Dave Barry's Money Secrets: Like: Why Is There a Giant Eyeball on the Dollar? [Audiobook][CD][Unabridged] (Audio CD)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

After tackling such varied topics as marriage, sex, home ownership and Japan, Barry invests his jocular style in lampooning the wealth of personal finance guides out there. Mocking these books in format and tone, Barry addresses such important fiscal matters as the workings of the U.S. economy ("the U.S. workforce is engaged in the service economy, consisting of 83 million people in cubicles furtively sending and receiving personal e-mails"), how to get a job ("prove to a prospective employer that you possess the skill and knowledge necessary to string meaningless hyphenated buzzwords together into sentence fragments") and talking to your children about money ("explain to your child that if he buys lemonade from some other kid's stand, then happens to choke on a lemon seed, then you would be in a position to sue the other kid's parents for thousands of dollars"). Barry's satire will have readers laughing at themselves and at high-profile targets like Donald Trump, Alan Greenspan and Suze Orman. Some material, particularly his insights on dealing with spouses or his ideas for innovative pet products, will be familiar to fans, but it will hardly keep them from enjoying another humorous sendup that's right on the money. B&w photos. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

After mining politics and the differences between the sexes, Barry turns his sharp wit to finance and economics. If you think finance is a subject so dry that even he couldn't make it humorous, think again. He starts with personal finances, cautioning readers about the dangers of credit cards and how a charge of $1.50 can turn into $386.52 by the time the bill arrives. He goes on to lambaste corporate bigwigs who lose money by the millions and come up with preposterously bad ideas, such as the Pontiac Aztek (a car Barry finds hideous), or newspapers that try to appeal to young people when, as Barry points out, young people just do not read newspapers. Insurance is another pitfall, Barry warns, as most useful procedures, such as surgery, aren't covered. Barry cracks a few jokes at baby boomers' expense even as he gives boomers tips for how to cut college costs by encouraging their children to get mediocre grades so that they attend less prestigious (and therefore less expensive) schools. He is one of the funniest writers around, and his new book is hilarious. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD Unabridged; Unabridged edition (January 17, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1597371653
• ISBN-13: 978-1597371650
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #367,539 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Funny as always, January 19, 2006

By	Deborah Wiley (Winter Haven, FL) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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This review is from: Dave Barry's Money Secrets: Like: Why Is There a Giant Eyeball on the Dollar? (Hardcover)

I'm almost always amused by Dave Barry's books. Some of his humor is a bit juvenile but overall his books are generally worth the money. This one was no different and there were several laugh-out-loud sections, particularly when he discussed purchasing a car and his opinion of several cars, including the Aztek (the "Buttmobile"). His vision of the corporate world was also hilarious to me as I was one of the many individuals who suffered when Coca-Cola decided to change its formula; I mean, what were they thinking??? The Suze Orman shtick got a bit old but overall this book was well worth my time.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funnier than Karl Marx...Smarter than a monkey, January 23, 2006

By	C. Wagner "cecilkunkle" (On the banks of the Wabash far away) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Dave Barry's Money Secrets: Like: Why Is There a Giant Eyeball on the Dollar? (Hardcover)

Sadly enough, Barry makes more sense than most of the economics professors, money managers, and state financial officials who I have met. Barry is indeed smarter than a monkey and funnier than Karl Marx. In the financial world, these are two wonderful qualities! His analysis of Social Security only has one major flaw, a better job than our federal friends have done, although I am sure he did not intend to be accurate. Frankly, pointy headed economics instructors should make this title required reading. Although most economic students are too boring to laugh, their boyfriends/girlfriends might get it. As difficult a task as it is to be funny throughout an entire book, Barry does a good job. Think about it. Who would you rather have telling you how to manage your money: some certified money flushing financial planner, or Dave Barry? Yipes! Watch out for the squirrels!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very funny guide that spoofs financial advice!, May 13, 2006

By	Blaine Greenfield "eclectic reader" (Belle Meade, NJ) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Dave Barry's Money Secrets: Like: Why Is There a Giant Eyeball on the Dollar? (Hardcover)

How do you plan to finance your retirement?

1. Savings
2. Social Security
3. Sale of kidneys

You need to be honest in your answer. If you lie, you'll only
be lying to yourself. And, according to advice given
in DAVE BARRY'S MONEY SECRETS (from which this question
was taken), "The place to lie in on your federal tax return."

This is a very funny guide that spoofs much of the personal
financial advice that can be found in other books, TV shows
and online . . . save your money on them; buy this one
instead . . . you may not get rich if you do, but you will
certainly laugh a lot.

Barry has previously written on such other topics as politics, fitness
and parenting . . . I enjoyed those, but this latest one may well be
his very best--especially because it will make you wonder why
people behave the way they do when it comes to money.

For example, in the above quiz, he states, "That if your answers
are all threes [on all the questions], be advised that we're having
a minor technical problem calculating your score because of
Nigerian red tape. To smooth things out, we need you to send
us an 'advance fee' of $5,000, which you will get back many
times over."

The amazing thing is that many people do just that!

There were many other hilarious tidbits; among them:
* Many children learn about money by starting their own businesses,
the classic example being the sidewalk lemonade stand. This is an
opportunity to teach your child fundamental economic principles.
I'm not suggesting that you encourage your child to have a lemonade
stand; that's WAY too much work. I'm suggesting that you
explain to your child that if he buys lemonade from some other
kid's stand, and then happens to choke on a lemon seed, they you
would be in a position to sue the other kid's parents for thousands
of dollars. That is what I mean by "fundamental economic principles."

* One way to take money is in the form of traveler's checks. The way
these work is, you give a traveler's check company a bunch of money,
and the traveler's check company gives you some checks. You cash
some of these checks on your trip, and when you get home you put
the rest of them in the back of your sock drawer for safekeeping, and then
you forget all about them. Eventually you die, and the traveler's check
company gets to keep the money you paid for the uncashed checks
forever.

And this final one that--while presented in a humorous fashion--makes
much sense at least to me:

*Presidential Election Campaign Fund checkoff box: If you check this
box, $3 of your taxes will be earmarked for a special fund to pay for
presidential campaigns. Notice that the government does not permit
you to earmark money for poor people, or sick people, or national
defense. No, the government permits you to earmark money only
for the purpose of enabling politicians to produce TV commercials
designed to appeal to voters who have the IQ of a Vienna sausage.
To make matters worse, some of this federal campaign money goes
to candidates who have about as much chance of getting elected
president as SpongeBob SquarePants. In 2004, of example, more than
$800,000 of earmarked U.S. taxpayer dollars went to Lyndon LaRouche,
a convicted felon and complete space loon who has been running
for president since 1980, and who has claimed, among other things,
that Walter Mondale was a Soviet agent and Queen Elizabeth II is
a drug dealer. If you check the Presidential Election Campaign Fund box,
it won't affect the amount of tax you owe, but I will lose all respect
for you.