Book review series: The good and bad of 10 personal finance books

There are countless books out there about saving, spending and managing money. Finding the ones that best suit you can be overwhelming.

A group of Atlanta Bargain Hunter readers agreed to help navigate the money stream by reviewing 10 books on a variety of topics — from couponing to budgeting to shopping. They will share what they found helpful, insightful and even a waste of time. The series begins today and will continue daily throughout the week with a different topic. We start with a review done by Todd Marksberry, executive vice president of Delta Community Credit Union.

The Solomon Secret

Title: The Solomon Secret; 7 Principles of Financial Success from King Solomon, History’s Wealthiest Man

Author: Bruce Fleet with Alton Gansky

Publisher: Penguin Group

Price: $19.95

Pages: 141

Summary: By combining timeless parables with practical financial advice for today’s times, The Solomon Secret presents seven simple principles to live by and their influence on financial success as taught by Solomon to his young protégé, Abidan. Fleet employs an effective formula of illustrating each key principle through Abidan’s story and inspirational passages from the Bible, followed by autobiographical and cultural applications of the “ancient wisdom” to today’s post-9/11, post-housing crisis financial world.

Q & A:

• How was this book helpful?

It nicely couples ancient wisdom, author anecdotes, current events and inspirational Bible verses with quotes from historic and present day pioneers to encourage readers to truthfully assess their current financial situation and set attainable goals to create an action plan for long-term financial success. I found the brisk, honest writing and the life lessons thought provoking and enlightening in the way they presented commonsense financial advice that we all should know, but don’t always follow.

• Who would benefit from reading this?

The Solomon Secret is a great read for anyone interested in learning the basics (and importance) of saving for the future, setting financial goals, debt reduction and developing good financial habits such as patience and discipline. The book also walks readers through and helps prioritize scenarios such as when to save for retirement vs. saving for college and drills down on wealth-growing concepts that include visualizing your goals, behavioral finances and living below your means.

• Don’t buy this book if…

… you are looking for in-depth financial advice such as investing, funds, stocks, portfolio management, IRAs, 401k, annuities and the like. Although it only touches on the basic building blocks of financial management, this short read certainly goes the distance in inspiring the reader to not only consider their financial future but also begin making plans and exploring tools to help reach those goals.

Todd Marksberry

Who did this review:

Name: Todd Marksberry, 44

City: Lawrenceville

Profession: Executive vice president and chief operating officer of Delta Community Credit Union

Family: He and wife Nanita have four children

About Marksberry: Todd Marksberry is the EVP and COO of Delta Community Credit Union, headquartered in Atlanta. He began his Delta Community career in 1997 after management positions with the Georgia Credit Union Affiliates and Tropical Financial Credit Union. Marksberry was one of 28 rising credit union executives named to a three-year term in 2006 to the prestigious i3 group sponsored by the nonprofit Filene Research Institute, which examines vital issues affecting the future of credit unions and consumer finance. He is a board member for the Georgia Credit Union League and is a member of the Georgia Credit Union League’s Advocacy Policy Committee.  Marksberry is a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University.