Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Reviews of The Complete Tightwad Gazette

The Complete Tightwad  Gazette
The Complete Tightwad Gazette
Author: Amy Dacyczyn
ISBN-13: 9780375752254
ISBN-10: 0375752250
Publication Date: 12/15/1998
Pages: 976
Rating:
  • Currently 4.3/5 Stars.
 144

4.3 stars, based on 144 ratings
Publisher: Villard
Book Type: Paperback
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

19 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 52 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 12
Amy Dacyczyn teaches black-belt frugality. Great book full of money-saving ideas.
mommytsunami avatar reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on
Helpful Score: 12
This has been one of my favorite books of all time. I still use several of the tips every day and have for years.
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 15 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 11
this book had so many ideas on how to make do with less. awesome.
littlestar avatar reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 15 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
The BEST book to read if you're interested in saving money. Amy Dacyczyn gives you tips and tricks that you haven't heard anywhere else. I love the whole series of the Tightwad Gazette. I refer to them often. Such an awesome book!
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 4 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
The original frugal encyclopedia. Not every single one of Amy's ideas will appeal to you, but I bet about a dozen or so will and that makes this book worth every penny. My husband found this book for me at a local thrift store and I've read it at least once a year, every year for about four years now. If you're into TRUE frugality you will love this book!
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 10 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
Great information, some is a little outdated but overall there are many wonderful suggesstions... this is a must read for anyone interested in saving $$!
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 10 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Best book on frugality, bar none. Some advice is out there, some is a little dated, but overall, terrific advice!
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 8 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
This book has changed my life. I have never had a problem with money or making ends meet, so I can only imagine what an impact it would make for someone who has had such problems. For me, I have really changed my way of grocery shopping, eating, etc., and really appreciate the savings and the change in lifestyle. It is really a wonderfully supportive book for anyone looking to get off the high-consumer treadmill and feeling that they are alone. I had borrowed the book from the library and then had to buy my own copy since there was so much useful information. My advice would be to start on page 148, then go back to the beginning of the book.
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 14 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
I am sorry to say folks but I hated this book. Her ideas are mostly about how to recycle garbage into more useless things. I have found I can live without many items and save gobs of money that way. If you don't buy you save. It just seemed like a lot of worthless hoarding of junk, turning it into more junk. I could only get through about 1/3 of the book before sending it on it's way. I live a simple life, shop at thrift stores/garage sales, recycle, re-use as well. I think my time could be better spent focusing on living with less then reading this book....be your own judge.
***A single gal from Oregon, living on $1000 a month comfortably.
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 12 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
A must have for learning to stretch every pinch of your dollars. She covers a lot of what is to know about being frugal. This is a really thick book. Every house should have this book. Wish I had this when I was younger. This book has blessed me, and it will bless you. You won't regret the purchase of this book. In fact you'd probably make back your money in savings. I did, and then some. Awesome!
Yoni avatar reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 327 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Some good ideas, but I didn't like this as much as I had hoped to. Many ot the items pertain to families with children and I since I don't have any, it wasn't that useful. And I would just never have the chutzpah to dumpster dive! :-)
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 168 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This book is like a one stop resource for frugality. I learned a lot from it!

However, one thing that I would caution on is the food advice in this book. The food we eat is an investment in our health. The healthier we are, the less we visit doctors, and thus the less money we spend on medical bills. The suggestions for food and recipes featured in this book seem like a health disaster!

Aside from that, the book offers hundreds of ways to save. It's definitely opened up a lot of ideas for me.
quiltnut60 avatar reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 19 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
The tips in this book are priceless. I recommend this book over all other "penny pincher" books that are on the market. WELL worth the money to buy the book. The first 10 pages will save you enough money to pay for the book.
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on
Helpful Score: 1
This book is one of my favorites!!! It includes so many super doable ways that you can save money and cut corners whether you're working towards a big goal or just having tough economic times. I use so many of he baking tips in my regular everyday baking. I lost my treasured copy when we moved and Have been trying to get a new one. They seem to be rare and so hard to find and in high demand and for VERY GOOD REASON!
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 10 more book reviews
957 pages of tightwad tips for frugal living.
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 3 more book reviews
Excellent book. Live on less and what is enough and our country would not be in the mess it is now. A must read for every one who has lost a job, with debt, and whose property i being forclosed on.
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 40 more book reviews
I loved this book. Still trying some of the ideas to try to save money!!! It is a big book. And has a bit of something for everyone!!! Though we all draw the line some where and I draw it at dumpster diving, lol!!! I wish she would write some more books. Think she used to have a newsletter too?
reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on + 3559 more book reviews
Beautiful Copy! Though tightwad seems like a derogatory term, author Amy Dacyczyn wants to assure you that it's okay to be a penny-pincher. This self-styled "Frugal Zealot" wrote and published The Tightwad Gazette for over six years to spread the frugal gospel. Each issue contained tips from her personal experience and from her many readers. The wealth of information contained in all these issues has been compiled into one volume for the first time. You'll find literally thousands of ideas for saving money, from the simple or practical to the difficult or bizarre. On the simple, practical side, Dacyczyn advises would-be tightwads to keep track of price trends at several stores in a "price book" and to buy in bulk when prices are low. Other, stranger offerings include tips for turning margarine-tub lids into playing-card holders, old credit cards into guitar picks, and six-pack rings into a hammock or volleyball net. More helpful are inexpensive recipes for making homemade versions of pricey, well-known products and ingenious ways to fix broken or damaged items. The book's disorganization encourages browsing, but the detailed index will point you to the exact page for specific items. Dacyczyn's occasional "thriftier than thou" tone is balanced by the friendly support for frugality that infuses every page. She even reminds her readers that it's okay to "sweat the small stuff"--because this small stuff is the essence of frugality.
kathyk avatar reviewed The Complete Tightwad Gazette on
Was a fan from the beginning, back when she had her newsletter. I never could obtain her level of thrift, but enjoyed reading her newsletters. She could be a bit judgy, though.
I even got her family letters, and it was there she stated she agreed with Rush Limbaugh and I kind of distanced myself.
I still think of her when something in real life reminds me of something she wrote.
Good for hardcore thrifters, or those who just want to read about them.