Customer Reviews

365 Ways to Live Cheap: Your Everyday Guide to Saving Money

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Trent's book is good for people serious about using many small changes to make a big difference in their monthly budget. It is especially helpful for people who think they cannot squeeze a dime out of their monthly expenses, because many of the tips are very small things that save pennies or a few dollars a month. Over time and in quantity they add up to thousands of dollars. A lot of these take some serious time, but the book is honest about that, and people who need to save money should get used to the idea that it takes time to keep money in the bank.

I would buy this book for someone new to frugality who wants a light, up-to-date read that gets to the point - no spending several chapters developing a frugal philosophy. Such a person might be frightened away by the Complete Tightwad Gazette or Your Money or Your Life. I wouldn't buy it for someone experienced with frugality.

What the one-star reviews seem to say is that this book only offers tips that are available elsewhere. That's true.

But if a book needs to have completely new information to be worth reading, then practically every book on cooking, marketing, small business, investing, fitness, taxation, self-improvement, etc would be a waste of time and money. *All* of that information is available for free somewhere on the web.

365 Ways to Live Cheap won't be life changing, but if you read it with an open mind you should easily be able to pick up a handful of tips worth trying--each of which would likely recover the $7 the book cost.

The Simple Dollar has been one of my favorite blogs for a very long time and over the years Trent has shared so many great tips it's great to see some of the best ones in one place. I enjoyed reading through the 365 Ways to Live Cheap: Your Everyday Guide to Saving Money it's a quick read and afterwards it's great to have on the desk or coffee table to pick up any time for a refreshing tip.

While I will say that many of the tips I've read before on the blog, I think this is a great addition to the bookstore shelves for those who don't follow The Simple Dollar. Every day, millions of people wander aimlessly through life spending money and surviving from paycheck to paycheck. A small $7.95 investment now can save them so much money later on.

This book also makes a great gift for anyone who is in need of a little financial makeover, don't let it's small size fool you - it's packed with lots of great information.

I am a quasi-regular reader of Trent Hamm's Blog (The Simple Dollar). I purchased this book with high expectations; sadly, it's little more than trite, over-circulated "advice" that anyone above 18 pretty much already knows (e.g. tie your shoes so you don't trip on the laces).

Trent's Blog is well written, and, ironically more substantive than this book. Skip it.

I read Trent's blog daily, and of course immediately bought the book when he made the big announcement. While I can agree somewhat with the criticism that a lot of the material can be found online, I think the real value of the book will be for those who aren't yet seeking information on frugality online.

Several of my family members live beyond their means, have expressed a desire to change their ways, yet have done nothing about it thus far. This is a perfect book for them!

I remain highly impressed by Trent's ability to relate to his audience, and think the information in this guide is much more applicable to the average person than the "Tightwad Gazette". Trent- I commend you for not recommending rinsing and reusing ziploc bags! :-)

Like many other pennypinchers, I have been frugal my whole life. Well, half of my life it was enforced by my adoptive parents, farmers who took it for granted that the practice of thrift was the only way to achieve a life with the greatest amount of ease.

Thrift we had but name brand designer jeans we didn't. In my college years I dreamt of an adulthood that mirrored our spendthrift culture. However the experiences of my adult life have proven my parents correct. Despite the pipedreams we are sold on TV and in fashion magazines, at some time in most people's lives they are going to need to practice economy. However, few of us are taught how to think rationally about our spending. Seeing your pain incites famous fruggies such as Trent Hamm to publish, either online or in book format, usually what amounts to a list of ideas that have worked for him and others.

Frugalites from way back will read Hamm's small compilation of thrifty tips and and mutter "been there, done that." But this book isn't written for you. Astonishingly there are folks who are puzzled about how a library card works and who have never even gone grocery shopping with a list! Forget a meal plan. "Who has time for that?!" they yipe and then walk away worrying how to make that car payment.

Each section has a line item list of tips, something I thought made for a more efficient read. You can read all of the way through, or you can glance at the chapter headings and cherrypick those items that are new to you.

Pennypinchers will read this book since we are quite resourceful in gathering any nuggets that enhance the practice of our art. But hopefully this book's outreach will extend on into mainstream non-thrifties who in our times of economic anxiety may be more open to hearing that showing off status items bought on credit cannot provide the peace that comes from having your financial house in order.

Pinch your pennies, stash your cash, but definitely don't hoard good advice. When you have gleaned all you can pass the book on to a spendthrift friend next time you hear complaints about that hefty car payment.

Common sense is not all that common. Everyone needs a starting point. Many, many years ago books like this were my mainstay. It is full of thought provoking basic principles that can be transferred to other areas like reuse, repair, repurpose and make do.

If you understand that "tie your shoe laces so you don't trip on them" can be a lesson in stretching the life of what you have invested in by taking care of it then you can apply that to everything you own from your car to your hair brush. These transferrable principles where what made the Tightwad Gazette such a hit after all.

It seems that the vast majority of us are perceived to have surpassed this stage in our lives but I don't believe most of us have. With the state of the economy how can one even assume that "most" people are beyond this material? We wouldn't be in the overextended financial hell we are in right now if we were.

This book isn't going to have you seeing choirs of angels but it will be the jumping off point for many frugal financial epiphanies to come if you read it thoughtfully and apply the deeper lessons it tries to reveal.

This book gives you plenty of ideas to save money and enjoy life more. Sure, about half the ideas are obvious but others are very valuable. This book is worth 100x or more its price.

As an economics teacher I can honestly say that this book should be in the hands of everyone in our country today. In today's economic world, everyone needs a review of basic frugality. This book is simple, succinct, practical and extremely needed in today's world.
Even though many of the book's main points may be found in other books on frugal living, the selling point of this book is its simple,practical,thorough, and succinct style.It should be required reading in most money-management classes.

A lot of common sense in these pages. If you take advantage of only a few of them, the book is well worth the investment. Even though it does review some of Trent's blogs, it's nice to have it in once place.