It couldn’t have come at a better time. I just refinanced my mortgage and consolidated all my debt into one monthly payment. I vow to get a fresh start. It seems like I’ve always owed money. Loans from law school took years to finally pay off. Then came the mortgage. And in order to make the 70-year-old home we bought “liveable,” we took out a home equity loan to renovate. Yet, I have friends who have no debt. In fact, they earn income from their investments.

Most people learned very little about money management as children, beyond deposits into their piggy banks. My kids have their own savings accounts, but I have not taught them much about finances, as I’m not a very good role model in that department.

But a new book, “The Super Duper Simple Book on Money” by local financial expert Alan Akina is designed for families like mine – average families that can’t seem to keep from falling farther behind and are having difficulty paying down their debts. The book is available online for free until May 14 by going to www.alanakina.com  It’s simple to download and a fun, quick read which also uses some unexpected modern teaching methods including YouTube and QR codes.

The easy-to-read book has some cool features:

- It has links online to YouTube videos of people he uses as examples and some of the charts in the text;

- It has QR codes for readers who buy the soft cover book letting them see those same links on their smartphones.

Akina was born  in Kahuku and lives on the North Shore and went to BYU-Hawaii. The book reflects upon his rags-to-riches story beginning when his parents divorced when he was six and he and his brother were shuffled from house to house among extended family. From those early, often painful experiences, he writes about how he went about learning the basic financial principles and applying them to his own life.

Eight years ago, Akina started his own financial company, 101 Financial, which has been recognized by Inc. magazine and is a Better Business Bureau of Hawaii Torch Award Winner. He conducts free financial education classes every month on Oahu, Kauai, Hawaii Island and Maui.

The e-book is available free until May 14 as an online download at several web addresses including www.superdupersimplebooks.com, www.101financial.com, on Twitter at @AlanAkina101 and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/alanakina. It is also available in a softback printed edition.