A forgettable book in a nutshell
I read this book several years back, and frankly remember very little of it. In a nutshell, the real lesson of the book is that the poor buy necessities (food, clothing, etc.) the middle class buy liabilities (cars, boats, etc.) while the rich buy assets (stocks, bonds, real estate).

If You Only Take ONE Thing From This Book ...
... take the definitions of both an ASSET and a LIABILITY.

I read this book the first month it came out when I was a floating on a raft at the Hyatt in Kauai and I was so taken with it, I finished it and reread it a 2nd time. And I was on vacation. The entertaining style of it held my interest. What most held my interest though was his explanations of ASSETS and LIABILITIES. Gosh you know, all my life I was taught to believe my house was an ASSET. Well it is an ASSET - to the bank that holds the mortgage. To me it is a LIABILITY and a Money Pit.

Now it is nice to have a place to sleep at night and it's all mine! I can paint the walls any color I want!! But it sure ain't an ASSET. And I have all the bills to attest to that.

I do recommend the book to everyone. It really is basic accounting for your lifetime & family. Education is education and meaningful education is the name of the game. Somebody else wrote a review that if his grandparents were alive today, well, they would be dead today instead, because they would not be able to navigate the New Paradigm of 'Every Man for Himself'. He's got a point. The world IS changing, right now as you read this. This book is written for the Everyday Man and Woman. Good information to open up your brain and think about how and what you want to do to assure yourself a future.

Only "Rich Dad" Book Worth Buying
Worth the money for the authors approach about assets and liabilities. His personal story is not very interesting but I like the way he focuses on different types of income. Do not expect a lot of detailed information since most of his "examples" are BS. His wife needed a new car so she just went out and found a property that would give her $500/month cash flow with no money down. Yeah right. All said and done though this book will motivate you and help keep your head in the right mind-frame.

Do not bother buying ANY of the other Rich Dad, Poor Dad books, they are only a re-hash of the information in this one.

Good ideas, but...
The book has some great ideas, but I get the mental image of a late night infomertial. The basic storyline of the book is a bit far fetched, but there are plenty of ideas about finances and investing to get you thinking.

Common Financial Advice Wrapped Within a Story
Rich Dad Poor Dad became a best seller as a result of either introducing or reminding the masses of basic financial principals. The storyline is presented in a manner describing this advice from both a successful father figure with little schooling but ample street smarts, and a less successful father with an abundance of education but little financial sense. Given that only a small sector of society generally finds interest among dry financial books, the writing style undoubtedly also had a lot of influence on the success of this book.

Kiyosaki provides an adequate overview of assets versus liabilities and in depth explanation as to why assets with earning capacity are true assets while others that cost money to sustain (such as your home) are not. However, the message could have been given proper justice in a brief essay as opposed to a best selling book. The principle at heart, while true to the bone, is nothing more than what one would arrive at with a simple understanding of bookkeeping and common sense. Kiyosaki provides a lot of cliché with a story about his two Dads to attempt to add depth to the book, but otherwise the book provides little insight except perhaps to those with limited financial aptitude.

Kiyosaki is certainly a master marketer and undoubtedly made millions by marketing his books, so perhaps if there is a silver lining to the book it is that one might discover the genius behind how to market a book by reading Kiyosaki. Otherwise, look to the cliff notes on this book and save your time and money for a book that offers a more comprehensive study on finance.