I’m constantly astounded by the huge number of personal finance books that are out there, and it seems like every week I discover a new one or two. How on earth does a person dig through this huge pile of books, many of which offer variations on the same old advice, to find the real gems?

To address this, I’m starting a project: 52 Books in 52 Weeks. For the entire next year, I will read one book related to personal finance a week and review it in depth, spreading the review throughout the week. This will enable all of the readers of The Simple Dollar to get a nice, deep look at each reviewed title. At the end, I’ll hand out some awards from the series, as well as make some specific recommendations.

Why start this in early November? The biggest reason is that so many useful year-long series complete themselves just after Christmas, meaning that the reader has no time to use the set of reviews for gift-giving purposes. By starting the series in early November of this year, I’ll be able to conclude the series in early November of next year, meaning that if you want to give personal finance books as gifts to family, friends, employees, or business acquaintances, The Simple Dollar will be able to provide you with an extremely detailed gift-giving guide.

Each Monday, I’ll start off with a general overview of the book of the week, pointing at what others have said about it and my initial reactions to it. Tuesday through Thursday, I’ll dissect the book in detail, breaking it down into three roughly equal pieces, in order to give you a good feel for the materials within. Then, each Friday, I’ll tie it up with my personal thoughts on the book.

So let’s get started! Below is a link to the first entry for each book in the series; each Monday, I’ll add a link to the newest book in the series here, so you might want to bookmark this entry.

1. The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley and William Danko
2. The 9 Steps to Financial Freedom by Suze Orman
3. Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
4. Make Your Kid A Millionaire by Kevin McKinley
5. The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
6. Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin
7. The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason
8. Rule #1 by Phil Town
9. Smart Couples Finish Rich by David Bach
10. The Number by Lee Eisenberg
11. The Wealthy Barber by David Chilton
12. Real Money by Jim Cramer
13. The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach
14. Generation Debt by Anya Kamenetz
15. Mad Money by Jim Cramer
16. The Money Book For The Young, Fabulous, and Broke by Suze Orman
17. America’s Cheapest Family by Steve and Annette Economides
18. What Color Is Your Parachute? by Richard Nelson Bolles
19. The Bogleheads’ Guide to Investing by Taylor Larimore, Mel Lindauer, Michael LeBoeuf, and John C. Bogle
20. The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need by Andrew Tobias
21. Yes, You Can Get A Financial Life! by Ben Stein and Phil DeMuth
22. Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
23. A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton J. Malkiel
24. Making the Most of Your Money by Jane Bryant Quinn
25. Financial Peace Revisited by Dave Ramsey
26. The Little Book of Common Sense Investing by John C. Bogle