The global economy is facing financial turbulence unknown since the 1930s. Home owners have seen their home values plummet. Investors have seen their nest eggs shrink. Retailers cannot find customers. The job cuts keep on coming. How to survive these trying times is the subject of these seven guides.

Funding retirement is the major financial goal for most of us. Armstrong (founder, Investor Solutions, Inc.) and Brown (Grow Rich Slowly) team up to explain how to get the most out of various investment options. They forcefully warn that most Americans are not financially prepared for retirement and present scenarios of what to do, depending on your age and level of financial preparation. Especially timely is their advice on how to recover from the 2008 stock market crash. All in all, essential reading for everyone—except maybe the very wealthy.

Syndicated columnist Karp ("Spending Smart") stresses that after income and other taxes, it is far easier to make a dollar by not spending one than by working for one. He gives simple 1-2-3 instructions on how to assess one's personal financial situation and then provides motivational details on how to spend less and save more. There is also valuable advice on improving one's credit, defending against identity theft, and selecting appropriate savings and investment vehicles. Karp's clear, balanced guide, useful for most readers, is highly recommended.

Financial adviser Roth uses the example of his second-grade son to hammer home the point that investing is simpler than the experts want us to believe. Roth explains that keeping investment costs low with wide diversification has historically beaten the vast majority of professional money managers. He makes specific recommendations on index fund investments and keeps his explanations clear and concise. Not to be overlooked are his many significant insights into market mechanics and psychology. Like Bill Schultheis's The New Coffeehouse Investor (reviewed below), Roth's book is heavy with metaphors, but don't let this distract you from the author's detailed insights. Recommended.

This is the revised and expanded edition of financial adviser Schultheis's very popular 1998 book. In a chatty style, he lays out the tenets of successful long-term investing. His advice is to save early, diversify investments, keep costs low, and ride out short-term market volatility. Though his book covers the well-trodden ground of broad-based index fund investing, his sprightly and up-to-date text and charts will gently inform, reassure, and even entertain those in need of financial help. There are lots of metaphors here, as with Allan Roth's How a Second Grader Beats Wall Street (reviewed above), but the coffeehouse informality—and asides on mountain climbing—lays out a more general lifestyle approach to investing. Readers who can get past the metaphors will find this a good book.

Writer and entrepreneur Seavey looks at today's economic downturn as an opportunity as well as a danger. His variety of methods for ameliorating a downturn's negative effects includes holding precious metals, selling possessions, and relocating to less expensive regions. He also explains how to start a business in tough times and how to invest with an eye to taking advantage of low prices. He peppers his advice with a plethora of examples from personal experience. The personal experience approach, neither hard-edged nor pessimistic, will appeal to many readers.

After a bleak assessment of the magnitude of the current financial crisis, Weiss (chair, Weiss Group, LLC; editor, Safe Money Report) warns of the likelihood of a prolonged, deep deflationary depression. He advises that the best way to ride it out is to convert all possible assets and investments into U.S. Treasury bills or U.S. Treasury money market funds. For those with money to place at risk, he explains how to profit from declines through reverse ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds), determine a financial bottom, and buy at distressed levels. Weiss's dire predictions could come to pass, considering the experiences of the past 18 months, and he has credentials to make such a forecast. While his short-term outlook is bleak, he offers sage advice for long-term investing.

The bloggers at the personal finance site WiseBread.com offer thousands of ways to spend less while still enjoying life. The frugal living part includes ideas ranging from gourmet cooking on a shoestring to cheap sunburn remedies. There are money-saving tips on travel, entertainment, and most other aspects of life. Some of the advice, though (e.g., 21 uses for beer), seems a bit off point. The book's second half is devoted to personal finance topics like budgeting, credit, housing, and even how to hire and/or fire a financial adviser. Brightly illustrated and offering multiparagraph tips organized into topical sections, this guide, while lacking the coherency of Gregory Karp's The 1-2-3 Money Plan (reviewed above), will give novices quick, simple answers.