Easy-to-digest books on finance for those of us who weren’t born with a trust fund and a butler.
It’s a timeless paradox: Everyone wants to be better at saving money, and yet the prospect of reading super boring books that tell you how to do it, is enough to make you want to gouge your eyes out. (On the upside, you’ll no longer need to pay for Lasik, so there’s that.)
But before you do anything drastic, know that while the finance industry may seem like it’s exclusively populated by Bret Easton Ellis characters, recent years have seen a growing movement of sound, accessible advice aimed at those of us who don’thave a trust fund and haven’t the first clue as to what an annuity is.
Financial knowledge is within reach for everyone—yes, even you, with the student loan debt that makes you want to cry and a bad Postmates habit to boot.
Rather than resign yourself to a continued existence of financial irresponsibility, check out these six books that will not only give you the accessible, insightful finance advice you need, but they’ll keep you engaged while you’re at it:
Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By And Get Your Financial Life Together by Erin Lowry
I, for one, love a title that makes me feel a tiny bit insulted. Who are you calling “broke” and “scraping by?” OK fine, that’s me. Finance expert Erin Lowry brings the opposite of dry money talk, with this hashtag-laden book dipped in millennial-speak.
She’ll help you get your act together when it comes to your “money situation” *does air quotes* with insights on how to tamper down that student debt, how to talk to your partner about finances without making it awkward, and how to approach even small things, like dealing with friend outings where not everyone is partaking equally, but is expected to chip in equally.
Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties by Beth Kobliner
Finance journalist Beth Kobliner has your back. She knows many of us came of age during the worst economic crisis in recent history, and that we’re facing monumental student debt and rent prices.
Written in a frank, accessible, no-nonsense style, Kobliner takes the financial concerns of millennials seriously where many are tempted to write them off, and that alone is a good place to start a conversation. Now in its fourth edition, it’s no wonder this New York Times Bestsellerhas had so much staying power.
Heed Kobliner’s advice in order to climb your way out of debt and start forming healthy money habits that will shape the rest of your life.
The Index Card: Why Personal Finance Doesn’t Have To Be Complicated by Helaine Olen and Harold Pollack
If you ever thought that fiscally responsible types are that way because they meticulously catalog their expenses on an Excel spreadsheet, well, that’s only partly true.
University of Chicago professor Harold Pollack and finance journalist Helaine Olen offer up a compelling alternative, asserting that everything you need to know about managing your personal finances can fit on a four-by-six-inch index card. The book takes a dive into the 10 rules that fit on said index card, and how you can implement more simplicity into a topic that is often overcomplicated.
Money Honey: A Simple 7-Step Guide For Getting Your Financial $hit Together by Rachel Richards
Another thing millennials love, in addition to having people take their financial concerns seriously? Pieces of content that contain steps.What seems insurmountable can suddenly feel entirely digestible once it’s broken down into pieces. Such is the case with money, and the way financial advisor Rachel Richards guides her readers through loan consolidation, investing and how to spread your money over paying off debt, building a savings account, and setting aside money for retirement.
How To Manage Your Money When You Don’t Have Any by Erik Wecks
The prevailing strain of finance books are aimed at convincing readers that they, too, can afford a Rolls Royce one day, if only they heed the advice contained therein. But Erik Wecks is calling BS, with a book specifically aimed at those who live paycheck to paycheck and are reluctant to even consider setting up a budget, because there’s simply not enough to go around.
Wecks—whom the jacket copy describes as as “financial expert who hasn’t struck it rich”—offers up practical advice for everyday decisions when it comes to money, that can eventually lead to greater stability down the road.
Simple Money by Tim Maurer
Putting the “personal” in personal finance, financial advisor Tim Maurer takes a crack at the impenetrable jargon surrounding money matters and connects it to the decisions that affect you and your loved ones.
Put together in actionable, accessible advice, Maurer will break things down in a way that’ll make you think, “Huh. Maybe I can retire comfortably one day without winning the lotto.”
