The bestselling book on intermediate accounting, Kieso is an excellent reference for practicing accountants and an invaluable resource for anyone entering the field. It integrates FARS/Codification exercises, cases, and simulations into the chapters. The above is the description for Intermediate Accounting
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121 of 128 people found the following review helpful
This review is from: Intermediate Accounting (Hardcover)
Except for having to buy it new, there are reasons to like the Kieso series including this 13th edition of Intermediate Accounting, which is really Financial Accounting II. These authors have done everything to make the subject progressively more accessible in each edition. I know as I suffered through the courses once too. I have a master's in accounting and am a CPA. It's surprising how many accounting texts assume the student has certain prerequisite skills and knowledge and equally surprising how so many accounting professors want to lecture on what enhances their knowledge base instead of teaching to the student. The Kieso books are really teaching books. I buy used recent editions for myself just for reference since they're so well done and so cheap. Not all CPAs do that but I practice financial accounting.
You'll be lucky if the professor is permissive enough to go with an older series because most students quickly sell these books once the course is over, so used editions are MUCH cheaper. But most professors insist on the most recent edition. I think they're motivated because their authority rests on being up to date. In this 13th edition, there's a big emphasis on International Accounting Standards, and you can be sure the professors want to bone up on this themselves. The financial meltdown has discredited the whole U.S. financial complex, and one result is that the pull is now stronger toward international accounting standards rather than U.S. GAAP. Also, the authors anticipate that everyone wants to use the cheaper previous edition, so they always change the end of chapter problems. The publisher also provides the professors with additional materials including exam materials, so there's always the incentive for the professor to use the latest edition and claim that it's the only acceptable one due to the end of chapter problems.
These are really heavy books - no fun to carry around. The book weighs 6.2 pounds. That's ridiculous. 1,440 pages and you darn well have to know this material. This gives a hint why so many people, despite knowing that good accountants tend to stay employed in a recession, won't even consider this route. But at least the Kieso books, other than their workbooks, are hardcover with large dimensions and quality paper and binding. Nothing is worse than using a thick softcover text that feels like a phone book. Unfortunately they're expensive new, and you might one day be buying the 18th edition used for a fraction of this price.
Note, if you need the WileyPlus access code, it is NOT included with this book. If your professor makes you get the code, you've got to spend even more money. You get this access code at the Wileyplus website. A kind student emailed me that the code now costs .50 at the site. Wiley also puts in place separate deals with some but not all college bookstores, although then the prices vary a lot at the college bookstore level. Sometimes, depending on how the professor intends to use the WileyPlus resource, you might just ask the professor and get the code, but those cases are rare.
A word of caution and encouragement: This Intermediate Accounting course along with the first one, Financial Accounting, are the two that were traditionally used to weed out students from becoming accounting majors. You've got to spend a lot more time on this course than you usually would for a typical course. Good luck - I wish you the best!
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This review is from: Intermediate Accounting (Hardcover)
This book is wonderful. I was skeptical at first with all the negative reviews about its complexity and its only uses for people who are already accountants. The fact is I am studying for the CPA and I was reading the Bick Financial books. Not only was it so stodgy, It didn't explain any of the terminology. I was reading on FIFO/LIFO from the Kieso book and they explained such words as base year, year 1 layer, price indexes. Not only that, they provided concrete examples in the form of journal entries and financial statements. Yes this book is heavy, but I am taking this class online. Even then, the conciseness and All in one reference makes this book worth carrying around. Dare I say this is like an accountant's bible?
Notes on the language -I am an average reader and am still a student. I think the words they use are fairly simple(compared to the CPA texts I have read at the very least) There hasn't been a concept that has befuddled me yet. Topics and terminology are fairly easy to find. I haven't tried to look up anything obscure, but if I run into any trouble, I'll let you guys know.
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This review is from: Intermediate Accounting (Hardcover)
This book is required for an Intermediate accounting class that I am taking. The teacher has indicated that most of his colleagues have this textbook in their offices as a reference. THe CPA exam is also based on intermediate accounting. This book is also used at most colleges. I am only a few chapters into the book, but find that it is easy to understand and comprehensive.
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Schaum's Outline of Principles of Accounting I, Fifth Edition (Schaum's Outline Series)
Confused by accounting? Problem solved. Schaum's Outline of Principles of Accounting I helps you understand basic accounting concepts and offer extra practice on topics such as debits, credits, the chart of accounts, the ledger, inventory measurem The above is the description for Schaum's Outline of Principles of Accounting I, Fifth Edition (Schaum's Outline Series)
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
This review is from: Schaum's Outline of Principles of Accounting I, Fifth Edition (Schaum's Outline Series) (Paperback)
This is a straightforward explaination of basic accounting concepts normally covered in Accounting 101.
This book covers:
1)Financial Statements 2)Classifying Transactions (ledger and trial balances) 3)Accounting transactions (journal entries) 4)Adjusting and Closing entries 5)Merchandise (retail) accounting (COGS, inventory) 6)Special and repetitive transactions 7)Capital and Equity 8)AR and AP 9)Cash and its control. 10)Payroll 11)Plant, equipment, and depreciation
Each chapter has numerous questions and their answers for practice.
This is the first of two book series. This book covers the "meat" of accounting such as general ledger, AP, AR, closing, inventory, and financial statements.
The second book covers more peripheral topics such as Bonds, Equities, and Partnership Accounting etc.
Much of today's accounting is computerized and its transactional processes are hidden from most accountants. This book provides the processes of double entry accounting.
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This review is from: Schaum's Outline of Principles of Accounting I, Fifth Edition (Schaum's Outline Series) (Paperback)
My accounting textbook for my college Accounting I class isn't the greatest and doesn't have that many example problems. I'm a visual learner so seeing the problems and their solution is extremely helpful. Like someone else stated in their review, it won't replace your current accounting textbook but is it a perfect addition if you are also a visual learner, or want to practice problems and see the solutions, since my current book doesn't show solutions (only instructor's copy does).
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This review is from: Schaum's Outline of Principles of Accounting I, Fifth Edition (Schaum's Outline Series) (Paperback)
This book is not a good one to learn accounting principles. It is not one for managers and executives who have to understand income/expenses and balance sheets. While it does offer some rules for debits and credits, it never discusses the underlying reasons for the rules.
The book does offer lots & lots of sample problems and that is probably good for the first year accounting student who plant to become a bookkeeper, but these are not helpful for the business owner.
In short, do not buy this book unless you need to work lots & lots of sample problems.
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The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Accounting Course, 4th Ed (McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Courses)
Quickly get up-to-speed in all basic accounting principles and procedures and apply that knowledge to real-world financial decisions and requests The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Accounting Course has been the gold standard for anyone looking for a fast, no-n The above is the description for The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Accounting Course, 4th Ed (McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Courses)
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
This review is from: The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Accounting Course, 4th Ed (McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Courses) (Paperback)
I own a small business and I needed to get a basic understaning of accounting. This book ended up being the perfect choice The book is very well written and explains accounting in plain english. It gives you what you need to know in order to study accounting in a format that you can very easily understand. The included study plans are extremely helpful as well as the self tests that go along with each chapter. There are not too many books out there that are this informative. I especially enjoyed the author's style of writing. Normally this can be a tedious topic to read about, but not this book.It's very practical in introducing you to real life accounting.
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This review is from: The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Accounting Course, 4th Ed (McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Courses) (Paperback)
I bought this book due to all the glowing reviews here, and now that I have it, I'm thorougly confused--both by the book and by the glowing reviews. In 1999, I took two college accounting courses and made an A in each of them. Now, eleven years later, I am enrolled in school to complete my accounting degree. I bought this book to brush up on my skills before my next accounting class starts in January. I sure wish I had just saved my money on this, and gone ahead and bought a textbook. This book does not explain things well at all. I just completed chapter 4, and I feel like I know less about accounting than I did when I started. Even worse, I have already found several errors, some mathematical, and some are probably typos (amounts put in the wrong columns, etc.). How do I know if I'm doing the problems right, if the answer key is full or errors?
In short, I don't recommend this book for either students or business people. There has to be something that is easier to understand and has fewer errors out there.
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This review is from: The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Accounting Course, 4th Ed (McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Courses) (Paperback)
I am a college student whose area of study is Digital Forensic Investigations, and one of the requirements for the degree is a course in Forensic Accounting, however for whatever reason there is not a prerequisite for this course. I opted to take Principles of Accounting to understand the basics and make it my own prerequisite. Since I have a month and a half off school, I figured I would get a head start and start to familiarize myself with the basic principles so that I wouldn't be totally lost in my class. In this previous semester I had taken Investigating White Collar Crime, and easily understood the basics of Fraud Auditing such as shell accounts, check fraud, money laundering, embezzlement and analyzing this using the Benford-Curve Analysis on statement sheets.
I picked up this book thinking that I would get a great basic understanding for my class next semester. My heart sank when I read "The course assumes the reader to have a layman's acquaintance with such terms as accounts receivable and common stock, but it also assumes zero knowledge of the accounting process at the outset." I bought the book a week ago and I'm still trying to understand Chapter 1: The Balance Sheet. The most frustrating part of this chapter was the fact that it gave a formula for finding "net worth" then 3 pages later it states to disregard that term, and replace it with "stockholders' equity or capital stock." Yet, there is no definition of these terms and aren't even discussed. In the examples of the balance sheet (and there's 5 different layout forms to select from) there's no explanation of why a certain value is entered in column 1 and some of the others are in column 2, and sometimes column 3. It would have been nice to have that explanation. There are tests at the end of each chapter, which is really nice to see, and thought that would help me. In the test problem however there was mention of dividends, mortgage notes, uncollectible funds, unexpired insurance, inventory without ANY mention of these terms or how to include them into a statement sheet, let alone what category they should be included. I feel that if it's on the test then it should be discussed in the chapter.
If this is a 36 Hour course then I have failed. I am now into Night 4 at about 2 hours each session to try to grasp just the first chapter. A lot of these reviews are from business professionals who have given this book great reviews and say it's a "must have" and how much it helped them. I am writing this review from a perspective of a brand new student to this field. Be warned: if you get this book then this is not your only resource to understand this material. I had to use search engines to research basic terminology that I felt should have been included in a glossary, and had to "cheat" by looking at the solution to even begin to understand how to layout the statement sheet because of the added factors on the test question that was not discussed in the forms.
This course may be 36-Hours but that's 36-Hours of studying just the book. Unfortunately that time frame does not include the usage of additional research and information sources.
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