Financial Literacy for All: Disrupting Struggle, Advancing Financial Freedom, and Building a New American Middle Class

by John Hope Bryant

Equip Yourself With the Tools to by Learning How to Budget, Save, Borrow, and Build Wealth. In F inancial Literacy for Disrupt Poverty, Alleviate Struggle, and Realize Financial Security , Vice-Chairman of the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Literacy, John Hope Bryant, delivers an accessible and powerful resource for everyday Americans seeking to build a strong financial foundation. This book is an easy-to-read first step toward a fulfilling financial future, helping you understand your relationship to work and money, and a key component to untangling the surprisingly simple puzzle of personal finance. You’ll learn how to create wealth for yourself and your family, regardless of your educational or employment background, and how to establish a financial mindset that contributes to a sound future. You’ll also   Acting as a critical pillar for those seeking to build a rock-solid financial foundation, Financial Literacy for All is a must-have book for working professionals, blue-collar workers, members of young families, and established businesspeople looking for a better, more secure future for themselves

Genres: Finance, Economics, Nonfiction, Business, Audiobook, Personal Finance

224 pages, Hardcover

Published April 16, 2024

About the author

John Hope Bryant is an entrepreneur, author, advisor, and one of the nation’s most recognized empowerment leaders. He is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Operation HOPE and Bryant Group Companies, and, as the author of Love Leadership: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey– Bass, 2009), is the only African-American best-selling business author in America. Mr. Bryant serves for President Barack Obama as chairman of the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability, Subcommittee on the Underserved and Community Empowerment.

Mr. Bryant is the cofounder of the Gallup– HOPE Index, the only national research poll on youth financial dignity and youth economic energy in the United States. He also is a cofounder of Global Dignity, with Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen of Finland. Global Dignity is affiliated with the Forum of Young Global Leaders and the World Economic Forum.

Mr. Bryant is a thought leader represented by the Bright- Sight Group for public speaking and serves on the board of directors of Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (NYSE: ACRE), a specialty finance company managed by an affiliate of Ares Management LLC, a global alternative asset manager with approximately $59 billion in committed capital under management as of December 31, 2012.

Reviews

[Jimmy Corbett · Rating 1 out of 5]

Literally 0 helpful information in this book

[Caleb Dempsen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very informative. This book felt like a biography combined with a newsletter for the author’s non-profit. There was not much content that actually educated the reader about financial literacy.

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

I started reading this book to understand better the author's position on various policy recommendations, particularly his support for a 40-year mortgage. It seemed that someone writing about financial literacy wouldn't be promoting something that would significantly impact the low-income families or first-time home buyers he was trying to help with massive compound interest for longer term loans.

Writing a review for this book is difficult since the book was dramatically different from what I would have expected the book to be about. The title, "Financial Literacy for All," is less about what you'll learn and more of a call to action for readers toward government policy. The book itself has very little to no actual financial advice to increase the financial literacy of readers. The advice he does provide is very general, for example:

1. In Chapter 2, he mentions the importance of "not increasing the terms of a loan when interest is tied to it." Something particularly interesting because of his views on mortgage terms.

2. He mentions that he's constantly learning and uses the example of getting a $75,000 home equity loan before learning about a commercial line of credit, which had better terms for a million dollars. What he fails to mention, however, is that commercial lines of credit are limited to people with established businesses, usually those able to produce multiple years of a stable P&L for the bank.

3. He mentioned that credit cards move families and individuals toward debt and should be avoided.

4. Finally, he goes into the importance of talking with your children about the ROI of their college degree. A supporter of education, he believes education should be job-focused and not purely passion-focused, reminding readers that vocational schools are an excellent option for many.

Overall, the book itself has an inspirational message and pushes the reader to understand that financial literacy is essential. However, this book seems to be more focused on telling the author's story and starting readers into the donation funnel of supporting his Operation HOPE organization, whose impact on actually building literacy is unclear from their marketing messages.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened this book after watching the author on a Roland Martin Show clip. The phrase “Financial Literacy is the civil rights issue of this generation” is a consistent theme highlights with the author’s ideas on how to mend the faltering middle class. Though an interesting read, I found most of the book to be similar to other sentiments I’ve heard via social media and other outlets for years. Still, for those looking for more of a societal agenda versus individual, actionable steps, I think the book provides sound advice.

Educational policy change, community engagement, partnering with US workplaces and financial institutions and workplaces and public awareness are the main topics of which the author feels could provide viable solutions to the problem of the middle class financial crisis. I found his advice on parents starting child savings accounts to be fairly helpful as this is one of the first financial books I’ve consumed that posed this tool.

This book would be a great one for financial community managers to read, as I can see them being a part of the target audience. Also, governmental officials interested in helping black and brown communities discover financial independence would find a lot of great insight here. However, I’m not sure most individuals would find much value unless it’s just for knowledge’s sake. 3 stars.

[Shhhhh Ahhhhh · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first, this book upset me. I told myself that the author, a wealthy man, was calling the book "Financial Literacy For All" but then sharing no real financial literacy. Then I realized 2 things. 1. John Hope Bryant using his platform just to teach financial literacy would be a critical underuse of his influence In the position that he's in, he has the ability to help influence policymakers, decisionmakers, bankers, lenders, and other people that have a much bigger impact on the life of an individual in this country than the individual has the ability to make themselves. 2. Financial literacy resources already exist in the world for those that want to learn and this would be redundant.

Once I recoded this book from "a book to teach financial literacy" to "a book about the importance of financial literacy", from something procedural to something visionary, I felt a lot less annoyed. In that sense, this book is great. In it, JHB lays out a vision for a prosperous america driven by the forces
that made it work in the first place. Innovation, good financial practice, and hard work.

I won't speak on my personal opinion too much regarding any of that, as I review books on their own merits against available evidence and not opinions, but I actually do disagree significantly, especially with JHB's recharacterization of MLK Jr's dream. With that said, still 5 stars.

[Eula C · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book description is not completely accurate in this readers opinion. The description says, “ Equip Yourself With the Tools to by Learning How to Budget, Save, Borrow, and Build Wealth.” The book does not provide the tools to really equip the reader with the skills to do these things. I purchased the book to get an insight on the author’s perspective. When the beginning of the book did not produce my expectations, I nearly stopped reading. However, I could not give the book an honest assessment without reading through the book. In reading the book, I did enjoy the author’s biographical perspectives as well as his philosophy on changing the disparities with wealth in this country. I was able to shift my expectations and review the book from that perspective. I appreciate the author’s perspective and his premise for writing the book. Although it is not a “how to” book. It is a book worthy of reading and understanding that the playing field must be leveled.

[Original Greatness · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal read!!! No matter where you are on your journey in life your financial situation has an impact on your choices and decisions. This book is a call to action for everyone regardless of background or ethnicity to take finanical literacy seriously an a national pursuit. John Hope Bryant takes the reader through pivotal events in his life that shaped his his views about people and money. This adventure leads him down a road of constant learning, application and success that he is continuing to build on today. Founding the non-profit organization Operation HOPE, Mr. Bryant provides financial education and resources to level the socioeconomic playing field for underserved people and communities. The book is also filled with websites that contain a myriad of resources and those alone put the reader in a position where this writing pays for itself. Thank you Mr. John Hope Bryant!!!

[Brendan McGoldrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I would have given it a five star but for my own expectations of what I was looking for out of the book (probably more my own fault than the authors). I was expecting it to be a little more basic info rather than anecdotes. The anecdotes were great, and the author has great information and is pretty inspirational, but I was thinking the boom would be more about financial literacy itself rather than its importance. The author was very inclusive in that he was obviously approaching finance with the history of being an African-American, but recognizing that people in other groups have been lacking the information as well and I like that. He includes a lot of history that isn’t in many of the textbooks and that was excellent as well.

[Noah Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides a broad yet insightful look into the financial illiteracy that has shaped our nation, the lack of accessible information, and the widespread misinformation that affects many communities. Rather than offering an in-depth or highly structured analysis, the author presents key discussions, resources, and motivations to help readers explore these issues further. The goal is to encourage awareness, critical thinking, and proactive learning, empowering individuals to seek the knowledge necessary for financial growth and informed decision-making.

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ran into this at the library. Flew through in one day. It does not offer practical advice (my expectations) but I do appreciate the author’s story, history and advocacy. It does come down to education. It’s why we’ve homeschooled and our kids are now also entrepreneurs who are more financially literate than we ever were at their age and are now still catching up! Regardless every young person should read this.

[Buddha Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I give it a 5 because the message behind it is relevant to what we need to be instilling in our own minds and our youth.
That as a nation we can foster growth. A healthy economy is a low crime and high performance operating society.

The writing narrative wasn’t the best but it wasn’t horrible. The book is a quick read and there’s great resources at the end of the book to help you explore what it means to rewrite your mind from making and spending to literacy for growth and healthy habits

[Tamas Kisely · Rating 2 out of 5]

"This book is an easy-to-read first step toward a fulfilling financial future, helping you understand your relationship to work and money, and a key component to untangling the surprisingly simple puzzle of personal finance."
and
"Acting as a critical pillar for those seeking to build a rock-solid financial foundation"
tldr: no, this book is NOT and does NOT give you anything it promises.

[Kelis Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would recommend this book, but readers should be aware that it is not a book teaching you how to be financially literate. It more so explains how a large part of America’s population is financially illiterate and the history behind it. If you’re looking for action steps this is not the book for you, but it is great for setting the scene and beginning your journey.

[Zee · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fifth each of bootstraps biography, mom n' pop wisdom, socioeconomic account of America's past, smart financial tidbits, and vision for the future. You won't disagree with much, but at the cost of not learning much. Partially a plug for his organization and written with a movement in mind, but the kind of book that won't start one.

[Stephen]

I agree with a previous reviewer, this seems to be a mix of biography and what could be a simple newsletter/blog post. I picked this up as it was not a long read but ultimately I don't think there is much that couldn't have been summed up in a short post.

[Shaunese · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book gives you a baseline to motivate you to start your financial journey. It gives you some historical context along with personal experiences that I could identify with currently. It also provides you with resources so you can start your financial literacy journey.

[Juntao Li · Rating 2 out of 5]

Should be named Financial literacy for ME for my FAMILY, for AMERICA. And then bro starts spamming CHYNA CHYNA CHYNA. Like stfu dumbazo, I didnt hear anything about finance except the repeated mention of “financial literacy”. Waste of my time, cuh.

[Nick Salenga · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book that delivers easy-to-follow & powerful new resource for everyday Americans trying to build strong financial foundation.

[Kiona Meade · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great premise and ambition, but not as good as many other personal finance or financial literacy books in my opinion. Still provides some insight into the author’s nonprofit which is interesting.

[Brady Scheiber · Rating 2 out of 5]

Felt more like a biography. Didn’t have a whole lot of financial advice in my opinion.

[Graben Higgins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not what I was expecting but a great read nonetheless. Next up will be Basic Economics to get what I truly yearn to know!

[Reginald Wright · Rating 1 out of 5]

if you're trying to learn about financial literacy, don't buy this book. this book talls about financial literacy history. At this point I feel like I was hustle by bryant and the breakfast club.

[Annabel Dougherty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly explains the history behind why certain groups are at an economic disadvantage. Def promoting his non profit but I enjoyed this book!