Books
Books on early retirement:
- Work Less, Live More by Bob Clyatt is, in my opinion, a must read for anybody interested in early retirement. The original book, Work Less, Live More: The New Way to Retire Early was followed up by a second edition, Work Less, Live More: The Way to Semi-Retirement. Either one is a good read in my opinion. The investing chapters, as well as the discussion on early withdrawal rates are outstanding. The second edition book also has a companion workbook + CD Rom available. I'm not quite as enthusiastic about the workbook as I found some of the information to be rather basic.
- While note explicitly about early retirement, IRAs, 401(k)s & Other Retirement Plans: Taking Your Money Out by Twila Slesnick and John Suttle is a must-read on my list. If you're like me and you have the majority of your investments in 401ks and IRAs, this book offers the most detailed breakdown of all the requirements and exceptions that you need to know about.
- If you're just dying to read more on early retirement then you might consider How to Retire Early and Live Well With Less Than a Million Dollars by Gillette Edmunds. While overall the book is interesting, the investing advice is lacking in detail.
- William J. Bernstein is one of my favorite finance authors. If you're new to his books, I would recommend starting off with The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio. If that leaves you wanting more, then move on to The Intelligent Asset Allocator, but be ready for gruesome levels of detail that just might put you to sleep unless you're a serious finance nerd.
- Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment by David Swensen is an excellent book for the individual investor that challenges some of the accepted norms on bonds. Swensen is the rather famous manager of the Yale endowment.