"Mutual funds for dummies" is the third book from the "Dummies" series I got my hands on. Reading the first two was a waste of time, and frankly speaking I did not expect much from this one either. However, this book was a pleasant surprise, which changed my opinion on the "Dummies" books. The first half of the book is a comprehensive study of the basics of mutual funds and of the criteria for evaluating their performance and selecting the best funds. It is so well written that I asked myself many times while reading what this book had to do with the "Dummies" series. I got the answer to this question at the end of the book, where the author offers detailed instructions which funds can be recommended to start with, how to obtain and fill out an application form, how to understand statements from the fund, and finally how to calculate your taxes at the end of the year. This book is indeed a benchmark which other books from the "Dummies" series should be compared with: a combination of sufficiently detailed information for those who want to know what they are doing, with step-by-step instructions and detailed advice for those who want to get started right away and do not have the time or the background to study the possible options and make their own independent picks of the funds. Another impressive aspect of this book is that the author makes every attempt to convince the readers not only look into the performance of individual investment vehicles, but also to take into account their individual financial situation, such as long and short term financial goals, tax brackets, availability of retirement accounts, etc. Most other books leave this important aspect completely out of the scope. Finally, Eric Tyson offers a very realistic approach: he makes an excellent job convincing the readers that one does not have to have an MBA to be a successful investor, he explains why mutual funds is possibly the best option for the most of us, he is very frank with the readers as what returns one can (and should) expect from an investment, and finally he suggests the ways how these returns can be reached by offering a choice of 30-40 decent funds. It is hard to get disappointed with this book!