Trent at The Simple Dollar read a new finance book every week for a year, ranking them according to how original and useful they were, and now he’s compiled a list of his top ten picks. According to Trent, if you read these ten books (and maybe the ones coming in at #11 and #12), “You’ll have absorbed basically all the useful material in every book on the list.”

His top pick is “Your Money or Your Life,” by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin, a “big picture” book that looks at how and why you spend your money.

[The book transforms] some very broad ideas into very, very specific things you can do to evaluate your own financial situation and how you’re choosing to spend your money and your time. It goes beyond money management into an examination of how we spend money in the modern world and whether it’s in line with our values or not.

Rounding out the top ten (you can read detailed descriptions of each title at The Simple Dollar):

• 2. “What Color Is Your Parachute?” by Richard Nelson Bolles
• 3. “The Bogleheads’ Guide to Investing” by Taylor Larimore, Mel Lindauer, Michael LeBoeuf, and John C. Bogle
• 4. “The Complete Tightwad Gazette” by Amy Daczyzyn
• 5. “The Total Money Makeover” by Dave Ramsey
• 6. “Born to Buy” by Juliet Schor
• 7. “It Pays to Talk” by Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz and Charles Schwab
• 8. “Smart and Simple Financial Strategies for Busy People” by Jane Bryant Quinn
• 9. “The Millionaire Next Door” by Thomas Stanley and William Danko
• 10. “America’s Cheapest Family” by Steve and Annette Economides

“52 Books, 52 Weeks: The Top Ten” [The Simple Dollar via Later On]

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.