Like all guides in the Idiots series, this book is very well put together. This book on person-to-person (P2P) lending consists of 24 chapters broken up into four parts, with two appendices (one for key terms and definitions and one for useful web links on anything and everything related to the topic of P2P lending). Each chapter begins with a bulleted roadmap and ends with a summary of the key ideas presented in the chapter, making it easy for those time-pressed folks to get the main ideas, or for those 'just-the-facts, Ma'am' types.
The writing style was active, easy-going and almost friendly in a way. At points I often got the impression while reading the text that I was having a conversation with someone over coffee about P2P lending. Although chock-full of detail, none of it was presented in a jargon-filled fashion, and any terms and jargon presented were very well defined.
The book presented both sides of the lending-borrowing transaction, and gave good pointers to both sides on how to best navigate this brave new world. It also provided a good summary of developments in P2P up to about 2008 thereabouts, and while much has happened in the space since then, the book accurately captured the general ideas very well, and did a good job of pointing the reader in the right direction for more information.
I originally picked the book up, hoping to learn more about participating within this industry, principally as a lender with an eye to diversifying my investment portfolio. Gradually, I came to realize that it may well be possible for me to participate as a borrower, and get more attractive terms and conditions on borrowings than from traditional lenders to boot! Still, I have a few misgivings about P2P lending- specifically from the lender side, and I believe that I will refrain from participation in the space until such time as these are sufficiently explored and addressed. Chief among these concerns are: 1) default rates (these seemed rather low, given the kind of clientele base P2P lending generally attracts), 2) the potential for discrimination against prospective borrowers (and the legal ramifications associated with it), 3) the potential for identity theft- on both sides of the transaction and 4) track records (only the passage of time will help here).
In sum, this book serves as a very useful introduction and very accessible starting point to a possibly lucrative (for the would-be lender) and money-saving (for the potential borrower) activity. I highly recommend it to all interested readers on the subject of P2P lending, or the broader topic of micro-finance.
