Intermediate Financial Accounting Volume 2

Reviewed by Mostafa Maksy, Professor of Accounting, Kutztown University on 11/7/20, updated 12/6/20

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The book is very comprehensive as it covers most of the material covered in the second course of two-semester Intermediate Accounting sequence. Compared to the text I use, this Volume covers accounting for current liabilities whereas, in my school, accounting for current liabilities is covered in Intermediate Accounting I. To compensate for this, accounting for revenue recognition and accounting for investments are not covered in this Volume but they are covered in Volume 1 (Intermediate Accounting 1).

Content Accuracy rating: 4

This book is covering accounting topics using Canadian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (or Canadian GAAP), which the book refers to as Accounting Standards for Private Enterprises (ASPE) or Private Enterprises (PE) GAAP. The book also ends each chapter with a comparison of ASPE and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). While I am very familiar with IFRS and can attest to the accuracy of the book in this regard, I am not very familiar with Canadian GAAP. However, I know that Canadian GAAP is very similar, in many respects, to US GAAP but there are some differences. For example, US GAAP requires the disclosure of Earnings per Share (EPS) on the face of the income statement, but ASPE does not.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

I believe that, for any faculty teaching at a Canadian university, the book is very relevant. Some examples in the book are somewhat dated but I do not think this is a problem. I would recommend that the material be updated online from time to time especially if there are any revisions to the accounting standards. With respect to accounting for leases it appears to be the same as the accounting for leases under US GAAP before it was revised. I believe there has been a very minor revision in Canada as well and, thus, the book needs to be updated.

Clarity rating: 5

The writing of Volume 2 is very clear and the examples used are very easy to follow. This Volume included many examples to illustrate the concepts being discussed. However, some topics, e.g., accounting for stock appreciation rights plans (SARs) or performance-based plans, were covered in theory only without illustrations of journal entries. Perhaps this is due to space limitations because there are so many other difficult topics to cover in Intermediate Accounting 2. But I liked the conversational tone of the writing which makes the book easy to understand by the students.

Consistency rating: 5

The book is internally consistent. All the chapters are consistent as far as the organization and content. The authors are consistent in first introducing the topic and the accounting principles related to the topic, then giving examples of the journal entries required to apply those principles. A summary of learning objectives and exercises are consistently provided at the end of each chapter.

Modularity rating: 5

At the instructor’s preference, the organization flow-chart of each chapter can be segmented further so only certain parts of a chapter can be covered at one time. This is typically the case in most Intermediate Accounting textbooks because some faculty have two classes a week, some have one class a week, and some may even have three classes a week.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Each chapter starts with a beginning story, followed by learning objectives, then a brief introduction of the chapter content and an organization flowchart of the main topics. Each chapter also ends with a summary of the learning objectives covered in it to reinforce the concepts discussed. Each chapter includes a number of exercises. The solutions of exercises of all chapters are provided at the very end of the book.

Interface rating: 5

I believe the text is free of significant interface issues, including navigation problems, distortion of images/charts, and any other display features that may distract or confuse the reader. I didn’t encounter any of these issues at all.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

In my opinion, there were no significant grammatical errors in the book.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I believe that the text is not culturally insensitive or offensive in any way. It actually makes use of examples that are inclusive of a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.

Comments

I believe that this book is well organized and is written in a very clear way that makes easy to understand by the students. It is an excellent book to use for faculty teaching at Canadian universities or those who are teaching an International Accounting course with some emphasis on IFRS. Some faculty may like the fact that the solutions to all exercises are at the end of the book so they don’t have to post them on the online learning system (e.g., Blackboard, Desire to Learn, Schoology, etc.) but some faculty may not like that because they may want the students to try to solve the exercises on their own first before seeing the solutions.

Reviewed by Jenny Simmers, Associate Professor, Manchester University on 12/17/19

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This text covers most of the subject matter that is covered in a typical second semester of Intermediate Accounting. One additional section that I include in Intermediate Accounting II is revenue recognition; however, it appears this is covered in the first book (for use in Intermediate Accounting I).

Content Accuracy rating: 4

It is difficult for me to speak to this fully as this text covers the material using International Financial Reporting Standards rather than US GAAP, which is what I teach in my classroom. The convergence between the two sets of standards has created many similarities, so the material was not unfamiliar yet there are some differences in terminology and the way certain reporting is handled. I did not notice any glaringly inaccurate statements nor did I notice any bias in the writing.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Most examples given were from the 2014-2015 timeframe, so they are just a few years old. This is a problem with any text as time elapses between the writing and the publishing of the text. The subject of accounting is sensitive to timing as the standards being used to prepare financial statements are constantly changing. I think the way in which the material is presented, any updates could be easily incorporated.

Clarity rating: 5

The text was easy to read with appropriate context for understanding new terms. There are an abundance of examples to illustrate the concepts being discussed. The tone is conversational which makes the reading flow well and learning more effective.

Consistency rating: 5

The chapters are set up in the same way with a beginning story, then learning objectives are stated. After this, the content of the chapter is presented with information grouped according to main topic and examples included within. At the end of each chapter, the learning objectives are summarized again for reinforcement of the concepts. After the chapter content, there are a number of exercises where students may apply the topics.

Modularity rating: 4

If preferred, each chapter could be segmented further to cover only certain parts of a chapter at one time. The book is organized in a similar fashion to the text that I am currently using in my course. I will typically spend three or four 50-minute class sessions per chapter.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The organization of the text is good. There is an opening to each chapter that introduces actual application of the material about to be presented. Learning objectives are stated clearly at the beginning of the chapter and again at the end of the chapter to wrap up and summarize the content that was just discussed. There is even a flowchart included in each chapter that covers this very topic – the organization of the material in the chapter.

Interface rating: 4

I did not encounter interface issues. There were many examples given which were easy to read and follow. These illustrations were not overdone; in fact, I might have liked a few more images to break up the monotony of the text. Accounting can tend to be dry, to liven it up a bit including more pictures, charts, colorful sections with actual application scenarios would help engage the reader a little better.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not identify any significant grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I did not notice any cultural bias. It would be difficult to do this, in my opinion, with accounting information. There is variety in the examples given. There is also much diversity in the companies used. A comparison of International Standards with ASPE (accounting standards for private enterprises – Canadian GAAP) is given at the end of each chapters in an easy to read table format.

Comments

I think the book is well organized and is written with students in mind. The many examples included aid in understanding the material. While I could not use this text in my course as I teach US GAAP rather than IFRS, I think it could work well for other instructors who do teach IFRS. It could work as a supplement to other required materials in my course. I like to have a robust set of exercises and problems to assign and this text includes some exercises, but not as many as I personally would like to see. The solutions to these exercises are included at the end of the text for each chapter. This has both advantages and disadvantages.
It is fantastic that resources such as this exist!