The New Frugality by Chris Farrell

The New Frugality by Chris Farrell is a new personal finance book that discusses a growing trend in America towards frugality. As we claw our way out of the Great Recession, American families are going back to smarter and safer spending after a near decade at the buffet table of cheap credit. This isn’t a book with a million different ways to pinch a penny, it’s a book that seeks to teach you how to be smarter with your money in actionable ways.

For most books, there’s usually one big idea followed by dozens of examples. Once you understand the big idea, there’s not that much more too it. For example, Automatic Millionaire’s main idea is that if you make something (saving) automatic, then you’re more likely to accumulate wealth. Set your 401(k) contribution when you start work and even if you never look at it again (which is dangerous), you’re going to be better off. The Millionaire Next Door’s main idea was that there are millionaires all around you and they didn’t do anything special, outside of being smart with their spending and their savings, to get there. The flash and jazz of superstar athletes or actors was just that, flash and jazz, but there are plenty of quiet …