Giveaway: Clark Howard’s new book.

by

9781583335253LConsumer king Clark Howard has followed up his New York Times bestseller “Living Large in Lean Times” with another one that’s sure to be a hit. I know this because I’ve read it: Clark has donated two copies for review and/or giveaway.

Review first, giveaway after.

The format of “Clark Howard’s Living Large for the Long Haul” is quite smart: Interview 50 U.S. residents who were body-slammed by the recession and find out how they coped.

This is both shrewd and reader-friendly. Too often personal finance books and articles use people as bad examples: “John Smith had 24 credit cards. For years he was up to his hairline in consumer debt, and ultimately declared bankruptcy. Now his credit score is in the crapper, he can’t get a decent auto loan rate and landlords don’t want to rent to him. John is an idiot. Don’t be like John.”

It’s not that object lessons are bad. It’s that sometimes they’re a little too close to the reader’s own behavior. The temptation is to shut down, i.e., to be unable to learn anything from the example, or to pretend you’re nothing like John (“Yeah, I have a dozen cards but at least I don’t have two dozen – and I’m making the minimum payments on time so everything’s cool.”)

Clark’s premise is swell and once again he’s packed the pages with sometimes obscure and always ingenious tips. It’s a terrific resource, and one that I plan to keep on my own bookshelf along with his previous book.

That said, there’s something else to say: Clark, if you’re reading this, get yourself an editor, son. Please.

We all need editors. One would assume that Avery (a division of Penguin) has editors. But they were either too in awe of Clark’s credentials to challenge him or they were absent the day he turned in his manuscript.

The pages are sprinkled with small but annoying errors, such as “it’s” instead of “its,” or the description of a town as “rustic” when it’s actually in a densely populated and heavily retailed area of New Jersey.

But you should still read it

Too often the book reads like a rough draft, with awkward phrasing such as, “Like Kate and Brian, Americans have historically moved from where they were raised for opportunity” and “Steven moved to Omaha, Nebraska, as a child, and ended up in Atlanta by kindergarten.”

Clark describes a stray cat that “literally came flying into her apartment.” Not unless it had wings, it didn’t. (This message brought to you by the Coalition To Make Most People Stop Using The Word “Literally” Because They’re Doing It Wrong.)

Non sequiturs abound, too, as in this example from the chapter on student loans:

“Kate is originally from upstate New York and Brian is from the Canton, Ohio, area. She credits both of their parents for making them into people who can raise a family on teaching salaries.”

And someone needs to tell the author that just because you have a detail or a quote doesn’t mean you have to use it. The entire first page of the chapter on health savings accounts is devoted to camellias. Clark runs a lot of long, windy quotes that should have been paraphrased down by two-thirds.

Such problems slow down the progress toward the point. Writers need to make it easier, not harder, to get from chapter to chapter.

While I hate the sins against prose, I do love the sinner. Clark has probably forgotten more about saving money and getting a fair shake than most of us will ever know. As I mentioned earlier, the book is a keeper. It just needs revision.

Want a shot at winning the other copy? Here’s how to enter:

If you do any (or all!) of these things, please leave separate, additional comments to get credit for each entry.

The deadline is 7 p.m. PDT Tuesday, Aug. 6. If I don’t hear back from the winners by 7 p.m. PDT Wednesday, Aug. 7, I’ll pull another name.

Note: While I generally refer to authors by their surnames on second reference. Clark Howard will always be “Clark” to me because of his habit of referring to “Clark Smart” ways of doing things.

Please follow and like us:

107 thoughts on “Giveaway: Clark Howard’s new book.”

  5. My sister used to always tell me, I should listen to Clark Howard’s talk show. I have been telling her to look up Donna Freedman. I would love to read this book, errors and all.

    Reply

  12. I follow you on FB. I have read Clark’s previous book and heard some of the people interviewed on his podcasts.

    The book sounds quite interesting.

    Reply

  16. Thanks for the giveaway offer! If I win, I hope you can either ship to Calgary, Alberta or have a download option. American-Canadians love to save money, too! 😉

    Reply

  19. I would love to have this book. You are on my blogroll, so doesn’t that count for another entry? I loved your assessment of his writing skills. If he is looking for an editor, I am available and cheap. Seriously, I do this.

    Reply

  26. Thanks for the mini-review. However excellent spell-check software may be, there is no substitute for a good copy editor. But copy editors cost salaries, while spell-check software is purchased once (or comes with the layout program). Book publishers prefer bottom line to grammar and spelling. Sigh.

    Reply

  44. I never win anything (she whined) but I’d like a shot at Clark Howard’s book.

    And I, too, want to run screaming off a cliff every time I hear “literally” so badly misused. Can we start a vigilante group?

    Reply
  62. Pingback: Weekly Chronicles: Celebration Edition

  63. Sounds like a vey interesting book. I seem to remember reading some excerpts from this guy’s first book…..quite “the character”…Would love to have a copy.

    Reply

  68. Hi Donna —
    I’m a long-time Clark fan, too, so I agree we should cut him some slack. That said, I’d love to read his new book. I was recently in Anchorage and, based on your recommendation, stopped at the Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ. I wish I could sayI loved it, but we were too early and they weren’t open for lunch yet! Sad… Next time!
    Pauline in Ithaca

    Reply

  69. I would like to read this book because I think I could learn from other people’s experiences. Thank you for the opportunity.

    Reply

  73. Looks like an interesting book; I can always appreciate a fresh take on “staying the course” of financial prudence: thx!

    Reply

  78. I seldom laugh out loud when reading a book review, but I did this time. I would love to read the book, and I would try to get past the “it’s”

    Reply

  95. Thanks for the review. If I just picked up the book and leafed through it (always do, before I buy) I might be turned off by the very same annoyances you mention, and would miss out on the valuable content. It helps to know that it’s worth a read – and I would love a copy.

    Reply

  96. I love Clark…I love Donna more!!!! I would like to add this book to my teaching shelf. I already follow you on twitter, now to get a newsletter! @JayneMakesCents

    Reply

  97. Yes, please. Love your blog and would love to own this book. (A run on sentence, I know. Sometimes I just can’t help myself.)

    Reply

  98. Sounds like an interesting read. Although I’m with you. Grammatical errors are a pet peeve of mine, especially when they come from one of my child’s teachers. My first thought is “you grade my child’s papers, and you don’t know how to use to, too, and two?” Grrrr…..

    Reply

  100. I’d love to win Clark Howard’s latest book! I’ve read your blog occasionally and used to read your posts on MSN Personal Finance as well. Keep up the great work!

    Reply

Leave a Comment