Money books that make great gifts |
| By Vicki Gerson
• Bankrate.com |
|
Walk into any bookstore or search online, and it's easy to be overwhelmed by the number of financial books that claim to
have all the answers to your money questions. How do you know which book is right for what you want to know?
Bankrate has compiled a list of some of the best
books and workbooks to sharpen one's financial IQ during every stage
of a person's life. Our list was compiled by four Certified Financial
Planners, or CFPs, from across the country: Karen L. DeRose of DeRose
& Associates in Chicago; Bonnie A. Hughes of A&H Financial Planning
and Education Inc. in Kennesaw, Ga.; Raymond Benton of Lincoln Financial
Advisors in Denver; and David B. Yeske, the founding principal of
Yeske Buie, a wealth management firm in San Francisco.
Before you purchase a book this holiday season for someone on your gift list -- or even for yourself -- consider these.
 |
| Reading about riches |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Children ages 6 to 11
Money Savvy Pig by Susan Beacham.
This is not a book per se, but rather a small plastic pig that resembles a traditional piggy
bank with a twist -- instead of one slot, there are four marked "save," "spend," "donate" and "invest."
You can also purchase a workbook with the Money Savvy
Pig that allows children to color the pages while they learn important
concepts such as interest on savings, goal-setting, smart spending,
long-term investing and entrepreneurship.
"The Money Savvy Pig is the perfect introduction
to personal finance," says DeRose, who has used this toy to teach
personal finance to young children at schools and in workplaces
on national Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day.
"The Kids Allowance Book" by
Amy Nathan and Debbie Palen. This charming book tells children
how to get an allowance and how to save and spend it wisely. The
book includes responses of 166 kids to questions about the pros
and cons of allowances.
Preteens and teens
"Personal Management" by Brent Neiser.
Yeske believes educators too often overlook personal finance basics when teaching life lessons
to preteens and teens.
"As a result of the absence of financial education in our schools, young people with little or no income wind up in debt," Yeske says.
He recommends "Personal Management" as an antidote to this oversight. This booklet has been used for many years to help Boy Scouts
earn their "personal management" merit badge. However, you don't have to be a Boy Scout to benefit from the practical wisdom found here.
Yeske says the booklet helps young people learn about "saving, spending and investing as well as how to create a budget, use credit
and track their spending."
"Cash Cache" by Susan Beacham.
This personal finance organizer is intended to help teens
learn the basics of personal finance: saving, investing, credit
cards, earning money, paying taxes, spending and donating. It also
includes basic information on the stock market, setting goals, budgeting
and bank accounts.
Teens can learn basic personal finance lingo by using the glossary of financial terms.
|
