The Complete Tightwad Gazette
by Amy Dacyczyn
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Book Reviews of The Complete Tightwad Gazette
Book Review: I have a roll of toilet paper in a tissue box.
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't agree with a lot of the suggestions offered by some of tightwad's fan contributors and I think there is way too much starch in frugal meals but reading this book comforts me and even if you don't want to be frugal, you will still enjoy this documentation of family building. This book and the documentary film Reversal of Fortune about a homeless man who is given $100,000 and blows it in six months without getting the necessary dental work that is the most important problem that the money can solve remind me that you have to have money coming in when you are letting money go on purchases. Amy doesn't really cover earning but her book is about recalibrating how you spend according to what is really important in life. I go over my recent purchase at least once thinking about why I bought them and how much was money misspent. I'm not perfect and some mistakes should never have been made but I'm not as bad as a spendthrift as I feared. However, I do see myself in the Canadians in Neat and Maxed Out who clutter their lives up with things that are optional not essential. I still see my optionals especially books as unregretted purchases. On the other hand, I care less and less whether I "have anything to wear" which I observe is a frequent excuse for shopaholics; in reality, nobody cares what other people are wearing, they only care about what they themselves are wearing so feel free to wear your old clothes.
One thing about the book that I think about often is that the author stayed at home for her six children since a salary would be more expensive with child care expenses. She also made a good point about the emotional toil of being subjected to other people's judgement. I think that despite the expense of working that there is security in having both parents in the work force. Think Jodie Foster as The Little Girl who Lives Down the Lane.
One of the ways that the author saved enough money to buy a house (with attached barn!) is that she spent very little on new clothes. She found good clothes on sale for as low as one dollar. I don't do that. I try to choose clothes I can keep a long long long time but I do spend more money this way. However, I shop forclothes every few years and I have clothes that are over ten years old and nearly 20 years old.
Page 32 - I think the author should get an electric kettle with automatic shutoff instead of frequently picking up dollar kettles to replace the ones she burnt on the stovetop. Why create more garbage if one is a habitual kettle burner?
Book Review: The best collection of Money saving advide I have found
Summary: 5 Stars
I originally bought my Tightwad Gazettes at used book stores and going out of business sales. And even at over half off for each htis collection is still less money. I am planing on getting the Complete Tightwad Gazette soon. I have read the one in the library and there is even more info than is in the first three books.I have read some odd negative reviews about this book and have to wonder if the folks actually read it.
Why yes she does cover some over the top tightwad ideas. Ussually she is discussing the results of tests she has done on ideas that readers sent in. The dumpster diving even she says she isn't into. But she offers the whole range of tightwad ideas that are out there. She calculates numbers extensively to see the actual truth of the matter, because she had a business of finding out the cheapest way for her readers.
And some have complained about her suggesting bread crumb cookies. You should try them sometime. I found a recipe for them in an old Hershey cookbook. Those things are GOOD! Very rich so you want to cut them into small squares.
Her kids must have a wonderful time. She only takes them to two scheduled activities a month. Much less stress than these poor kids whose parents pick them up from day car run them to scheduled activites every day and then have them doing their homework until 10 pm because they were at some practice for 2 hours and then never got any free time to relax. I hated my 2 hours of drill team practice 6 days a week when I was a kid. I wish my mom had let me spend time with my friends instead.
And the tips are wonderful. I use the bread recipe that is in the last issues every week (you can make any sort of bread you want with it). I also make the crustless quiche all the time. Only takes 2 eggs and you don't have to ake a pie crust (I haven't learned to make a good pie crust yet). All the recipes are easy! She calculates the hourly wage for each activity to determine if the idea is actually worth the time it takes. Some low wage things she does anyway because the results are more rewarding.
But while she gives a wide range of tightwad ideas she also repeatedly states that every idea isn't for everyone and that you have to decide for yourself which ideas suit your life. Which is why she discusses some thigns that she doesn't do herself.
And just to let you know I live in a small suburban house with a tiny yard and still found this book to be very useful. I read it every day that it isn't loaned to a friend.
Book Review: Excellent tips and an interesting read
Summary: 5 Stars
The Tightwad Gazette is full of money saving tips and information that are still relevant today, though the book was published over ten years ago. The letters and articles it contains are easy to read and interesting. Granted, some of the information is a little outdated (such as some of the online and technology information, etc.) but most of the contents can still be used. (And most of the older information is still interesting to read in light of what we're used to today.)
The book provides generic recipe outlines that you can use to make a variety of foods from that bare-bones recipe (like "1 cup main ingredient, 1 cup second ingredient" etc, with some suggestions for what those ingredients might be), which allows you to use what you have on hand instead of needing to buy specific items.
There are suggestions for gardening, Christmas gifts, remodeling fixer-upper houses, and many subjects in between. There is quite a bit about children, as others have mentioned; however I felt there was a nice mix of other infmrmation as well so it wasn't overwhelming for people without children.
My only complaint about the edition I have (which is a 1998 Villard paperback edition) would be the reference page numbers located in the articles. The actual pages of the combined "Complete" book are 1-959; the pages in the individual books are Book 1 1-297, Book 2 300-576, and Book 3 579-834 ("The Last Issues" and the index make up the remaining pages). However, when an individual book references something in itself it starts with page 1. So (for example) if you're in Book 2, it will say something like "see page 32" which is actually page 332. It's a little worse in Book 3 since it doesn't end with such an even number; there it will say "see page 32" and it becomes more like page 611. It's not a huge problem and the numbers on the index page are correct, it just takes a little figuring out to see exactly where a referenced article is located. (It may just be the edition I have, but it's something to keep an eye out for if you're looking for an article but can't seem to locate it.)
Other than that one flaw, which is minor in my eyes, this book is excellent and I would highly recommend it for anyone looking for creative ways to reuse materials (a variety of objects from milk jugs and juice lids to plastic rings off soda packs, etc) or for anyone looking for ways to save money.
Book Review: Useful information, some of it extreme
Summary: 3 Stars
Growing up in a tightwad family, I have to speak the truth about the effects of tightwad existence on children. Yes, this book has lots of helpful advice to offer, but think twice about never letting your children have nice clothes or things that are very prevalent in their culture because they will feel the effects of it in a myriad of way and odds are they will grow up a spendthrift because they'll correlate any unhappiness they have with their lack of material possessions. Then, as soon as they start making money of their own, they'll start trying to buy their happiness by purchasing those expensive clothes and gadgets and putting themselves into great debt over it. I've seen it in my family and with friends. There's a reasonable boundary when it comes to all of this. Frugal has it's perks, but when one starts to feel lack because of it, it shapes how they view the world and suddenly those material things or lack of them become the reason for their unhappiness. That can lead to a very materialistic view of life which is really the root of our society's issue with money and credit card debt. Bigger, better, newer, more expensive - gotta have it because it will make me happy. That's what the media preaches and that's what we are brainwashed into thinking. In some cases, rare or special ones, yes, the bigger, better, newer or more expensive should be had. All things in moderation, right? But be wise with where you choose to be frugal. Washable cloth diapers? Wonderful! Clipping coupons? Smart! Dressing a toddler in less expensive clothes that they'll only grow out of in a few months? Brilliant! Dressing a teenager in an entire wardrobe that doesn't fit in with current trends just to save a buck? Recipe for disaster!! Instead, allow them a few of the trendy items, and teach them to earn some extra cash on their own, part of which they must save and part of which they are encouraged (yes, encouraged) to buy items they feel they must have. They'll choose wisely with their buck, especially when they've been raised to understand the value of the dollar and what happens if they don't save and live in debt. That's a lesson that all teens should be taught in my humble opinion. It's probably the reason why so many are in serious debt.
This review has been written by a child of tightwad parents. Take from it what you will.
Book Review: Jeff Foxworthy, I hope you have a copy of this one...
Summary: 3 Stars
...because this book is the stuff of which redneck dreams are made!
I wasn't sure how to rate this one, in stars, so I gave it three for comprehensiveness. Much can be said here, and much has already been said. This book is a tome filled with wonders, with monstrosities, and with some good practical advice. Every bathroom should contain a copy, as it rivals the best bathroom anthologies in scope and entertainment value.
Purchasers should be warned that nothing in this book is organized by subject. At all. It's merely a compilation of six years' worth of newsletters. Hence its worth as a bathroom companion, but sadly, you must resort to using the index to find, say, ways to re-use mesh onion bags.
Much of it is painfully outdated. Hair bows are out. Milk now runs $3 per gallon. Computers reign. Insurance has changed. Vacuum cleaners are now bagless. Many of the addresses given for companies are no doubt obsolete.
Much of it involves a tradeoff of time for money. For some this will be acceptable, even fun. For others, baking potato peels and chicken skins into nutritious dog snacks, or tying metal juice-can lids together to create a suit of armor, is going to be a ridiculous waste of time. Turning junk-mail envelopes inside out so they can be used for letters? Wow. Just wow.
And a whole heck of a lot of it will come across as tackiness to the max: How about cutting plastic containers into fake vampire teeth, and giving them out as favors at your next children's party? Making a hammock from six-pack rings that you can proudly display, along with tin-can windchimes, in your backyard? There are enough gift ideas in this book to keep you well-stocked through years of office gag parties, and entertainment hints to guarantee that your own social gatherings will become the stuff of legend.
Additionally, reforming packrats will want to flee from this book as from Satan himself: if you're looking for an excuse to rescue and save every single piece of trash in the neighborhood, you'll find it here.
Nevertheless, there is enough information in this book that even the spendthrifts among us will find a few gems, and this tour of often-freakish frugality is bound to be appreciated by anyone--provided that they've had enough beer.