Are you planning to retire?  Have you already retired and want to make it better?  Do you know someone who might be in one of those groups?  This is probably a good book for anyone in those groups.  Christine Benz, director of personal finance and retirement planning at Morningstar, has written a wonderful book with a series of conversations with experts in various areas related to a successful retirement. The full title is How to Retire: 20 lessons for a happy, successful, and wealthy retirement .

Although the title suggested (at least to me) that this book would mainly be about getting ready for retirement, I was mostly wrong.  It is about getting ready but there is so much more.  The book is great for those nearing retirement but there is much that is valuable for those of us already retired.  And it could also benefit those younger folks who are thinking ahead and considering options like retirement or semi-retirement.

I am over 15 years into retirement now, and still found the book interesting with many useful ideas.  I read the advanced reading copy (ARC) on my Kindle before publication but various things came-up and I am just writing the review now. I thank Netgalley for the ARC. The book is easy to read and since each chapter covers one conversation you don’t have to read the chapters in any particular order or you can skip parts that don’t seem to apply to you. I plan on getting a printed copy and keeping it on my bookshelf as a reference for me as well as others.

At the end of each conversation Christine Benz summarizes the main points and gives references for further reading if you want to learn more.  Many of the references are online so most readers should be able to access them easily.  I liked that several different viewpoints were covered on several of the issues. Foe example, some experts on the financial aspects of retirement liked annuities while others disliked them.

The non-financial aspects of retirement are also well covered.

I highly recommend this book for those who are already retired or getting close to retirement age.  Those decades away from retirement could also benefit.