A couple weeks ago I received a note from Stuart Lucas asking if I'd like to review his book. Not one to turn down a freebie (besides, he said he liked index funds, like me), I accepted. The only problem: I liked Stuart and the chances of me liking an investing book is virtually zero. However, I still accepted and the book arrived a couple days later. It's titled Wealth: Grow It, Protect It, Spend It, and Share It.
Book Summary
Lucas claims that this is "the first book to integrate all the essential components of wealth into a coherent whole." Translation: it tells how to generate (a bit) and manage (mostly) a sizable amount of wealth.
In the introduction, Lucas details the purpose of the book:
This book focuses on what an individual like you and families like yours can do to protect and grow your wealth, share it with others, and build lasting personal and family legacies based on it. The lessons learned and shared here come from my many years as a wealth industry professional combined with the experience of representing my family as long-time clients of the industry. There is value in having sat on both sides of the table, and I want to share that value with you.
Whether you are building your wealth over time or acquired it suddenly, whether you have a few hundred thousand dollars in assets or a few hundred million, whether your family situation is simple or complex, the principles discussed in this book will help you sustain, grow, and, most importantly, enjoy your wealth.
The book has a foreword by Joe Mansueto, Chairman and CEO of Morningstar and several recommendations from well-known individuals, so it's clear that Lucas knows what he's talking about.
What I Liked
There are several things I liked about this book, namely:
- Lucas and I think a like on many issues. He likes index funds, knows the value of an education and a career, has a general distrust of the investing industry (though he doesn't have to deal with outright losers), and places a lot of emphasis on giving. What's not to love here?
- He does have an insider's perspective of the investment industry -- and he tells it like it is -- all the unflattering truth is laid out there for all to see. He's also a wealth manager himself, so he knows ALL the dirt.
- He has a very unique, interesting take on many subjects. For instance, he talks about how the government is your partner in investing (through tax laws). I always thought it was my enemy! He makes some good points on this (and other) topics.
- There are discussion questions at the end of each chapter to help the reader really think about what he's saying.
- He includes several interesting stories in the book that lighten it up a bit.
What I Didn't Like
There were a few things about the book that I didn't like:
- Much of the book is written for the VERY wealthy (though, granted, many of the principles apply to everyone). The introduction above sets "a few hundred thousand dollars in assets" as the low end of the bar for this book. That eliminates a HUGE part of the population. Lucas himself is part heir (with his family) of the Carnation Company fortune, so he's doing ok if you know what I mean.
- The book is dry. Let me put it this way: It's published by Wharton School Publishing and reads like it. I had horrifying flashbacks as it reminded me of something one of my grad school profs would have written.
- The heart of this book (which is really good by the way) could be summarized in 10 pages or so. You'd probably get 80% of the content and value out of the book in those 10 pages. It would be great content, though.
Conclusion and Rating
I really do like Lucas and the heart of this book. I like his style and his take on finances and I agree with about 95% of what he says. However, I can't give this book a really high rating. It's simply too long, too dry, not for the masses, and could be meaningfully summarized in a lot less space. For instance, if you're a regular reader of Free Money Finance, you've already gotten the key parts of this book (likely over and over again).
But since the content is good, I'm giving it a bit higher rating than a normal "investing" book. As such, the Free Money Finance Rating for Wealth: Grow It, Protect It, Spend It, and Share It. (based on my 0 thru 10 rating system) is: 6 Stars.
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