Rating: 
Summary: My new favorite investing book
Review: I bought this book thinking that it would be a very basic book that would teach about the world of investing. While the book does a spectacularly wonderful job at covering the basics, I also gained a number of powerful insights that I didn't from reading more "advanced" investing books. The discussion of how the financial markets work was a real eye opener as was the insight that many people who accumulate great wealth do so not through investing in stocks but through small business. With the U.S. stock market at such nose bleed high levels, that alternative makes sense to me! The author also clearly lays out the case against following market gurus predictions.
Rating: 
Summary: Negative Negative Negative
Review: I bought this hoping to get some basic info on investing and all it seemed to reflect on is what not to do. His advice on not buying individual stocks was somewhat insulting. He constantly writes about how no one reading the book could have the expertise to pick stocks like the "pro's" and should only buy mutual funds after years of research. The "years" part is snitty on my behalf but that's the kind of feeling you get from his positions.In summary of what I got out of this, we are all too uninformed to do anything other than pay off our credit cards and then possibly, with correct research, put that extra $50 a month into a mutual fund. Buy "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" before you buy this and THEN see if you still want to purchase it.
Rating: 
Summary: A GOOD BASIC INVESTMENT QUIDE
Review: I enjoyed this book and found the investment information certaintly more practical and useful than what I found in Jane Bryant Quinn's "Make the Most of Your Money", that book, leave alone.I disagree with the author suggesting that you mimic the stocks in top mutual funds though. Just buy the mutual funds. Mutual funds are safer than stocks (check out LU, CPQ, CPN, KM) and the no load funds don't charge a commission. I also recommend ETF's.The author does a good job explaining on how to find and pick a good mutual fund and is definitely a better read than Quinn's book.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book For Beginners
Review: I found the book to be quite helpful, however, there were some details he missed. Also, one concern I had was the overwhelming push toward Vanguard. I appreciate his enthusiasm for Vanguard, but when I contacted Vanguard to setup an account, their customer service was so delayed, unresponsive and disinterested that I chose not to do business with them. I found that a shock considering how much Tyson raves about Vanguard.
Rating:
Summary: a little about everything
Review: I found this book useful because of its amazingly wide coverage of investment strategies (stocks, bonds, T-bills, mutual funds, bank accounts, retirement accounts, real estate, private companies...). It is also quite well written, compared to the other books from the "dummies" series. Nonetheless, the reading of this book did not give me all that I expected. The amount of information on each particular method of investing is not sufficient to use this book as the primary and the only reference, and the author himself occasionally recommends the readers some other books on the subject. On the other hand, the book is too detailed to be a basic simple introduction for people who have no clue what the investing is. While I certainly learned a few things from this book, I do not feel that this book was helpful enough to advance my knowledge far from its starting point. My advice: if you know what sort of investing you prefer, borrow this book from the local library to read a couple of chapters which you need, but buy a more focused and detailed book.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, comprehensive and insightful
Review: I have an MBA and a CPA and I have been underwhelmed by most investing books. This one was great. I was especially impressed at the coverage of the securities markets, real estate and small business issues, where Tyson points out that people can make really high returns (which is a pipe dream in the stock market). I also just read Tyson's Small Business for Dummies which he co-wrote and it's another must read for anyone planning to start a business or running a small business.
Rating:
Summary: Helps you build a solid foundation for further reading
Review: I have been investing in stocks, mutuals funds and real estate for about 8 years without ever reading a book on the topic. I bought this book to learn the nuts and bolts of investing. Despite the fact that I am not a beginner I still found the book informative. For example, Tyson says when a stock plummets don't bale out, buy some more at the lower price. I baled out of amazon.com at $11 and of course I deeply regret it now. I have since learned to hold during the bad times and now I am in profit territory with all of my stocks. He suggests that college savings accounts, such as 529 plans, may be a bad idea because it could hurt your child's chances of getting financial aid. He explains how bonds can go down in value and says instead of buying individual bonds it is better to buy bond mutual funds. I had been wary of bonds before reading this book, now I am thinking about buying a bond fund in the interests of diversification. I didn't agree with Tyson on everything. He is more conservative than I am. I am only in my early 30s, so I believe I am young enough to take some financial risks. Also, he believes that it is a bad idea to pick your own stocks. Yet he also says that if you buy good companies and hold for several years you will always come out ahead as long as you have a diversified portfolio. I see no reason to pay a financial planner (who may put his/her own interests ahead of mine) to do this for me. One thing I really like about the book is that he doesn't just focus on financial instruments. He also discusses investing in both real estate and small businesses. I will be buying a franchise within the next year and I found this information very helpful. Of course, I will need to do further reading on this topic. This is an excellent book that I had a hard time putting down. If you want to learn more about investing I suggest that you start with this book. It will provide a solid foundation, and help you move onto more complicated financial books and magazines.
Rating:
Summary: Really Helpful
Review: I knew very little about this subject and this was a great introduction. It's easy to read with a dash of decent humor.
Rating: 
Summary: Especially relevant today
Review: I preface my review with saying that I am a huge fan of the For Dummies series in general and those written by Eric Tyson in particular. This is another well-written, highly informative book in the series regarding finance and investing. I often conduct seminars on the subject of investing, specifically in retirement accounts, and borrow heavily from the advice and explanations provided in this book. Although the subject matter demands more complexity, and therefore more attention, than the other For Dummies books, it is excellent for those willing to take the extra time. I personally learned a great deal regarding individual stock selection by learning how to understand a company's financial statements. As with any other For Dummies book, you can easily decide how deep you want to go on any given subject. I feel this book is especially relevant in an environment such as today, where many have equated investing with gambling. This statement may be true, if you don't understand the rules. However, this book provides a valuable service in explaining that investing, like anything else in life, will reward you to the extent that you are willing to take responsibility and understand how it works. For those willing to do so, I can not think of a better place to start than this book.
Rating:
Summary: Investing for Dummies - Good book by Tyson
Review: I really liked Personal Finance for Dummies. An easy read and high on content.Investing for Dummies is a great investment book. Also a easy read but packed with worthwhile information.My only argument is the title. This book is not for dummies. Although, if you read it and don't apply it's contents, you may become a dummy.Good book.
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