Reviewed By: Missy Grote
Date: November 14, 2004
Section: Book Reviews
Publisher: QUE
Authors: Gina Carrillo
Pages: 252
Retail Price: $14.99
Dot Journal Price: $10.49

Ready to get on top of your finances? No better time than the beginning of the year, before Christmas bills are due. Creating a Budget or a debt-reduction plan doesn’t have to be intimidating at all with the use of the book, Easy Microsoft Money 2004. Written for the beginner, this book is a great companion to someone new to Money or one that wishes to have a refresher on the numerous Money tasks. The information is easy to access with full-color illustrations that literally pops off the page. One thing I was particually impressed with was each task throughout the book had numbered steps from One to End when you knew that if you followed those steps you would complete the task.

Speaking of Money tasks, are you familiar with the top 10 Money tasks? Flip the front cover and you will see the breakdown, along with the corresponding page to learn more. There is also a detailed contents which is color coded with the book to help you zone into the information you need. With the help of this book, you’ll become the resident expert on each of the Top Ten Tasks:

Entering Account Information
Adding a New Account
Recording Account Transactions
Creating a New Budget
Creating a Debt-Reduction Plan
Recording Investment Transactions
Entering Your Tax Information
Planning for the Future
Planning for and Managing Major Purchases
Exploring Money Services

I personally have been using Microsoft Money for several years now and very happy with the program and with it’s ease of use. Though, paging through Easy Microsoft Money not as a beginner, I am a little embarrassed about how very much I am under-utilizing the program. I record all of my financial transactions into Money and would be in deep water if my data file would ever become corrupt. But tracking investments and tax planning are features I have never bothered learning more about.

Thumbing through this book, I have renewed energy to maximize my efforts with Microsoft Money. I will set up a bill calendar. I will set up bills to be paid online. I will set up a monthly budget and learn how to modify it. I will create a workable debt-reduction plan. And Easy Microsoft Money 2004 will show me how.

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