Liz Pulliam Weston

I read debt and finance books for the same reasons people watch reality TV--to be entertained by my anger. As the title suggests, this volume purportedly teaches readers how to deal with their debt, but the main lesson I took away from reading it is how broken the modern economy is. Or, to put it bluntly, if you're not in the 1%, you're royally effed.

This is evident in the way Weston has to tie herself into knots to look like she's offering tenable solutions to anyone. It explains why, in the space of 2.5 pages, she first tells parents they can't afford to go into debt to help their children pay for college, so should let their kids take out the loans to pay for it themselves; then tells young people they can't afford to take on the loans necessary to pay for college, so should either have their parents help them or not go to school, period; then tells people that they MUST go to college if they ever hope to have a job that offers the hope of any sort of financial future at all. It explains why she first warns against credit card debt and the astronomical interest rates it entails (average 23% APR at the book's writing) before repeatedly advocating that people in financial straits use credit cards to pay for mortgages, transportation, healthcare and living expenses. It explains the tragicomic passage where she chastises someone for paying off his student loans early because it "limited his options" on the types of debt he could default on after he lost his job. (The implicit--and correct--assumption here being that the majority of people lucky enough to have jobs are still living hand to mouth.) It explains her ridiculous suggestion--repeated again and again--that people raise the money to help pay down their debt by "holding a yard sale," as if the $4 they'll get for that old coffee table will somehow make a dent in the tens of thousands they likely owe on housing, healthcare, and student loan debt.

Granted, Weston has a thankless task in trying to offer solutions to people on how to lower their debt burden in a society in which it's impossible to find shelter, food, an education, or a job without taking on thousands and thousands of dollars of debt to begin with. It's just a shame that she refuses to acknowledge how it's impossible to "live within your means" in the current system, where the majority can't afford to pay for anything--be it a semester at college or a visit to the doctor--without going into debt.… (mere)

Easy Money , a book by a woman, for women who like Vanguard (actually good for men & women but all references are to women in the book and Vanguard is heavily promoted)

Easy Money is an easy read that is very informative. It is written from a conservative investors approach. This book is a very useful tool for someone who knows nothing about investing. It lays the ground work for the first phone call you’ll make to Vanguard, because when all is said and done, they will help you much more than reading this book.

Easy Money is the very first step an investor should take no matter which level they are at because it lays the groundwork down in a very understandable format on or about the high school reading level. This read is by no means exciting and may take you several days to read it because you will want to put it down and digest what you just read. One should read this book twice if their financial future is in doubt.

Several topics that are discussed in length include:

Retirement
Everyday investing
Insurance
Homeownership
Wills
College saving
Day to day frugality

The author is obviously well versed in investing and investment strategy but seems to lack any sense of adventure. She is a true conservative in her investment strategy which will serve 99.9% of the readers of this book.

On a scale of 1-10 I give this book a 2 for overall enjoyment but I give this book a 9 in the must read category for financial security.… (mere)