By: Jim Randel
Publisher: RAND Publishing
Publication Date: April 2009
ISBN: 978-0981893549
Reviewed by: Bill Alberts
Review Date: March 30, 2010

Did you know that 14% of U.S. cardholders have more than 10 credit cards and it’s estimated that those who use credit cards have an average debt of $10,000?! If you read The Skinny on Credit Cards, you’ll learn these facts and so much more.

In our busy world, where people barely have time to go to their kid’s soccer game, few have the time (or desire) to read a bulky book on credit card usage and finance. Enter Jim Randel and “The Skinny” series of books. Through the use of a simple story with a light dose of humor, short, concise text and stick figure drawings, Randel conveys the important aspects of the credit card world.

In The Skinny on Credit Cards, the reader meets Billy and Beth. Beth is a saver but Billy likes to spend. They have 13 credit cards and before long, have amassed $25,000 in debt. Jim Randel, in stick figure form (“What a good looking man!” exclaims the bubble above Beth’s head) comes along to help the troubled couple. Randel explains if Billy and Beth, “…never use your credit cards again, with $25,000 of debt, an interest rate of 15% and fixed payments of $500 every month, it will take you 79 months to pay off your debt!”

The Skinny on Credit Cards covers everything the reader needs to know to get out of debt (or, more importantly, how to NEVER get into debt!) including late fees, over-the-limit fees, FICO scores, and even how cards that offer rewards and rebates typically have higher rates and fees. Finally, Billy, Beth, and the reader learn about Randel’s three points to pay down debt as quickly as possible. This book is an excellent resource for those troubled with credit card debt and should be in every high school to teach students how to handle credit before they get buried beneath debt.

Quill says: For an easy and thorough explanation of the credit card world, get a copy of The Skinny on Credit Cards.