Rating: 
Summary: One thing NOT to do with your money now: Buy this book..
Review: After owning a couple of the previous works from the Motley Fool (and subsequently throwing them out because the advice is pretty bad) I took a look at the latest edition by borrowing it from someone.First of all I've always found their advice frustrating. On one hand they kind of half-heartedly recommend passive index investing and then they go about telling you about the latest stock-screening get-rich-quick fad. Toss in a couple dubious stock picks along the way and you have nothing but a mixed message. I think this book is a pretty shallow attempt for these two to make up for the really bad advice they gave in their other books over the years. They take several chapters explaining away (in hindsight) how wrong they were, but even in this light they fail to embrace proven strategies and instead go about telling you what stocks to own (Starbucks anyone??). Basically this book is trying to convince you that "This time it's different." They are now trying to mend their ways and show that now their advice is worth listening to and all the stuff they said before was wrong and they're very sorry you lost so much of your money using their strategies. And oh, by the way, we still offer for sale this nifty stock investment newsletter and website for a really great price! I really think the best approach is to concentrate your portfolio on passive index funds compromising various asset classes (domestic, foreign, bonds, real estate) and just rebalancing once a year. This is a very proven strategy that will beat virtually every actively managed portfolio/fund with far less stress (and taxes). Most major pension funds follow an indexing approach for a good reason: It works. For a much better read try out The Coffeehouse Investor, books by Larry Swedroe, Bogle, and William Bernstein. Send these two jesters back to the circus...
Rating: 
Summary: Inexperienced But Some Gold Nuggets
Review: Although the Motley Fools have shown their inexperience, like some of us knew they would, they have also started maturing. Much of their advice is generic enough to be good and hardly any of their advice is "bad" (like much of their competition). Also, there are some gold nuggets later in the program, so it is worth a listen if you are at any transition points in your life.
Rating: 
Summary: Good and timely
Review: Everytime I have a money question The Motley Fool comes forth with an answer that is no-nonsense, easy to act on and either makes or saves me a ton of money.
This book is great because it helps people understand what happened in the last few years to business, the economy, the market. But, it's not like it is just another think tank book. It goes the step further to help you make smart moves now that will pay off. Good info about insurance, CDs, capital gains. Definitely a good, timely read.
Rating: 
Summary: Just What I Needed To Read
Review: Everytime I have a money question The Motley Fool comes forth with an answer that is no-nonsense, easy to act on and either makes or saves me a ton of money.
This book is great because it helps people understand what happened in the last few years to business, the economy, the market. But, it's not like it is just another think tank book. It goes the step further to help you make smart moves now that will pay off. Good info about insurance, CDs, capital gains. Definitely a good, timely read.
Rating:
Summary: One thing NOT to do with your money now: Buy this book..
Review: I didn't want to go to a one because some of it was useful. Their admission on how poorly they performed in the market downturn says it all. So now they're saying, along with countless others, "We have the best hindsight of anybody!", rings absolutely hollow. Very bland humor too. If you've read or heard them before, there's no need for this one. Try to find somebody who has beaten these bad times.
Rating: 
Summary: I've had enough!
Review: I didn't want to go to a one because some of it was useful. Their admission on how poorly they performed in the market downturn says it all. So now they're saying, along with countless others, "We have the best hindsight of anybody!", rings absolutely hollow. Very bland humor too. If you've read or heard them before, there's no need for this one. Try to find somebody who has beaten these bad times.
Rating:
Summary: I've had enough!
Review: I didn't want to go to a one because some of it was useful. Their admission on how poorly they performed in the market downturn says it all. So now they're saying, along with countless others, "We have the best hindsight of anybody!", rings absolutely hollow. Very bland humor too. If you've read or heard them before, there's no need for this one. Try to find somebody who has beaten these bad times.
Rating:
Summary: A Fool Is As a Fool Does
Review: I got the audio version of this (although abridged...I think a book like this will separate the grist from the meat and potatoes of the real information...and since most people need to review and hear stuff 3-4 times to get the information...this is a good way to do it). CD 1 is stories of their past and others to explain the lessons that they have learned... fairly entertaining at times... and needs several listenings to get the full impact (especially about their Fool.com and their foolish expansions of what they were not good at.) At one point they explain a chart that they say is worth the cost of the whole course...if only they or the publisher had thought to include a little packet of the graphics they were refering to in the front cover...but enough listenings to it and you get it.
CD 2 are all their suggestions of what to do with your money and to get yourself financially secure... so if you just want the information and none of the filler (like you can with self help books) then skip to the end (or CD 2 in this case). It helps me to focus on what I want to do with my money and why I am out of debt now but not able to save any (another good book for getting out of debt is "GET OUT OF DEBT, STAY OUT OF DEBT AND LIVE PROSPERSOUSLY"... which I consider a very good book and along with the Fool Brothers has helped me to pay off the credit cards and have the potential for saving and living hapilly.
Cool Runnings to you.
Rating:
Summary: Where's the Beef
Review: I listened to the first tape of this two tape series. I could not beleive what I was hearing. A Harley biker who lost his shirt in the downturn was given the advise that he should have stuck to what he knew: invest in Harley-Davidson stock. Great 20-20 hindsight! I kept listening through the end of the first tape, and could not take any more. Incredible nonsense. With their advise and $... you can buy a capucino.
Rating:
Summary: Good and timely
Review: One reason I always liked the Gardners was because they not only provided smart, commonsense financial advice in a fun, un-boring way, but also because they seem to be honest in a financial world with lots of conflicts of interest. In the case of this book, they take a sometimes brutally honest look at what went right and wrong over the past few years in their world. They contrast "business" lessons they learned from running the Motley Fool (like how important it is to create a business that focuses on profitability) with "investing lessons" they learned from the popping of the tech stock bubble (like how important it is to invest in companies with real profits and sustainable business models). Very interesting. The rest of the book is a number of steps to take today to get your financial life on track, Fool success stories, motivation, Q&As and the like. All very helpful and informative for the novice or more experienced investor. Some of the advice I have seen elsewhere (and is a repetition of earlier good advice), and the book is short, but well worth the money if it helps you get back on track after a horrible couple of years.
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