I've liked all David Bach's books. This one was probably my least favorite, because it focused a lot on worksheets and dreambuilding, instead of the way to get the money set up. But overall, it was a good book and I'm glad I read it.

This book does a good job of explaining the basics.

This book was an OK introduction to personal finance. I found that there was a 60% of common sense advice, which doesn't change over time. But the rest was outdated since it was written before the 2008 recession (for example, the author states some percentages that are impossible to attain today with the current interest rates). It is also clearly a book written for americans with some words changed for the "canadian edition".
I suggest reading a more recent book on investing and/or personal finance, written by a Canadian author instead of this one.

This book really made a huge difference in how Jason and I manager our finances. It's all about creating a financial plan that's consistent with your top values (rather than just the "stuff" you want), and then how to work together to achieve your goals. It also doesn't make you feel like a loser if your finances are screwed up. The basic message is that it's never too late to get your finances in order!!

This book was written in 2001. As such, I think SOME of the specific investment advice might be a bit off given the state of the economy. However, there is lots of good information here to take away.

I appreciate the emphasis on creating a relationship between money management and one's core values. Identifying those core values and standing for them even when they don't align with ideas forwarded in media culture can be a challenge. However, according to Bach, doing so is key to creating the smart and healthy relationship with money that will allow one to create the life they want for themselves.

I also appreciated the emphasis on planning and patience in building wealth. As a high school teacher, I see the perception of wealth in the eyes of my students. The belief that rich is something that happens quickly or not at all is common. Even as an adult, it's hard to avoid the hope for a financial windfall of some sort. However, the reality is that wealth is grown over years; and it takes discipline and planning to make it happen. This is the key component of Bach's advice.

I felt like I managed my finances well before I got married, but the way my husband managed his finances was totally different, and we had a tough time figuring out how to merge our methods and I always felt behind the ball. It was also hard to find a financial planning guide for couples, since so much of the literature is focused on personal finances. This book was so practical, approachable, encouraging, and thorough. I love his writing style and I really appreciated his philosophy for financial planning. I feel much more confident about what I need to do now to feel more aware of and on top of our finances and I feel much more hopeful about sharing our financial goals and management as a team!

This book isn't about a gimmick, as the title would suggest. It's a good basic book about personal financial health and it assists in prioritizing personal investments and in executing the tasks related to getting your finances in order.

I started off really enjoying this book and even though I was given similar information from other similar reads, I was into it. Then I read a straight told lie. Now, this book is 16 years old so either circumstances have changed, or more likely, this information is blatantly incorrect. Additionally it did not finish strong. Bach started using seemingly sexist pronouns to describe people that are “bad at finance.” Lastly, I skimmed the extremely unrealistic last chapter because I had just read 3 previous that lies to me. I was over it.

Edit: it also gave me zero information about financing with a partner. (The reason I wanted to read it/how it’s advertised)

A very good book to help couples begin to talk about money and dreams. Is it possible to do all 9 steps? Perhaps, but even if it opens the door to conversation and basic living will/life insurance planning, it will have paid for itself.

Meh. It was okay I guess but not much more than he's said in other books. The worksheets could be helpful if you really wanted to sit down and create your own therapy session, I suppose. I think I'm just Bached out.

We read this book shortly after we got married and it proved to be a really useful road map for us. It has taken us years to implement some of the things on the "must-do" list that we created after reading the book, but it gave us great direction and goals to work toward. I find myself returning to the book every time I have questions about what we're doing with our finances (which is quite often).

very good book to get your finances in order when newly married