The best personal finance books (that won’t make you want to poke your eyes out)

Why am I passionate about this?

I started my company The Fiscal Femme and have written two personal finance guides because I needed them myself. I studied finance in college and worked in finance but still knew nothing about my own money. I do what I do so that others don’t have to make the same mistakes I did. Plus, when I started financial adulting, it gave me so much more power and freedom over my choices – career and personal – and I want that for others. 


I wrote...

Financial Adulting: Everything You Need to Be a Financially Confident and Conscious Adult

By Ashley Feinstein Gerstley,

Book cover of Financial Adulting: Everything You Need to Be a Financially Confident and Conscious Adult

What is my book about?

Financial Adulting is the fun and approachable guide that I wished I had when I got my first paycheck. It breaks down everything you need to be a financially confident and conscious adult.

In it, I cover all the finance topics with humor and compassion - everything from budgeting and consumer activism to investing and taxes. And while it's a how-to guide, I also talk about the inequities in our financial systems for women and especially women of color. I interviewed 35 amazing experts to help me do that.

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Get Good with Money: Ten Simple Steps to Becoming Financially Whole

Ashley Feinstein Gerstley Why did I love this book?

Tiffany Aliche’s (aka the Budgetnista) book, Get Good With Money, looks at financial wholeness or the ten pieces of our finances we need to know and understand for financial well-being. It’s a holistic guide that is enriched (pun intended) by her storytelling and humor. Spoiler alert: I interviewed her and a few other authors on this list for my own book, so you’ll see their wisdom shared throughout! 

By Tiffany Aliche,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Get Good with Money as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NEW YORK TIMES, WALL STREET JOURNAL, AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER • A ten-step plan for finding peace, safety, and harmony with your money—no matter how big or small your goals and no matter how rocky the market might be—by the inspiring and savvy “Budgetnista.”

“No matter where you stand in your money journey, Get Good with Money has a lesson or two for you!”—Erin Lowry, bestselling author of the Broke Millennial series

Tiffany Aliche was a successful pre-school teacher with a healthy nest egg when a recession and advice from a shady advisor put her out of a job and…


Book cover of When She Makes More: The Truth about Navigating Love and Life for a New Generation of Women

Ashley Feinstein Gerstley Why did I love this book?

I know (and research backs it up) that when women earn more money (and have more money) the world will be a better place for it. We all win. But in today’s society being the breadwinner also comes with a higher risk of burnout, infidelity, depression, and divorce. In When She Makes More, Farnoosh shares the ten rules for a fulfilling and wealthy life at home and work.   

By Farnoosh Torabi,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked When She Makes More as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

As seen on CNBC's Follow the Leader

“Farnoosh’s ground-breaking book will save more relationships than couples counseling ever could.” —Barbara Stanny, author of Secrets of Six-Figure Women

Today, a record number of women are their household’s top-earner. But if you’re that woman, you face a much higher risk of burnout, infidelity, and divorce.
In this important and timely book, personal finance expert Farnoosh Torabi candidly addresses how income imbalances affect relationships and family dynamics, and presents a bold strategy to achieving happiness at work and home. Torabi’s ten essential rules include:


   •  Buy Yourself a Wife: Outsource as many household…


Book cover of Wallet Activism: How to Use Every Dollar You Spend, Earn, and Save as a Force for Change

Ashley Feinstein Gerstley Why did I love this book?

This book filled a much-needed gap on my personal finance bookshelf. Tanja Hester’s Wallet Activism is the first personal finance book I read that’s all about using our money for good - to create more of what we want to see in the world. While I have a lot to learn and do in my Wallet Activism journey, I left the book feeling empowered to make real change. 

By Tanja Hester,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Wallet Activism as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

2022 NATIONAL INDIE EXCELLENCE AWARDS FINALIST — SOCIAL/POLITICAL CHANGE • 2022 ASJA ANNUAL WRITING AWARD WINNER — SERVICE • 2022 NAUTILUS BOOK AWARDS GOLD MEDALIST — SOCIAL CHANGE & SOCIAL JUSTICE • 2022 AXIOM BUSINESS BOOK AWARD GOLD MEDALIST — PHILANTHROPY/NONPROFIT/SUSTAINABILITY

How do we vote with our dollars, not just to make ourselves feel good, but to make a real difference?

Wallet Activism challenges you to rethink your financial power so can feel confident spending, earning, and saving money in ways that align with your values.

While we call the American system a democracy, capitalism is the far more powerful…


Book cover of Broke Millennial Takes on Investing

Ashley Feinstein Gerstley Why did I love this book?

When it comes to investing we know it’s important to get started but there’s so much information out there – it can feel daunting and overwhelming. Erin Lowry’s Broke Millennial Takes on Investing is an entire book filled with investing info but she breaks the concepts down in such a way that they are manageable to understand and it’s even fun to read about. 

By Erin Lowry,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Broke Millennial Takes on Investing as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A guide to investing basics by the author of Broke Millennial, for anyone who feels like they aren't ready (or rich enough) to get into the market

Millennials want to learn how to start investing. The problem is that most have no idea where to begin. There's a significant lack of information out there catering to the concerns of new millennial investors, such as:

  *  Should I invest while paying down student loans?
  *  How do I invest in a socially responsible way?
  *  What about robo-advisors and apps--are any of them any good?
  *  Where can I look online…


Book cover of Clever Girl Finance

Ashley Feinstein Gerstley Why did I love this book?

Clever Girl Finance is an approachable and easy-to-follow guide on how to pay down your debt and build wealth. It’s a no shame and no-judgment zone, which I think is one of the most important criteria for a personal finance educator / personal finance book and shares from her own experience along the way.   

By Bola Sokunbi,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Clever Girl Finance as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Learn the basics of investing with this approachable guide to the world of finance

Clever Girl Finance: Learn How Investing Works, Grow Your Money is the leading guide for women who seek to learn the basic foundations of personal investing. In a no-nonsense and straightforward style, this book teaches readers:

Exactly how investing works and what you should be doing, no fancy finance degree required How to leverage investing to build long term wealth even on a modest salary The key pitfalls to avoid in order to become a successful investor How to build a nest egg and invest in…


You might also like...

Kanazawa

By David Joiner,

Book cover of Kanazawa

David Joiner Author Of Kanazawa

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

My book recommendations reflect an abiding passion for Japanese literature, which has unquestionably influenced my own writing. My latest literary interest involves Japanese poetry—I’ve recently started a project that combines haiku and prose narration to describe my experiences as a part-time resident in a 1300-year-old Japanese hot spring town that Bashō helped make famous in The Narrow Road to the Deep North. But as a writer, my main focus remains novels. In late 2023 the second in a planned series of novels set in Ishikawa prefecture will be published. I currently live in Kanazawa, but have also been lucky to call Sapporo, Akita, Tokyo, and Fukui home at different times.

David's book list on Japanese settings not named Tokyo or Kyoto

What is my book about?

Emmitt’s plans collapse when his wife, Mirai, suddenly backs out of purchasing their dream home. Disappointed, he’s surprised to discover her subtle pursuit of a life and career in Tokyo.

In his search for a meaningful life in Japan, and after quitting his job, he finds himself helping his mother-in-law translate Kanazawa’s most famous author, Izumi Kyoka, into English. He becomes drawn into the mysterious death of a friend of Mirai’s parents, leading him and his father-in-law to climb the mountain where the man died. There, he learns the somber truth and discovers what the future holds for him and his wife.

Packed with subtle literary allusion and closely observed nuance, Kanazawa reflects the mood of Japanese fiction in a fresh, modern incarnation.

Kanazawa

By David Joiner,

What is this book about?

In Kanazawa, the first literary novel in English to be set in this storied Japanese city, Emmitt's future plans collapse when his wife, Mirai, suddenly backs out of negotiations to purchase their dream home. Disappointed, he's surprised to discover Mirai's subtle pursuit of a life and career in Tokyo, a city he dislikes.

Harmony is further disrupted when Emmitt's search for a more meaningful life in Japan leads him to quit an unsatisfying job at a local university. In the fallout, he finds himself helping his mother-in-law translate Kanazawa's most famous author, Izumi Kyoka, into English.

While continually resisting Mirai's…


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