SAVING

Offers guidelines on budgeting, bank accounts, and other topics that are important part of financial literacy.

This compact volume, part of a series that includes Budgeting, Jobs and Taxes, and Loans and Credit, consists of four chapters: “Why Money Matters,” “The Basics of Saving,” “Where and Why To Save,” and “How To Save in the Future.” The author opens by explaining why it’s important to possess solid financial skills and describing the challenges teens face: Many have received no formal instruction in this area and admit to relying on social media as a source of information. Eason’s advice runs along standard-issue lines, like automatically diverting 10-20% of all income into savings and making some provision for “life’s financial curve balls.” She recommends financial apps to help with things like goal setting. The book explains compound interest and inflation, making a case for saving early and often. Practical advice—“always read the small print before choosing an account”—is peppered throughout and tempered with realism—“as a teen, it is unlikely that you’ll be able to save a significant amount of the money that you’ll need for college.” A chart explaining compound interest uses an interest rate of 50%, which may mislead readers about what to expect in real life. The book closes with a glimpse of future goals, such as buying a home and putting money into a pension. Stock illustrations show racially diverse young people.

A basic introduction to an important topic.