
Title : The Automatic Millionaire: A Powerful One-Step Plan to Live and Finish Rich
Author : David Bach
Rating : 3 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Won't suit everyone but good for what it is...
The Automatic Millionaire outlines a method of becoming rich through a combination of scrimping and saving - despite its dynamic, exciting title, that really is all there is to it. The "automatic" part is no more than advising the reader to set up standing orders, direct debits or deductions from monthly wages, straight into a savings account (so you're not tempted to spend it). That's it.
The outlined strategy will work IF you start young enough. The examples given assume the aspiring millionaire is in their early 20s - plenty of time to make GBP1m through the power of compound interest - but too late for many people.
My main disappointment with the book is that the strategy outlined is for the long-run (40-50 years) so you'll be about 65 when you make that million. For anyone looking for a faster alternative, this isn't it. If you are (or know someone) who is 15-25 years old, I would recommend you get this book and follow its strategy (about savings in particular, not sure I agree with the pensions advice). Doing so will virtually guarantee financial security upon retirement. But if you want a strategy that delivers faster-returns, look elsewhere.
However, regardless of your age, the book outlines sensible (and widely-known) principles of personal money management so it's valuable for those who have no idea where to begin. But if you're already pretty savvy about "paying yourself first" and watching the pennies, you will get limited value from this book.

Title : The Retirement Sourcebook
Author : Mary Helen Shuford Smith
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : A great resource.
This book, which is aimed at the mid-life adult contemplating retirement, is comprehensive, clearly written, and wonderfully current. I purchased it for the Senior Collection our local library, and I will use it myself as I look ahead to retirement.
Mary Helen and Shuford Smith recognize that successful retirement is a process requiring much more than choosing a pleasant place to live. Lots of decisions, opportunities and challenges accompany the retirement journey, and the authors offer excellent tools for addressing them. Some of the tools are self-evaluative, while others look outward, pointing to other avenues we can explore along the way.
In fact, part of the book's success stems from the fact that it provides sound advice on a variety of topics without getting bogged down on any one subject. Instead, it offers suggestions about other resources--books, documents, organizations, web sites, etc. The web sites, especially, extend our reach in remarkable new ways.
The highlight of this book for me, however, is the way it is written. Every time I pick it up, I feel as if I'm being introduced to yet another member of a circle of wise friends. The authors draw much of their material from interviews with retired people, and nuggets from those conversations are sprinkled liberally throughout the book. These new friends are people who have done it right--or who have learned from a mistake or two-and I mean to pay attention to what they have to say.

Title : The Coming Generational Storm: What You Need to Know About America's Economic Future
Author : Laurence J. Kotlikoff
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Packed With Knowledge!
This volume is infinitely more thoughtful than most of the books that point to the expected insolvency of the Social Security system and pronounce that the fiscal sky is falling. After all, the U.S. economy has weathered plenty of fiscal crises before, but those in power have barely addressed this one. Authors Laurence J. Kotlikoff and Scott Burns ask you to realize that the government is saddling your children with unbearable debt. One by one, they strip away all the supposed answers to the demographic bulge and economic bust that characterize the impending mass retirement of the baby boom generation. They demonstrate that the dwindling number of working-age citizens simply will not be able to support the coming onslaught of retirees. The python has eaten the rabbit, but will it be able to swallow? Kotlikoff's "generational accounting" explains that government is running up charges on our kids' credit cards. And like any bill that doesn't get paid, this one will keep getting bigger. We recommend this nicely crafted book to all responsible citizens.

Title : Moving Mom and Dad!: Why, Where, How, and When to Help Your Parents Relocate (Revised)
Author : Sarah Morse
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Easy to read and cope with the issue of a life-changing move
I am a professional that works in the healthcare world and found the knowledge presented by the authors to be quality. They know this area--seniors and the angst of moving from a home and habits of years. Reading this first and then making the choices will be a much easier path to take for many people. Our healthcare system is sometimes complex and confusing and to have a resource such as this can help clear things up. There were some excellent tools provided along with good advice. I enjoyed reading it and will keep it as a reference when my husband and I have to think about this for our own parents. I gave my mother the book for her birthday--she loved it!

Title : You've Earned It, Don't Lose It: Mistakes You Can't Afford to Make When You Retire
Author : Suze Orman
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Must read for anyone concerned with his/her estate.
Superbly written. Easy to read. Explains, in simple terms, trusts, investments, estate taxes, and things you MUST know as long before you approach retirment. Lays out some things you can't afford not to do. Best $10-$15 you ever spent. Could return payment in thousands.

Title : Rich Dad's Prophecy
Author : Sharon L. Lechter
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Beware 2016! -- Good Financial Education for New Investors
Before commenting on the book's message and argument, let me discuss its communications style. There is a great on-going debate about whether the details that Mr. Kiyosaki presents about himself and his "Rich" and his "Poor" (and biological) Dad are literally true. I don't know, and I don't intend to try to find out. For my purposes, I treat the communications style of this book as a fable to help teach a lesson. I do evaluate the accuracy of the lesson itself in these comments.
If you've read some of the Rich Dad, Poor Dad books before, the main new information in this book is an explanation of why stock market investing with pension money is a dangerous way to grow your "wealth." In addition to being at risk from con men, thieves, incompetents, brokerage houses and market volatility, you face the ticking time bomb of a growing number of U. S. investors being legally required to liquidate their holdings beginning at age 70 1/2. As the Baby Boom generation turns 70 1/2 beginning in 2016, the selling moves from being a trickle into being a torrent that overwhelms new funds into the market at some point . . . followed by an inevitable collapse in stock values. If you want a more detailed, confirming discussion of this issue, the book, What If Boomers Can't Retire?, is a good choice. Harry S. Dent, Jr.'s demographic books also look at this issue.
If you already believe in the messages of the earlier books, you could skip this one . . . especially if you have already decided to avoid or minimize stock-market investments.
If you have read none of the Rich Dad, Poor Dad series, I suggest that you start with Rich Dad, Poor Dad before tackling this one. You'll understand this book better if you do.
The other problem with traditional defined contribution pension investing (usually by 401-k plans), of course, is that a pension fund contribution takes lots of cash out of your pocket (unless the employer matching is very generous -- way more than 2:1) to put some money into the retirement account. So you face the possibility of being much poorer in cash flow while you save for retirement investing and poorer when you cash out of the investment after you pay the taxes on what you take back in what could be smaller values. Imagine if you had had to start withdrawing from your pension fund in 1929. That's one nice illustration that I enjoyed in the book. Possibly, the same could occur after 2016. Who knows?
The second half of the book advises you on how to build a financial ark against hard times by relying on building cash-generating businesses and investments (such as rental properties) after you achieve your financial education (which you didn't learn in school, even if you got a business degree from most schools). You are encouraged to start small and develop various kinds of control over your emotions, advisors and actions. It's all sound advice. My only complaint is that people who are going to start making real estate investments and building cash-generating businesses need a lot more information than is here. I graded the book down one star, accordingly.
The first half of the book could have been shortened up quite a bit, but for those who are unaware of the demographic time bomb's potential effect on their investments, it may help to get the story in small doses.
The surprise for a lot of people in this book is going to be that what they hear every day from best-selling "authorities" about the "right rules" of retirement investing could easily turn out to be wrong for them.
After you absorb and begin to apply these lessons, I suggest that you think about where in your life the conventional wisdom led you down the wrong path. Where else could that be happening to you now?

Title : Get a Life: You Don't Need a Million to Retire Well
Author : Ralph Warner
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : A common sense approach to planning for retirement.
This book should be required reading for people in their 30's and 40's. It emphasizes keeping active, having a wide variety of interests, and developing friends of all ages. It's a good antidote to all those financial planners who try to make you feel guilty about not having "X" millions of dollars invested so they can make commissions off your money. A good gift for middle age yuppies.