Rating: 
Summary: Finally! Personal Finance That's Fun to Read!
Review: I wrote this book because, as a financial advisor, I wanted my clients
to have a comprehensive book on personal
finance that was also fun to read.
That's why my book is filled with cartoons, funny quotes, 130 charts and
graphs and tons of sidebars. I seem to have succeeded: the book is the best-
selling in the field, and it's won two
major awards so far. Who wudda thunk it?
Rating: 
Summary: Very comprehensive, but easy to understand
Review: This book is not only comprehensive, but it is easy to understand. The author used a good dose of humor to illustrate his points on almost every page. He also seperates factual information from his opinion very well. I feel this book is well worth the money and highly recommend it as both an education tool and as a refernce tool in the future
Rating:
Summary: #1 Washington Post Bestseller.
Review: #1 Washington Post Bestseller. *** "Conversational, clever and comprehensive... it is educational and an easy read." -- USA TODAY *** "A practical 'how-to' manual on how to manage finances. The advice is sound, insightful, and can be used by young people just getting started, advanced investors, and everyone in between." -- Jack Kemp *** "Ric is one of the most engaging communicators of our time. He makes financial planning fun." -- Cal Thomas *** Also visit "Ric Edelman's Money University" (keyword: EDELMAN) only on America Online
Rating:
Summary: Overall, an excellent guide to personal finance
Review: Ric's advice is easy to understand and he provides the insights you need to succeed financially. My only criticism would be that some of his suggestions (i.e., "don't buy gas, buy stock in Exxon") go too far and ignore practical realities. There are times that we do have to spend money, as few people are realistically going to walk to work or disconnect their telephone. I'm all for frugality, but sometimes Ric takes it a little too far. Nonetheless, this is an excellent addition to any library in terms of its financial advice; he covers just about every area of finance, and doesn't shy away from telling you exactly what strategy will work best. If you're looking for specific advice and not someone simply explaining the options, this book is among the best out there - and it's an entertaining read as well.
Rating:
Summary: What a good book!
Review: I know that a lot of people are criticizing this book because the other promotes many of his own products. He's salesman, that's undeniable. However, this is precisely what makes the book so good. Edelman "sells" his ideas so thoroughly and so amazingly well that one cannot resist reading.
Rating: 
Summary: A good book... take wit Grain of Salt...
Review: This was a great book, with many solid chapters..... Many chapters that are 'fact-driven' are worth the read... However some chapters have Edelman giving you advice, and many of which will not suit your best interest.. Some of which is carrying a big mortgage.. and staying away from index funds... Please, please do your research... The book should not have been called "Truth" about money ... since many of the chapters have Edelman giving his 'own' opinion.. Remember that your financial standpoint might be very different .. so take his point of view with a grain of salt and do your research before following his advice... However many of the fact driven chapters in this book are indespensable.. and are very much true... but Edelman's advice many not be the 'whole truth'...
Rating:
Summary: Interesting, Motivating, and Understandable
Review: Big book that I finished in less than a week. Great advice, gives you pointers on what to be wary of, and what has time proven strategy.Easy, actually more like FUN to read. And motiviating. This is the best point. If you aren't motivated to act, it wont help you anyhow. The examples and descriptions make the goal of commanding personal finances and "owning your money" realistic. It does this by making you understand the processes. Thats all I can say on this book, read the other reviews, they cover the rest. One more thing though: Why would you take advice from a canadian about a book written about the American financial institution?
Rating:
Summary: Edelman raises the bar on personal finance
Review: I have read and reviewed most of the popular money guides in the past. I was pleasantly surprised by the 3rd edition of The Truth about Money. The book displays excellent accuracy about choices, is very up-to-date (through December 31, 2003), reads easily, and combines practical advice about human behavior with math. If you only read one money guide, I suggest this one. As an example of how well disciplined this book is, the rules about IRAs are very hard for anyone to keep straight. Mr. Edelman provides a blue pullout bind-in insert between pages 484 and 485 that asks you questions about yourself. Then based on your answers, it tells you which IRA choices you should pursue. Each part of the book (Introduction to Financial Planning; Understanding the Capital Markets; Fixed Income Investments; Equities, Packaged Products; The Best Investment Strategies; The Best Financial Strategies; The Best Strategies for Buying, Selling and Owning Homes; Taxes, Taxes, Taxes; Retirement Planning; Insurance; Estate Planning; and How to Choose a Financial Advisor) has a brief quiz at the end to test your knowledge. Mr. Edelman cleverly suggests that you check out the quiz before reading the section to help you focus on reading what you don't already know . . . and to track how well you've learned your lessons. I enjoyed that feature. The first parts about financial markets are excellent for making the material interesting. The examples are cleverly drawn to help you understand how compounding works and why you want to have a more stable portfolio so that you can a good combination of risk and reward. I was very impressed by the practical advice on human emotions. The stories are superb for showing how emotions can lead you astray. One woman did a great job of getting assets out of her estate, but neglected to be sure that her daughter wrote a will. As a result, the assets came back into the woman's estate when the daughter died before the mother with worse tax consequences than if the mother had done to estate tax planning. In other instances, he points out that most people won't have the discipline to execute superior strategies and points out choices that will take advantage of our normal sloth in financial planning. As an attorney and a financial consultant who often advices entrepreneurs on financial matters, I found the explanations of key issues to be succinct, accurate and remarkably complete. I wish I could explain half these points as well. As I finished the book, I realized that the only possible improvement I could think of would be to add a section that takes significant life events (such as taking a first job, getting married, having a baby, changing jobs, getting divorced, losing a parent, and so forth) and listing what actions each person needs to take in such a situation. That would draw together all of the elements of the book in a much more useful way. Assuming that there is a fourth edition (and I'm sure there will be), perhaps Mr. Edelman will add that feature. In the meantime, follow the parts of this advice that fit your personality . . . and get expert advice when it's called for. May all your financial decisions be well-informed ones!
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