Good Reads: Suddenly Frugal by Leah Ingram

Our lives are full of opportunities for insight & inspiration – we simply need to be open to them. Author Leah Ingram & her family found themselves in deep debt. It was time to cut back on spending by getting creative on a budget. With a little research & some straightforward changes, they saved $25,000 in one year.

Yes, $25,000 … that is the average low-to-middle class income for an entire year!

Leah has been chronicling her enviably penny-pinching on her Suddenly Frugal blog for nearly 3 years. The site is a progressive resource for affordable ideas, events, recipes, & oodles more. On Monday, January 18th, Leah is taking her frugal ways to a new audience with the release of the Suddenly Frugal: How to Live Happier & Healthier for Less book.

I’m delighted to have read the book already and … are you ready … this book R-O-C-K, ROCKS ROCKS ROCKS! Leah’s writing style is friendly,open, and informative. Having grown up in a frugal family in a small Indiana town, living well for less is familiar territory. Though I was already aware of a number of the concepts Leah shares, it is uber-helpful to have them all in one book. My blue highlighter was very busy, yet I was still about to finish the book in 2 days.

Thanks to Suddenly Frugal, I’m finally going to start doing DIY things I’ve been attempting for years, like:

+ Making my own laundry detergent

+ Using my AAA & Borders Rewards discounts

+ Buying microfiber clothes & using less paper towels

+ Renting more DVDs from the library & trying Redbox

+ Look for more affordable-to-free local events

If you still think that saving money means living a dull life, check out the book’s introduction. Here, you’ll find the truth behind the 4 most common myths about frugality – you can still have fun, eat well, go shopping, and keep the kids happy.

Bonus: Add Leah Ingram on Twitter & get more new tips on how to live “suddenly frugal!”

BIG NEWS: Just last week, Leah announced that she is working on a second Suddenly Frugal book, titled CASH FOR CLUTTER: The Suddenly Frugal Guide to Getting Organized and Making Money from Your Stuff. The book it scheduled to hit stores in Fall 2010!