Though there is no shortage of books on personal finance, this text is one of the most clear, concise, and comprehensible yet. Frank’s knowledge throughout is unquestionable; his thought process and probing questions for readers are a byproduct of a long career teaching personal finance. He is able to take complex topics and articulate them with rare simplicity. Whether someone is a seasoned veteran in control of their finances or entirely new to personal finance, this book has something to offer everyone.

Many misconceptions with common concepts such as budgeting and saving are clarified through visuals and charts, but none stand out more than the Wealth Odyssey Road Map (WORM). The emphasis on shifting individual thinking from journey to destination, income to asset, is a vital premise because, as with any road map, if one doesn’t know where they’re headed, getting lost becomes very likely. First and foremost, the author encourages the reader to shift from an income-based metric to wealth, which, at its root, is “everything you own less than everything you owe.”

Beyond the fundamentally sound information, the author cautions readers to not take his work or even the most advanced mathematical models as certainty; there is no way to predict the future. In the process, he explains terms that most have heard of, but few really understand, such as diversifying assets, compounding, inflation, and the standard of individual living (SOIL). Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Frank’s approach to his work is his propensity to make it clear when and how a financial advisor can help, and to have an established goal rather than simply entrusting advisors with setting them for you. A guide for the layman and the advanced, for any phase of life, this is an undoubtedly meaningful read.

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