If 2008 taught me anything, it's that I'm not nearly as smart as I think I am -- and neither is anyone else.

I suspect my old man has known this for years. After all, he's spent his life with his nose buried in one book after another, trying to learn everything he can about -- well, everything. Right now, I'm wishing I'd followed his lead.

See, if I'd been reading everything I could get my hands on back in 2007 -- including the dire predictions of Nouriel "Dr. Doom" Roubini -- maybe I would have been shorting the likes of American Capital (Nasdaq: ACAS), Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL), and Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM) instead of gloating about near-triple-digit gains in Freeport-McMoRan and Transocean (which are now both down double digits for me).

Time to throw in the towel?
Fat chance. I didn't say I was dumb -- just that I'm not as well-read as I should be. And that's why I've decided to take some of Motley Fool co-founder Tom Gardner's advice to heart.

Recently, at a company-wide meeting, he pointed out that when things are going well, most of us spend our time high-fiving and celebrating -- yet when things go sour, we turn to sulking, worrying, and even panicking.

Meanwhile, when the going gets tough for the toughest, smartest, and most successful people out there, they do something drastically different: They learn from it. And that's what sets them apart.

Follow the leaders
In an effort to learn from this particularly tough stretch of the market, I asked Tom for a copy of the "Grand Master's" reading list he put together for members of our Motley Fool Hidden Gems community.

This list comprises 25 books -- broken down into categories based on level of investment experience -- which Tom has read and reread over the years, and which have helped to form the foundation of his investment philosophy and strategy.

A few highlights:

Elementary School:

Junior High:

High School: Continued...