These books are my investment Bibles. I have read many investment/stock books, and I think that these are by far the best. I suggest reading them in the following order (beginner to most advanced). Hope you like them!
1) The Motley Fool – “You Have More Than You Think”
2) Jim Cramer’s – “Stay Mad For Life”
3) Peter Lynch – “One Up On Wall Street”
4) The Motley Fool – “Million Dollar Portfolio”
5) Derek Sivers – “Anything You Want: 40 Lessons For A New Kind Of Entrepreneur”
I also strongly suggest as a part of a balanced investing diet a subscription to The Motley Fool’s Stock Advisor Service. Their goals are aligned with yours and the Gardner brothers have destroyed the market averages for over a decade. – Monty
Greedy When Fearful 
Thanks for the suggestions Monty! I’m a beginner and was looking for a place to start and get more serious about it.
I’m glad you are going to get more serious about it! These books are incredible and really showed me how much they didn’t teach us at Sara Jane Adams/North Layton Jr. High/Northridge.