! It does a great job of explaining the stock market without being heavily didactic (though I confess, I still don't really understand short selling), and it doesn't get bogged down in details. I especially loved the character of the dad. I will definitely seek out some of her other books.

[Sara-Zoe Patterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gave me so much anxiety I had to stay up really late to finish it. Not because it's so compelling and so amazing but because the main character was going to get in big big trouble. And I hate getting in trouble I could feel her pain. This book will find a niche audience I think, it's about an obscure topic for kids - stock trading - it's okay.

[Mr. Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm sure not all kids will like this one but it does deal with the stock market in a way that makes it easier to understand. Also, the main character's problems are very easy to relate - making a mistake and trying to fix it before her parents find out.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well developed and realistic-ish plot. I was genuinely afraid for Lindy and what would happen to her for investing so much of her parents' money. However, the parts about how the stock market works made my eyes glaze over just a bit...don't know how many kids would stick with this one.

[Catharine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was skeptical that short selling could make a good book for intermediate readers, but I thought it really worked for this age group. I think students enjoy imaging what they might do themselves if they had the opportunity to buy and sell stocks themselves.

[Erica (The Literary Apothecary) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Day trading, $100, and a 12-year old. Little Melinda studied every book on stock trading her grandmother sent her. But, she didn't read the boring parts. Find out what happens when you don't read everything!

[Anna Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book even though I know NOTHING about stocks. It doesn’t matter because it is really good at explaining everything that a seventh grader wouldn’t understand.

[Hoover Public Library Kids and Teens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy a Weissman book. And this one does such a good job of portraying the ups-and-downs of middle school friendships as well as the stock market.