Die With Zero by Bill Perkins

Die With Zero is the counterprogram to most personal finance advice and makes the top 5 because it addresses the accumulation obsession that most finance books create. Bill Perkins argument: optimizing to die with maximum wealth is irrational — the goal should be to spend your money and energy on peak experiences at the ages when you can most enjoy and remember them, and to give money to children or causes when it has maximum impact (not after you die at 85). The framework of memory dividends — the compounding psychological returns on experiences you can recall and build identity around — is the most original concept in recent personal finance writing. This book is most valuable for high-income earners who have automated savings and need permission to spend; it is not useful for people who need to build financial foundations first.