Customer Reviews

Keeping the Books: Basic Record Keeping and Accounting for the Successful Small Business

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is excellent and well written for people who are NEW to bookkeeping/accounting for small business. I especially found the checklists provided (when to pay various Federal and State Taxes, to whom to pay various Federal and State Taxes, when to produce certain financial reports, what to have ready for your Tax Accountant at year end and in what format) to be VERY useful. EXCELLENT reference book for the do-it-yourself bookkeeper.

This is a really great book for beginners. I'm not a proffesional accountant (my primary area is computer systems administrations) but I have been working in banks for 5 years and I read a lot of books about accounting basics because it was part of my job. And usually those books were either too practical or too academic. But this one is perfectly balanced. It explains you not only what to do but it also gives you a pretty solid background why you should do this and what for. It shows you a complete picture of a small company accounting including major forms, reports shedule, books etc and that's all in just 200 pages. It's amazing how the author can explain in a couple words some concepts which usually takes a whole chapter in some other tutorials. You can read it to just to get some idea about accounting wording and concepts, or you can keep it on the table and use as a Howto giude in your everyday work, it works both ways. And it's pretty fairly priced. Very, very nice book!

Based on some of the glaring reviews, I was really expecting a superior book here. What I got wasn't even good for the green as green novice.

I was anxious to read the tax information since some reviewers had noted how great that was, but alas, I found it to be note much different from what I get from the IRS or even by reading basic tax forms...FOR FREE!

I'd pass on this one.

This is one of my two favorite accounting books for small business owners. The other is "Small Business Accounting Simplified" by Daniel Sitarz. These books present a lot of the same information, but they have slightly different perspectives on small business accounting and I think both viewpoints are useful and complimentary. Establishing your accounting system is serious business, so I would consider purchasing both. It's a small investment considering how important and time consuming this area could be for small business.

With that said, this book will help you to understand the basics of accounting and the advantages and disadvantages of various methods of keeping your books. It is very streamlined, practical and will help you to get your books together quickly using the easiest system that is appropriate for your business.

This is a very non-intimidating book and first time business owners will really like it. The other book I recommended above by Sitarz is more involved and may be something you want to get down the road. If you are a very small business, this book may have all you need and you may appreciate that it lacks some detail that might be unnecessary.

Both books that I mention are adequate to get a small business up and running. However, if you are not a numbers person by nature or have an aversion to accounting, this might be the best place to start. As part of my livelihood I do small business consulting and this title and the one I mentioned in the first paragraph are the two books I most often recommend for a new small business.

Most og the context in Keeping the books is either basic or outdated. If you are brand new or like I was, lousy at organization, you will find an idea or two from Keeping The Books.

When I started my first business, I found this book priceless: step-by-step instructions on how to keep business accounts and what accounts need keeping, and when to update them. The appendix contains templates of all the major records needed for a small business. For someone who knew nothing this was a real lifebelt. Very easy to read, and immediately useful.

This bookisn't bad for somebody who is completely new to accounting, but I found it average for anyone with any modicumof experience. Might be good for people with C-Corporations, but not for people with S-Corporations.

This is an excellent book that teaches you to chart: where you would like to go on your business journey; where you are; and what you need to do to adjust your journey towards your profit goals.

Long before reading this book, I had asked an Accountant the difference between fixed and variable assets - he really didn't answer my question. In fact, he seemed to be annoyed that I would ask such a question.

But this book gives the answer in a very succinct description, with supporting information.

Above all, this book walks the small business owner through:
1. Record Keeping;
2. Business Accounting;
3. General Ledgers;
4. Financial Statements; and,
5. Taxes.

And this is definitely a resource to keep referring to, until you have mastered the process of growing profit.

This book contains a lot of good information. It is aimed towards people who don't have a background in accounting/recordkeeping...but who maybe know the basics.

I was able to get answers to a number of questions I had as far as how the details of accounting work.

The book does focus mostly on the single-entry method of accounting, as opposed to the double-entry system.

This book was great for helping cope with all the difficulties and stressors of bookkeeping. I really enjoyed this book and would like for others to know that it's a great book.